Apostrophe crimes

[LGTrotter]

Next week Prof Jewesbury will extemporise on why everything is rubbish and why we are all collectively responsible for this shabby state of affairs. A follow up tour entitled 'querulous curmudgeons unplugged' will play to packed houses of Daily Mail readers, survivalists and the elderly. Book early to ensure disappointment.

[djewesbury]

Spelling. Jewesbury.

[LGTrotter]

Spelling. Jewesbury.

Apologies.

[PopulusTremula]

Two quick tongue-in-cheek thoughts on DJ's lamentation above:

1. It is in the nature of those who are not young to worry about and to decry the abilities of those who are. This has gone on for millennia.

2. I suspect your population sample is small, biased and unrepresentative of the young population as a whole. Whilst the sample can be analyzed the conclusions are most likely applicable only to the sample itself (or to a wider group of individuals who share the attributes of those in the sample).

[djewesbury]

1. Yes. But that is why I said that this should not be blamed on supposedly 'new' secondary teaching methods (and why the Daily Mail readers wouldn't like me). I think this has more to do with government policy toward third level education than any supposed problems at second level. But anyway, yes, that's why I said it was a perpetual problem.

2. True. Very true. But the findings are consistent across many such small samples across very many years (and in different subjects at different institutions). I feel it acutely today because I'm marking rather than teaching. But the feeling never really goes away. And in all the years I've done this I've not met one academic who disagrees with me. That's disheartening.

[PopulusTremula]

1. I think this has more to do with government policy toward third level education than any supposed problems at second level. But anyway, yes, that's why I said it was a perpetual problem.

As in more unis equals dilution of the student brain pool? I would not disagree with that per se but would probably caveat it by stressing that not all problems are only ever black or white.

And in all the years I've done this I've not met one academic who disagrees with me. That's disheartening.

Nor have I, which although my sample is drastically smaller than yours, allows for two potential conclusions:

1. The quality of students has decreased; and/or
2. Academics' propensity to gripe has increased

I know i'm a little obtuse but what else is there to liven up a dreary Wednesday? In all seriousness, I think your observations are more correct than not and some of the corroroborating stories I've heard from people on the inside are hilarious, at least when observed from a safe distance, i.e. one which does not bump the blood pressure to "DRT's pre-salad-days" levels.

[djewesbury]

As in more unis equals dilution of the student brain pool?

Not just that; but I think it's an important dimension.

DIATRIBE ALERT

The two crucial questions that I see are

1. why do successive governments want more school leavers to attend university, and
2. what do they want them to do there?

I don't believe that the answer to [1] is 'because they want society to be more equal', because there's plenty of evidence to disprove that. As someone who lectures in a department of Media, Film & Journalism, and with Media Studies being the usual butt of ill-informed jokes about 'the problem with universities', I'm loath to start moaning about falling standards in universities. I take seriously what I do and I have colleagues who I think are amongst the best in their field.

But.. the universities, until the late 1980s, were part of a system that grew up over hundreds of years, to equip a particular class of people to fill the roles that that class needed to be filled (which means that reverse engineering them in an effort to get them to be something else is not very easy). Polytechnics and redbricks were introduced to try and equalise access to higher education and also to change the concept of what that education could comprise (with revolutionary disciplines like Cultural Studies and Media Studies completely revitalising the moribund field of Literary Studies, for instance). I think the Polys were extremely successful. Their abolition was the real low point; because it meant that all third level education was henceforth to be transformed into 'vocational' education. That was bad news for the ex-Polys and redbricks most of all, because they couldn't insulate themselves from change in the way the older institutions could.

So we end up at a situation where all the relevant parties (academics, university management, government, business/indsutry and the poor bloody students) all have a different idea of what on earth they're there for. I think I'm there to offer a pure, mind-expanding experience of education, Discere Gratiā Discendī, and obviously I whinge about having to report on phoney statistics to do with 'graduate employability' and the like. The students, meanwhile, who are told that university is 'best', nonetheless think they're on a glorified training course, and are surprised when they discover that their Humanities degree is not the key to open all employment doors. The businesses complain that we aren't churning out the people they need (whoever they are, and as if they knew). And the government just want a compliant management to help them tick off their short-term policy objectives. We do not know what universities are even supposed to be for any more.

Colleagues in Europe are always aghast at this scenario, which depresses me even more.

some of the corroroborating stories I've heard from people on the inside are hilarious, at least when observed from a safe distance, i.e. one which does not bump the blood pressure to "DRT's pre-salad-days" levels.

It's true, it's true. Our university is now being used to channel money from the European Investment Bank into regeneration in the city centre, because if the Northern Ireland Executive were to apply for those funds itself, the sum would be deducted from the block grant. I'd love to know how this helps us fulfil our core objectives, but as I say, we don't have a clue what they are any more.

[PopulusTremula]

Well said and i can but agree even though i am not au fait with all details and intricacies concerning academic life, education policies etc.

This topic is a well-beaten horse but it seems the old nag just refuses to die...

[djewesbury]

This topic is a well-beaten horse but it seems the old nag just refuses to die...

Doing my best!

[Glenn E.]

2. I suspect your population sample is small, biased and unrepresentative of the young population as a whole.

Dare I open this box labeled "Pandora"?

[djewesbury]

2. I suspect your population sample is small, biased and unrepresentative of the young population as a whole.

Dare I open this box labeled "Pandora"?

Go for it.

[Glenn E.]

2. I suspect your population sample is small, biased and unrepresentative of the young population as a whole.

Dare I open this box labeled "Pandora"?

Go for it.

I'm quite certain you're aware of the box to which I refer.

[djewesbury]

Well this thread is the place to have the discussion, Glenn. I'm not sure I do actually know what you refer to but I have an inkling.

[20 pages later...] Phew, I'm glad we cleared that one up!

[Glenn E.]

Oxford!

[LGTrotter]

Oxford!

Exactly. When are they going to sort out the parking?

[AW77]

1. It is in the nature of those who are not young to worry about and to decry the abilities of those who are. This has gone on for millennia.

+1
And I think we all should have more faith in the younger generation. Remember, they will pay our pension. So we should have a little faith in them.

[djewesbury]

No, they won't. Those days are well and truly over André!

[AW77]

Daniel, don't be so grumpy. It's no good to get worked up over something you cannot change anyway.

[djewesbury]

Daniel, don't be so grumpy. It's no good to get worked up over something you cannot change anyway.

We can all change everything André, but in order to do so we have to be able to see it clearly in the first place. :triumphant optimist:

[jdaw1]

2. I suspect your population sample is small, biased and unrepresentative of the young population as a whole.

Dare I open this box labeled "Pandora"?

I saw the box, and decided to restrain myself.

Remember, they will pay our pension.

Oh no they won’t.

[djewesbury]

Oh please, please open the box marked 'statistical fallacies'.

[PhilW]

Remember, they will pay our pension.

Oh no they won’t.

Indeed. An elderly friend of mine was shocked to find out that the government does not in fact take all our national insurance payments and save them up for the day we retire, and then pay pensions from them. The similarity between pensions - you pay in all your life, while those who paid first take your money out; the repeat for successive generations, requiring each new generation to put increasingly larger contributions into the pot and/or relying on interest/investment growth in the interim - and pyramid or ponzi schemes is entirely coincidental, I'm sure; no need to worry about a decade of flat interest rates or an increasing elderly proportion of the population; I'm sure that the fact no politicians seem to be raising/addressing this must mean there is no cause for concern, right?

Mr Mannering, don't panic!

[djewesbury]

Spelling. Mainwaring. Thank god you were already in apostrophe crimes.

[Glenn E.]

Oh please, please open the box marked 'statistical fallacies'.

Wrong box.

[djewesbury]

Well the Oxford clue has me completely flummoxed. So you'd better open the box.