Changing our university education system

Letter June 23, 2017
Focus should be on the early years of students when personality and learning is being formed

OXFORD, UK: This is in response to Amin Jan Naim’s article “Larger dimensions” published on June 19th. I agree with the sentiments of the author. We have the same problems in British state schools and right through to tertiary education. The government is dazzled by graduates when many of them do useless subjects like media studies — perhaps even that is civilising, I don’t know. But what I do know is that they should be investing in the early years of students as that is when personality and learning aptitude is laid down.

In an article I recently read, an educationist, Toby Young, suggests that university students don’t need three years to obtain a degree anymore because fact finding and communication is so quick on the web. He says it took us three years because we had to look everything up and wade through books, which is now available on Wikipedia at the touch of a button. It’s an interesting idea, especially with the row about student fees going on. Young thinks one year is sufficient, but he may be falling into the skills trap and not the true purpose of a university education. But I don’t see why university education couldn’t be reduced to two years. Also there should be much more provision for apprentices as there is a crying need for them.

We wouldn’t need Poles if we trained our own plumbers but that seems a bit difficult for the government to compute. And I totally agree with Mr Naim’s opinion about the highest points of excellence in our civilisation and culture. I am sad only to see white hairs at the theatre — the young don’t go and as a result, the plays are dreary and repetitive with very little exciting modernist writings.

Julia Miles

Published in The Express Tribune, June 23rd, 2017.

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