Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

Stayed clear of the Mods and Rockers. Though I used
to go to the pubs in Richmond and Eel Pie Island where
the Stones,Yardbirds,Who and Strawbs all played live as
they were based in the area.
All free then but you had to pay a penny on the Toll
bridge to the island.

In the 50s and 60s you would have received a grant from your local council for your fees and maintenance costs. The trick was being accepted as the entry qualifications were a lot higher than now. One of the problems is that many students are doing silly degrees in media studies at universities that are really just technical colleges. The degrees are no use to them especially when the employer sees it came from a pretend university. There are just too many people going to university. The higher fees might put a few off.

How were polytechnics and technical colleges funded 30 or 40 years ago? It's a serious question to which I don't know the answer, but it seems to me that if students' education at those establishments was LA funded all those years ago, then the only thing that has changed since is the name.

Fwiw, I went to a drama college in Stratford and I'm pretty sure that I can remember getting a grant.

Edit: Is it simply just a case that more people are going into higher education in this day and age, and it is that which is causing the funding pressure?

Always thought you were a drama queen Hiltops :-)

Hilary
That is the problem. There has become an obsession that everyone should go to university. In fact it is not suitable for many people. Even sixth form college is unsuitable for some. Many of the kids do not turn up to lseeons regularly or are always late. There are disruptive kids at my son's sixth form college as well as disruptuve teachers.

One of the activist teachers, who is the NUT official there, called out the teachers on strike yesterday over fees. Why she would do this is a mystery as the college are on her side anyway regarding fees, the pupils at the sixth form college do not pay fees.

All she managed to do was deprive the kids of a day's teaching, which is not sensible as many have their first AS level exams just after resumption of next term. In fact my son has just missed his last politics class before his exam because of her.

H
6-8 O levels and 2 or 3 A level.
If you were doing chem or physics you
had to have an O in French or German.
This was before they stopped the matriculation
system and started lowering the education bar.

Nice pic

Obviously the Police Officer with his shield upside down,

A Failed his degree.
B Is the senior officer in charge.
C Both A and B
D Is an illiterate student, under cover.
E Obtained a degree in Modern Contemporary Design.

Drama queen, PTH? Possibly. But I do know how to get the best rooms in the best hotels by breaking down into phoney tears at reception.

:o)

Haystack,

That's kind of what I suspected, but I haven't looked at the figures for verification. It seems to me that the best solution would be to ensure students at Russell Group universities get their fees paid by the state to ensure continuity of high standards and prevent subsequent brain drains. Quality has got to be better than quantity.

Hays,

You write "The higher fees might put a few off. "

I think that many from lower and middle income families are likely to be put off going to universities, even though they may be more likely to benefit from that form of education and will be of benefit to society afterwards.

I suppose it will allow room for the less able of the wealthy,to be able to say that they went to a university.

I wonder the how making the universities "self financing" (The maggie thatcher policy) will drive down the standards of degrees given. The problem in education at the moment is that the institutions do not like "failing" students, as this leads to drop outs and less cash in the coffers.


Hilary,

I have always thought of you as a "Drama Queen".

Really? I've always thought of you as a dickhead.

That shows the lack of quality of the little education you seem to have had.

No, there's other people on this thread far more qualified than me who think the same.

Hiltops, due to the fact that posts 10297 & 10299 are missing from my screen (I really can't be arsed to read what the board idiot posts) you look like you're talking to yourself!

:-)))

Likewise here PTH / Hils.

:-)

Yes Hils. Please don't bother replying to those that most have Squelched, as we can tell by your replies that the reason why we squelched them still applies.
You will only be dragged down to their level.

It was interesting to see that several of the protestors at the front of the mob yesterday were Socialist Worker Party followers. They were using their SWP banners on poles to hit the police. There were two distinct protests yesterday.

There was the peaceful protest around Trafalgar Square and a breakaway group who went up the Mall, turned left past Horse Guards parade, behind Number 10 and then left into Birdcage Walk to get into the north part of Parliament square. The breakaway group broke the agreed path of the protest and they were the group which caused all the violence.

There were clearly anarchists, anti-capitalists and left wing activists in that group. It is the avowed aim of the left wing protestors to bring down the government with these protests. They see it as similar to the Community charge riots. The left wing once again are bad losers and can't face the fact that Labour did not win the election. I was listening to the radio a couple of days ago and a teacher at a college who was the secretary for the NUT at the college said that the purpose of the protests was the downfall of the government.

I know from other sources that the coalition is aware of the intentions of the extreme left wing and have asked the police to consider more extreme measures in case of more serious violence. The security services are also investigating several of the activist groups.

Maybe a few people on here saw the SWP banners

Hays,

Does that mean you have insider knowledge.

What is the world coming to?

When I were a lad (early 1960s), 5% of the population went to University. Our fees were paid and we got grants for living. Now, closer to 50% go to "University". There's your problem.

My company is based in premises on the campus of the University of Reading, so I've been party to some interesting lunchtime discussions. It's clear to me that the University needs the money. Equally, I have a lot of sympathy for the foreign students who have to pay their own way (no loans) and are now concerned that completing their courses could be beyond their means.

Micro

A friend of mine Mike Quinn , is a DJ on Blast Radio on the campus of the University of Reading.