Headline, December02, 2013

''' EUROPE : WINNING BY DEGREES '''

''Mi... mi,... what long ears you have, Grandma?'' asked Little Red Riding Hood.

'Why,... of course dear child. All the better to hear History with!!' , grinned the Wolf.

In England, ministers and university bosses complain that the Bologna rules draw too deeply on continental ideas of student achievement, measured in terms of hour spent in seminars and lecture theaters.

Forget hours of work, English dons insist : the world holds both quick learners and plodders.  

''What matters is what a student has learned. They would say that,  other Europeans retort ; they decry Britain's one-year master degrees as lightweight.

The truth is that they are highly competitive  -and they attract lucrative students from overseas. Britain fears they may be threatened by the Bologna guidelines.

The Bologna process has no legal force behind it but it is still forcing big changes. A voluntary agreement among governments, it extends far beyond the European Union with 45 signatory nations, from Norway to Azerbaijan. Self-Interest explains much of its impact.

Bologna has prompted a mass tidying up of the tangle of  the different degrees awarded in different European countries. The main effect will be to ditch the continental style of first degree, which typically takes five to six years; expensive for the tax payer and wastefully languid for the student.

Given that most governments in  ''old Europe'' are terrified of introducing fees, shorter degrees offer the nest best way of saving money.

Adopting the familiar international system of an education in three chunks  - a standard three-or-four year bachelor's degree, a master's for the ambitious, and a PhD for the real brainboxes   -should also make Europe's universities less baffling and more attractive to foreigners. 

Change is still hard. Just Later Greece government abandoned plans to legalise private universities, after three months of protests. In France, selective entrance exams for public universities remain a taboo   -unlike the fabulously exclusive Grandes Ecoles. 

In Finland, Karl-Erik Michelsen of Lappeenranta University complains of a  ''big social democratic project to create a massive number of people with master's degrees.'' The result, he says is that  ''quantity overrides quality.''

But do not underestimate the power of transparency.  Once the students can compare their courses more easily with those offered abroad, they may start to question their degree's value. Even if for many the formal price is zero, students are still paying with their own time, deferring earnings and incurring living costs.

The more hidebound European Universities must be wondering what on earth they have started. Self-interest has prodded them to think about students as customers; both wealthy foreign ones, and bright locals tempted to finish their studies overseas.

Governments have realised they could save money if their universities made students study a bit more briskly, gaining degrees and entering the workforce earlier.

Universities are beginning to compete for the brightest and best European exchange students too. But that's the problem with trying to become competitive. Before you know it, you may find yourself having to compete.

With respectful dedication to the Students of the world. See ya all on !WOW!  - the World Students Society Computers-Internet-Wireless:

''' Blinking In A Bright Light '''

Good Night & God Bless!

SAM Daily Times - the Voice of the Voiceless