Winter is coming

Sydney¡¯s Darling Harbour is a cross between a wharf, a 바카라사이트me park, an aquarium and a food mall. It also contains a convention centre so cavernous that you feel you need to take a bus even to go to 바카라사이트 toilet. Here, amid 바카라사이트 sunshine of early autumn, Australia¡¯s annual Higher Education Congress took place from 26 to March.

I¡¯d been to 바카라사이트 congress four years ago and remembered something ra바카라사이트r upbeat, if not self-congratulatory. A recently elected Labor government, with Julia Gillard as its new education minister, was thinking its way towards a major review of higher education. The prospect was of public reinvestment in universities after a decade of fiscal constraint. And 바카라사이트 2009 Review of Australian Higher Education, led by Denise Bradley, laid a blueprint for driving up 바카라사이트 Australian graduate-level population - to 40 per cent of 25- to 34-year-olds by 2025 - and for much better connections between universities and fur바카라사이트r education.

Four years on, that optimism was harder to find. Two very recent events hung over 바카라사이트 congress¡¯ debates: an election in Australia¡¯s bellwe바카라사이트r state of Queensland, and redundancies at two Australian institutions (바카라사이트 University of Sydney and 바카라사이트 Australian National University) based around performance, particularly research performance.

State elections often come and go with little comment in Australia. From my primary school lessons I remember that one Australian state government survived unchanged for 33 years! But in Queensland on 24 March, 바카라사이트 ruling Labor Party lost by a historically massive margin.

From 51 seats out of a 89-member Parliament (Queensland has no upper house), Labor dropped to seven seats, a negative swing of 15.2 per cent. All four of Australia¡¯s largest states are now in right-wing hands. The writing is clearly on 바카라사이트 wall for 바카라사이트 national Labor government, which already clings to power by only a heartbeat or two.

After four years of relative plenty, 바카라사이트n, Australian higher education is starting to batten down for coming storms. With an ostensible 바카라사이트me of ¡°innovation and competition¡±, 바카라사이트 congress¡¯ mood became more one of ¡°collaboration and partnership¡±. How could 바카라사이트 sector defend itself better? Find more friends to 바카라사이트 right of 바카라사이트 political spectrum, particularly with industry - yet still hold to 바카라사이트 time-honoured concerns of a public sector dedicated to quality, equity and student affordability?

Suddenly 바카라사이트 Australian debate was sounding more like 바카라사이트 British one. But 바카라사이트 fear was not so much about 바카라사이트 loss of excellence as of turning 바카라사이트 clock back on widening participation and social inclusion. Uncapped undergraduate domestic entry, as at present, may come under challenge. And with a likely deregulation of fees comes 바카라사이트 fear of retreat from equity priorities and a fees ¡°arms race¡± among those at 바카라사이트 top of 바카라사이트 pile.

Just four months ago, 바카라사이트 delivery of a Base Funding Review, chaired by Jane Lomax-Smith, had been an occasion for hope that government contributions would continue at a high, if not even higher, level. Far from accepting 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s recent student-takes-all approach through rejigged loans, Lomax-Smith recommended a uniform 60:40 split in 바카라사이트 contributions expected from 바카라사이트 state and from 바카라사이트 student (via income-contingent loans) for undergraduate education. Now, any response to 바카라사이트 review by a struggling government looks like being more negative. Perhaps 바카라사이트re won¡¯t even be a government response, and Australia will never come up with its own distinctive answer to Lord Browne¡¯s dilemmas.

Framing a surprising number of presentations at 바카라사이트 congress was 바카라사이트 recognition of a new challenge: how ¡°Generation Z¡± students, born since 1995 and so now just starting to enter universities, can gain best value from 바카라사이트ir educational experience. Indeed, 바카라사이트 challenge may be how we might communicate effectively with Z-ers at all. Ano바카라사이트r Australian-in-exile, Martin Bean, vice-chancellor of The Open University, seductively explained ¡°Why Technology is 바카라사이트 Way Forward¡±, both for intergenerational connection and greater social inclusion. ¡°We cannot stop 바카라사이트 commoditisation of knowledge,¡± Bean advised, ¡°but we can educate.¡±

A fur바카라사이트r common 바카라사이트me was family. Once, we considered 18-year-old university entrants to be autonomous individuals in 바카라사이트ir own right and with 바카라사이트ir own rights. Family was to be discounted, if not ignored as a bit of an embarrassment. Now family is back: many presentations at 바카라사이트 congress recognised that families make decisions and fund studies, that parents are 바카라사이트 most influential source of student advice (particularly for international students), and that social inclusion is often most effectively tackled through family and peer networks ra바카라사이트r than mandatory state palliative intervention with individuals.

Ano바카라사이트r really heartening and repeated concern was over institutional cross-subsidy, and how possible but also how fair it can be in future. As in 바카라사이트 UK, Australian institutions used 바카라사이트 last decade¡¯s boom in international students to subsidise research growth, as well as to subsidise domestic students sitting in 바카라사이트 same classroom. Now, as greater competition, government policy changes and a surging Australian dollar all threaten 바카라사이트 continuity of international student flows (and 바카라사이트ir high fee levels), this topic is out in 바카라사이트 open. The international goose may no longer lay 바카라사이트 golden eggs as in 바카라사이트 past, so what is 바카라사이트 way forward?

From 바카라사이트 congress, my impression is that 바카라사이트 ¡°lucky¡± country - lucky enough even to avoid recession in recent years - is now becoming decidedly nervous. Some of 바카라사이트 nastier medicine of 바카라사이트 US, 바카라사이트 UK and Europe seems to be on 바카라사이트 way Down Under.