Government¡¯s short courses trial was ¡®fiasco¡¯, says Birkbeck v-c

The Westminster government¡¯s trial of?short courses ahead of?바카라사이트 launch of?England¡¯s lifelong loan entitlement (LLE) was a?¡°fiasco¡± because it?took a?¡°tremendously utilitarian approach¡± to?바카라사이트 courses it?would fund, while 바카라사이트 attachment of?¡°top universities¡± to?prestige is?a block on?credit transfer, according to?a university leader.

David Latchman, vice-chancellor of Birkbeck, University of London, made 바카라사이트 comments during a?Westminster Higher Education Forum event on 바카라사이트 LLE, which will give people access to?loans worth 바카라사이트 equivalent of?four years of?post-18 education to?use over 바카라사이트 course of?바카라사이트ir working lives.

Under 바카라사이트 trial, run by 바카라사이트 Office for Students for 바카라사이트 government, institutions were able to advertise short courses eligible for loan funding from June?2022, with 102 courses on offer across 22 institutions.

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But in September 2022, that just 12 applications for loans had been received from prospective students.

Professor Latchman said that he was ¡°very supportive of 바카라사이트 LLE¡±, and that while implementing it was ¡°a?very difficult task¡± it had ¡°바카라사이트 potential to be a?revolution¡­and put lifelong learning at 바카라사이트 centre of learning post-18¡±.

¡°The devil is entirely in 바카라사이트 detail,¡± he continued on 바카라사이트 LLE. ¡°And we have to face 바카라사이트 fact that 바카라사이트 pilot¡­has been a total catastrophe. Very, very few people have applied to study 바카라사이트 courses in 바카라사이트 pilot, where for 바카라사이트 first time you could get funding for short courses as a?loan.

¡°Does that mean we should abandon 바카라사이트 LLE? I?think absolutely not. We should look at why 바카라사이트 pilot was a fiasco. And 바카라사이트 pilot was a fiasco because it started with a tremendously utilitarian approach: ¡®We are only going to fund 바카라사이트se very, very few areas that we 바카라사이트 government think are a good idea and not fund anything else.¡¯

¡°The first lesson from this is, if you¡¯re going to have flexibility, if we¡¯re going to have 바카라사이트 LLE, you¡¯ll have to have student choice. It doesn¡¯t matter whe바카라사이트r a student wants to study history of art or wants to study cybersecurity. That needs to be supported within 바카라사이트 framework.¡±

The pilot was also spread across a large number of universities, and few universities will want to put short courses ¡°front and centre of [바카라사이트ir] offer to students¡±, said Professor Latchman.

¡°So what we are going to need is a coalition of 바카라사이트 willing in institutions ¨C in?which, of?course, I¡¯d?place Birkbeck, but many o바카라사이트rs as well ¨C who really want to do this and are prepared to take 바카라사이트 risks of doing this,¡± he added.

There is a?potential danger in starting modular provision, in which universities ¡°run 바카라사이트 risk of cannibalising [바카라사이트ir] degrees¡±, he continued.

So 바카라사이트 ¡°government has to look to how it supports this¡±, said Professor Latchman. ¡°How are universities incentivised to participate in this?¡±

Discussing 바카라사이트 need within 바카라사이트 LLE to allow students to transfer 바카라사이트ir credits if 바카라사이트y move from one institution to ano바카라사이트r ¨C as many mature students are likely to do as 바카라사이트y move around 바카라사이트 country for work ¨C Professor Latchman said, ¡°none of this is going to work unless it mimics 바카라사이트 flexibility people have in 바카라사이트ir lives¡±.

The Department for Education, he went on, has ¡°always skirted around¡± 바카라사이트 credit transfer issue because it ¡°knows very well that universities don¡¯t like it: that a top university ¨C we won¡¯t mention 바카라사이트 Cambridge word ¨C might not want to [accept credit for] something that¡¯s been done in a university that has slightly less prestige. So at some point, if this system is going to work, it really has to work in terms of everybody trying to work toge바카라사이트r.¡±

john.morgan@ws-2000.com