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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/may/29/swinburne-university-withhold-results
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| Swinburne university staff are right to withhold results | Swinburne university staff are right to withhold results |
| (10 days later) | |
| An almighty teacup storm recently kicked off at Swinburne University of Technology, as teaching staff imposed a ban on providing students with their assessment results. | An almighty teacup storm recently kicked off at Swinburne University of Technology, as teaching staff imposed a ban on providing students with their assessment results. |
| It may come as a surprise to some observers, but as a student who will be affected by this decision, I have no problems with the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) results ban. It affects my grades infinitely less than actual strike action and at the end of the day, my tutors are not only fighting to protect their own futures, but mine as well. | It may come as a surprise to some observers, but as a student who will be affected by this decision, I have no problems with the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) results ban. It affects my grades infinitely less than actual strike action and at the end of the day, my tutors are not only fighting to protect their own futures, but mine as well. |
| Some 50,000 students will be denied access to their results until the dispute is resolved; however, a panel has been established to process applications for exemptions. The announcement saw a flurry of posts on Swinburne’s social media pages from students, union officials, staff and senior management. Comments reflected a mix of confusion, concern and anger. | Some 50,000 students will be denied access to their results until the dispute is resolved; however, a panel has been established to process applications for exemptions. The announcement saw a flurry of posts on Swinburne’s social media pages from students, union officials, staff and senior management. Comments reflected a mix of confusion, concern and anger. |
| NTEU representative Josh Cullinan claims Swinburne used its social media pages to incite anger amongst students, while vice-chancellor Linda Kristjanson emailed students claiming that the NTEU were using them as a "bargaining chip". One poster quipped: “funny how senior management have spent more time replying to this thread in the last hour than coming up with a new agreement for staff in the last six months”. | NTEU representative Josh Cullinan claims Swinburne used its social media pages to incite anger amongst students, while vice-chancellor Linda Kristjanson emailed students claiming that the NTEU were using them as a "bargaining chip". One poster quipped: “funny how senior management have spent more time replying to this thread in the last hour than coming up with a new agreement for staff in the last six months”. |
| This protected industrial action didn’t just happen overnight. It follows mass student and staff protests last year after Swinburne announced it would close its Lilydale campus. Some staff and students were stunned to hear of their campus closures through news outlets after the decision was made without meaningful consultation. Closing Swinburne’s Lilydale campus resulted in 3,000 students forced to travel 37km to Hawthorn to complete their studies, as well as 240 staff losing their jobs. | This protected industrial action didn’t just happen overnight. It follows mass student and staff protests last year after Swinburne announced it would close its Lilydale campus. Some staff and students were stunned to hear of their campus closures through news outlets after the decision was made without meaningful consultation. Closing Swinburne’s Lilydale campus resulted in 3,000 students forced to travel 37km to Hawthorn to complete their studies, as well as 240 staff losing their jobs. |
| The restructuring manoeuvres are motivated by a number of factors, most prominently TAFE funding cuts from the Victorian government, a shift in focus toward science and technology courses, and a long-term strategy of encouraging new students into online courses. In 2011, Swinburne also announced a joint venture with SEEK, committing $5 million each to launch a new online tertiary education scheme, Swinburne Online, designed to undercut Open Universities’ virtual monopoly on online education. | |
| And this is where the waters muddy. | And this is where the waters muddy. |
| Current negotiations are not simply about tutors’ and lecturers’ take-home pay. They’re about attracting the best possible teaching staff, giving them ongoing job security and making sure the highest teaching standards are upheld. | Current negotiations are not simply about tutors’ and lecturers’ take-home pay. They’re about attracting the best possible teaching staff, giving them ongoing job security and making sure the highest teaching standards are upheld. |
| Many academics fear that we’re witnessing an Australia-wide shift in the tertiary education sector where, pressured by the high Australian dollar, government funding cuts and the tightening of student visa conditions, a veritable bust in international student numbers is eating away at universities’ bottom lines. | Many academics fear that we’re witnessing an Australia-wide shift in the tertiary education sector where, pressured by the high Australian dollar, government funding cuts and the tightening of student visa conditions, a veritable bust in international student numbers is eating away at universities’ bottom lines. |
| By encouraging government-subsidised domestic students to study online, Swinburne may hope to make room for full fee paying international students to buffer their bottom line and prepare them for a potential future financial slowdown. | By encouraging government-subsidised domestic students to study online, Swinburne may hope to make room for full fee paying international students to buffer their bottom line and prepare them for a potential future financial slowdown. |
| This means less staff, less contact hours for students – and aside from the diminished educational outcome – a lack of opportunities for students to network and build connections, as well as enjoying the age-old university lifestyle together. It’s been said that online degrees reduce university study to a tick and flick exercise, where students take away a certificate and little else. | This means less staff, less contact hours for students – and aside from the diminished educational outcome – a lack of opportunities for students to network and build connections, as well as enjoying the age-old university lifestyle together. It’s been said that online degrees reduce university study to a tick and flick exercise, where students take away a certificate and little else. |
| Part of what has always made universities such intellectual, scientific, economic and political powerhouses is that students work together long after graduating, using not just the skills they gained from achieving their results but the networks and partners they met whilst physically attending classes. | Part of what has always made universities such intellectual, scientific, economic and political powerhouses is that students work together long after graduating, using not just the skills they gained from achieving their results but the networks and partners they met whilst physically attending classes. |
| In an age of social media savvy students and Swinburne’s $13.3 million marketing budget, the PR war is not over yet. Swinburne will continue to defend its reputation and fight to preserve its bottom line, staff will continue to seek reasonable pay and job security, and wide-eyed high school graduates will continue to seek the "uni life" and all that comes with it. | In an age of social media savvy students and Swinburne’s $13.3 million marketing budget, the PR war is not over yet. Swinburne will continue to defend its reputation and fight to preserve its bottom line, staff will continue to seek reasonable pay and job security, and wide-eyed high school graduates will continue to seek the "uni life" and all that comes with it. |