On 6/09/2019 5:54 pm, Stephen Loosley wrote:
I strongly feel we have to act quickly, and do something, whatever it is, to protect and enhance our fine Australian academic reputations.
Lowering standards to attract "internationals" obviously lowers academic reputation, which reduces both the institution's status and Australia's academic status more generally. But some students use a degree as leverage for a visa, some are simply interested in a piece of paper from an Australian university, some feel under family pressure, and some are clearly enjoying their social life; these students probably don't care much about academic excellence and they all pay fees. I suppose some institutions will maintain their standards and their reputation, and the pressure can become personal; I've been threatened by a couple of students re marking, and I know of one case where a student took Court action concerning their failure (and lost). And some institutions will just become second-rate degree factories. It's hardly satisfactory but there it is. Disclosure: I'm retired now anyway (:-) and only worked in a part-time capacity. David L. _______________________________________________ Link mailing list Link@mailman.anu.edu.au http://mailman.anu.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/link
