Dear all,
We are writing to ask whether you would be prepared to be a signatory
to a manifesto for higher education that is part of a forthcoming Pluto
Press book called 'The Assault on Universities: A Manifesto for
Resistance'.
As you know all too well, students and university staff are involved in a
series of crucial campaigns not simply to oppose increased tuition fees
and
education cuts but also to challenge attempts by the government to impose
a whole new ethic to university education in this country: one that is
based, above all, on the marketisation of learning and teaching.
We have included below the very short list of manifesto demands that we
believe need to be part of the public debate in relation to the future of
universities. We plan to run a very public campaign to make sure that the
manifesto is circulated as widely as possible.
Initial signatories include: Paul Gilroy, John McDonnell MP, John Pilger,
Nick Davies, Etienne Balibar, Michael Lowy, James Curran, Angela McRobbie,
China Mieville, Colin Leys, John Corner, Wendy Brown, Graham Murdock, Mark
Fisher, Andrew Ross, Bruno Bosteels.
We would really appreciate your support. Simply email
[log in to unmask] with your name and affiliation.
with best wishes
Des Freedman and Michael Bailey
THE MANIFESTO
* Increase proportion of UK public expenditure devoted to higher
education to at least the EU19 average of 1.1 per cent (up from 0.7 per
cent) - a move that would bring in billions of pounds to the sector.
* Restoration of maintenance grants and abolition of fees to be
paid for through an increase in corporation tax and an increase to the top
level of personal income tax.
* Restoration of the block grant for all subjects.
* A commitment to staff/student ratios at the OECD average or better.
* Commitment by employers to address the gender pay gap with
immediate effect.
* Commitment by employers to nationally agreed terms and conditions
for all staff and recognition of trade unions to negotiate these terms and
conditions.
* An end wherever possible to the outsourcing of university services
including catering, cleaning, international student recruitment, and
sickness absence reporting; where outsourcing does take place, a
commitment only to consider companies who recognise trade unions and who
pay a Living Wage.
* Commitment by employers to move away from the use of hourly-paid
contracts for teachers and to offer permanent contracts after two
consecutive years of teaching.
* Commitment by employers to affordable, on-campus childcare
provision.
* Universities to adopt mission statements, relevant to each
institution, that recognise the obligation of institutions to foster
independent and critical thought, to ensure access to the university for
all social groups, and to seek the participation of the local community in
the life of the university.
* Salaries of senior staff and vice-chancellors to be fixed as part
of a nationally agreed scale with an income differential, as suggested by
Citizens UK, of no more than a multiple of ten.
* Democratisation of governing bodies through the allocation of equal
votes to staff and student representatives, community members, and
employers' representatives.
* Scrapping of the National Student Survey and other forms of
evaluation which perpetuate cultures of 'customer satisfaction' and
quality control, and their replacement with forms of feedback that
encourage meaningful reflection on teaching and learning.
* Scrapping of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) and its
replacement with a way of monitoring research work based on respect for
the ability of individuals and groups of researchers to define their own
research aims and priorities.
* Scrapping of the Points Based System of Immigration as it affects
the higher education sector and a halt to punitive measures affecting the
free movement of international staff and students. This would include
stopping the withdrawal of the post-study work visa, the relaxation of
rules affecting students' ability to seek paid work during their studies
and a more sympathetic immigration regime that encourages staff and
students to come to the UK.
* Commitment by universities to offer a fixed number of
scholarships to qualified candidates from developing countries.
* Ending the requirement of international students to pay
significantly higher tuition fees than European students and thus their
role as 'cash cows'.
* Extension of the remit of research ethics committees to consider,
with teeth, the ethics of research for the arms trade, the military and
the nuclear industry.
* Pledge by universities not to accept donations from individuals or
regimes that refuse to sign a statement on academic freedom that
guarantees the right of academics and researchers in the 'donor' countries
to teach and research without fear of state intervention.
Email [log in to unmask] with your name and affiliation.
Des Freedman
Reader in Communications and Cultural Studies
Department of Media and Communications
Goldsmiths, University of London
New Cross
London SE14 6NW
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