Can you get a refund if university fails to deliver?

Increased tuition fees are likely to result in more students claiming compensation when courses are not up to standard.

Courses that are sub-standard, lecturers who don't turn up, supervision that doesn't materialise ... now that students will be paying up to £9,000 a year, will they be able to demand their money back if university fails to deliver?
If a product doesn't live up to expectations, if it's not of merchantable quality, then consumers have rights to ask for their money back under the Sale of Goods Act. But what if you are paying for a course that didn't live up to expectations? Already, officials in the university sector are preparing for an increase in complaints from heavily-indebted consumers of education who feel they didn't get what was promised.

First, it's important to remember that students are not buying a degree. They pay for services and facilities (tuition, libraries) which enable them to study and complete a course to...

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Clegg defends Liberal Democrats' role in coalition

Nick Clegg has defended the Liberal Democrats' role in coalition government as his party remains under fire over controversial education proposals.

He told the Independent on Sunday that he had no regrets about forming a government with the Conservatives.

He said: "I'm absolutely convinced that almost any other course of action would have been a disaster for the country."

MPs vote this Thursday on university tuition fees. The Lib Dems had opposed higher fees before entering government.

The party has been the focus of some of the protests in recent weeks involving tens of thousands of students opposed to the coalition government's proposals.

Despite the current difficulties facing his party, Mr Clegg believes their participation in government will lead to an...

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18-year-old student arrested - University Protests

Police have arrested an 18-year-old college student in connection with the throwing of a fire extinguisher at police from the roof of Conservative Party headquarters.

The man, believed to be the long-haired protester pictured in photographs released by police yesterday, was arrested in Southampton by Scotland Yard officers on Monday night. He was transferred to London on Tuesday for formal questioning.

The canister landed inches away from a group of police officers 70ft below. One officer admitted had it hit him "somebody would have been visiting my wife and children and saying either I was dead, or very, very seriously injured"...

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Lord Browne: Universities warned to expect £4.2bn cuts

Universities UK claims tuition fees proposals confirmed the fear of massive cuts. Universities in England are being warned to expect an 80% cut to their teaching budgets in next week's government spending review. The president of the vice chancellors group Universities UK Steve Smith has contacted all higher education institutions informing them to expect a likely £4.2bn cut to their teaching and a £1bn reduction in their research budgets.

This echoes Lord Browne's review of funding which was published last week, said that he see's the teaching budget dropping to £700 million per year also he said degrees in medicine, science, engineering and modern languages could stop receiving subsidies.

Also he said Universities will have to start charging around £7,000 per year in fees to maintain the current levels of investment.

Read the full article here.

Schools turning into exam factories

Private schools are being turned into “exam factories” from pressure being applied by pushy parents to produce the best results.

The teachers are being put under pressure by families to deliver top grades to boost their children’s chances getting into the top universities.

Research authorised by the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference, which represents 250 leading independent schools, said the focus on GCSE and A-level preparation “compromised” their ability to deliver sport, expeditions and school trips for final year pupils.

The study from HMC’s annual meeting in central London – said pressure from parents and universities produced a “vicious circle” that constrained schools’ abilities to provide a broad education and teach children to think independently.

It said many schools were “risk averse and lacked the courage to actively create the curriculum” that most teachers wanted to deliver.

The disclosure follows claims from Gary Lineker, the BBC presenter and former England football captain, that Charterhouse treated his son as a “guinea pig'' by ditching A-levels in favour of new-style exams. George Lineker, 18, failed to obtain the three B grades needed to get into Manchester University after the fee-paying school in Surrey switched to the tougher Cambridge Pre-U qualification.

Article extracted from Telegraph

Digital technology should be university 'priority'

Creative digital technologies must be a "national priority" in UK universities, says an industry and university report.

The UK should be trying to nurture ideas for online businesses like Facebook and Google, says the Council for Industry and Higher Education.

The promotion of so-called Stem subjects, including science and maths, should be extended to digital technology, says the council's report.

It says digital industries will soon represent a $3tn (£1.9tn) market.

The report wants to target support at creative, digital and information technology (CDIT) subjects - with the aim of cultivating businesses in digital...

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Article extracted from BBC News

Rise in top grades boosts GCSE record

Pupils have achieved another GCSE record, with almost seven out of 10 entries (69.1%) being awarded a C grade or above.

Results published on Thursday show 22.6% of exams sat in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were awarded an A* or an A, up from 21.6% last year.

More pupils took single sciences, but some languages continued to decline.

There has also been a big rise in the number of pupils sitting English and maths GCSEs a year early.

More than one in 10 pupils sits maths at age 15 or younger - up 37% on last year - and just under a tenth sit English early, up by 50% on 2009.

It comes after the previous Labour government scrapped national tests at age 14 or Key Stage 3.

This has allowed to some schools and pupils to move on to GCSEs in these subjects a year early, with many going on to sit AS levels (the first part of A-levels) a year early too.

But the new trend will fuel the argument over whether GCSEs are getting easier.

And it may be reflected in the fact that overall, the proportion of entries getting A*-C grades is up again, by two percentage points on last year from 67.1% to 69.1% - the highest ever.

The pass rate rose for the 23rd year in a row, this year to 98.7% of entries.

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Article extracted from BBC News