Tuition Trouble

As  most of us are aware, this week came the student protests in London against the cuts in education funding. The cause itself is an issue that affects thousands upon thousands of people in the coutry, not just students, but parents, and universities alike.

By cutting funding for education, fewer and fewer people will be able to begin even thinking about university as a path of choice, let alone make it there. With fees being uncapped for tuition, some could look at paying £9000 a year, before they have even thought about how they are going to actually live, eat, cloth themselves, then fund the costs that courses bring with them.

How is this fair you may ask, well lets look at it from the negative side.  Many students struggle enough with the debts we have already from current fees, and granted yes, if we didn't go out and spend as much money on beer and vodka as we do, then we may be a little better off, but let's face it, thats not realistic and isn't going to happen. Being as less well off as others doesnt mean you are stupid, or don't deserve to have a fantastic education. If these cuts are not biased towards those who come from money, then pigs may fly.

But, as always, we must look at things from two sides. If there is more money from tuition fees being pumped into universitys, surely those who are lucky enough to make it into the higher education system will be getting more from their money, and a better quality education? We would hope so, as over the past three years, there have been some lectures and seminars where I was unsure how anything was relevant.

Unfortunatley, during the protests, the few outweighed the masses and had to ruin it for all. Do some ignorant people really think that by throwing fire extinguishers into the crowds, they are going to end the cuts in funding? Well, no, actually now they could be looking at being prosecuted for attempted murder and spend a fair few years in a prison cell.

Change doesn't come through bullying, change comes from listening to two sides of a story, and making a compromise, something I learned in my lectures, and something others clearly didn't.

Georgina x