Image: David Woolfall [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Twitter messages that Michelle Donelan aimed at students attract ire, some calling them ‘simplistic slogans’
Former government advisers and an influential Labour MP have criticised a string of “abrupt” tweets from universities minister Michelle Donelan aimed at university students.
Donelan published a series of messages on Twitter, each beginning with a capitalised “STUDENT MESSAGE”, which included advice that students should complain to their universities or the Office for the Independent Adjudicator if they do not feel they are getting a good online education.
The first message in the thread, published on 15 January, reads: “STUDENT MESSAGE 1: Universities are responsible for their own fees but the Government has been VERY clear if universities want to continue charging the full fees, they are expected to maintain the quality, quantity and accessibility of tuition.”
It comes after the Office for Students told universities to review whether they had kept their promises to students on what to expect for their teaching and learning before the start of the academic year.
Donelan also reminded students that the government had encouraged universities and private providers to “review their accommodation policies to ensure they have students’ best interests at heart”, and she said the government would “look to prioritise practical and creative students and those nearer to graduation” when deciding which students can return to campus.
Daniel Zeichner, Labour MP for Cambridge and co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary University, told Research Professional News that it was “disappointing” that Donelan “continues to hide behind simplistic slogans, rather than address the fundamental issue, which is that a whole generation of young people are paying for a very different educational and social experience from that enjoyed by their predecessors”.
“Deciding who bears the cost cannot be sorted out by individual students complaining to universities. It needs a system-level response, and that requires leadership from government,” he added.
Diana Beech, chief executive of London Higher and former adviser to several Conservative universities and science ministers, said she had been “taken aback by the abrupt nature of the tweets” and pointed out that there was “no acknowledgement of the huge sacrifices that have been made by university staff up and down the country who are working tirelessly to meet students’ needs”.
Andrew Westwood, a former adviser to the Treasury, who is professor of government practice and vice-dean for social responsibility at the University of Manchester said: “It’s depressing, really.”
“I’m not sure it’s a great deal of help to anyone—to students themselves or parents, and certainly not to universities or even the various sector bodies that might have to deliver or act on these things,” he said of Donelan’s dispatch.
“The real message across them all is that each of these groups should look elsewhere, and not to government, if they need help—financial or otherwise—whether for students wanting fee rebates for accommodation or teaching, or universities if they need financial assistance [given that] much of the rest of the year is more or less written off.”
A full analysis of this story is available in today’s 8am Playbook to Playbook subscribers.