Education, higher learning or both?

In November 2004, the Chalmers Commission published a report entitled State Higher Education Funding. It calls for change if education at this level is to be sustainable and allocation of financial resources is to be fair for all.

The Chaplaincy Council of the University of Malta held several meetings on such an important topic. We believe that changes made by the beginning of another academic year will shape the quality of tertiary education for the coming years.

A few days before the Chalmers report was published, members of the chaplaincy media group had published a letter in which we insisted that funds allocated to the university and funds allocated to students' stipends should not be to the detriment of each other.

Later on, the Rev Dr Alfred Darmanin SJ, a member of the council, published an article on just one aspect of the reform needed, namely the stipends system and its psychological effects (The Sunday Times, February 13).

We would now like to add some points to further contribute to the discussion on this topic.

One of the most important points concerns the allocation of financial resources to faculties or courses that do not seem to be financially viable. The criteria of allocation of resources should not be utilitarian. Certain faculties have more financial difficulties than others. The decision whether to keep certain degrees and courses should not be limited to their financial viability.

Otherwise we could end up without a Faculty of Arts and Faculty of Science and consequently an impoverished university as was the case some years ago! The strategic plans of each faculty would act as guidelines in the allocation of resources. Their principles and priorities should be respected.

When it comes to students' stipends, preference should be given to those students whose financial needs are objectively greater. A committee appointed by the university would examine all the requests made by students in greater need. We are aware that some criteria already exist and that in particular circumstances students are given double the stipend if necessary. The process and interviews that lead to such decisions should respect as much as possible the dignity of the students concerned.

The principle of social justice should be diligently applied to attain a fairer system operating and to avoid abuse. An example lies in the misuse of smart cards as mentioned on page 65 of the University Students' Council's report on higher education and maintenance grants: "our survey found that while not rampant, abuse of the smart card is relatively common. For this reason we believe that policing of the system currently in place must be enhanced". Mechanisms to control this abuse are urgently needed.

Notwithstanding the harsh criticism as regards means testing we believe that such a system should not be easily dismissed.

We believe that funds for the stipends should not be the responsibility of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Employment but that of the Ministry for the Family and Social Solidarity. Funds for the university should remain under the Ministry of Education, Youth and Employment.

Student funding should be a welfare as opposed to an education issue. Any University Committee would act with the Ministry for the Family and Social Solidarity.

We also believe that if students are asked to pay a small tuition fee they will appreciate more the education given them by the university. In our opinion, a tuition free system is not formative for students and we suggest that a tuition fee be introduced for undergraduate courses as well. Students could be encouraged to use bank soft loans, bursaries and scholarships where necessary. Those students who objectively cannot afford such tuition fees should be supported through government funds.

A strong need is felt for more responsibility and accountability by both students and staff. The recent academic audit at the university is certainly a step in the right direction.

In no way are we claiming to be exhaustive; we understand that there are many complex issues related to the apportioning of resources for tertiary education. Therefore, we have limited our suggestions to the university.

We hope that our contribution is of some help to those who at the moment are studying the changes needed in the allocation of resources to tertiary education and look forward to continue our dialogue for a more just allocation of resources in such a vital area of our country.

Fr Bartolo writes on behalf of the Malta University Chaplaincy Council which he chairs.