Where credit is due

Since 1999, several European countries, including Malta, have agreed on the Bologna Process. Claudia Calleja speaks to Justin Fenech, who last month was elected chairman of ESIB - the National Unions of Students in Europe. He explained how there is room for improvement in certain areas, including further encouragement to student participation, although he believes the University of Malta is playing its role in achieving the Bologna objectives.

Students are major stakeholders in education and their input is vital in achieving the goal ingrained in the Bologna Process, that is, a quality higher education system throughout Europe.

In order for students to participate to their full potential, they need support and encouragement on a social, financial and administrative level and universities play a central role in providing this.

So, is the University of Malta doing its level best in this regard?

The way Dr Fenech sees it, a university has to be proactive, innovative and involve students because, at the end of the day, it's for the better of higher education as a whole.

"In terms of higher education, I think our university is doing its best and has achieved certain milestones but when it comes to encouraging student participation there is more to be done.

"The university ought to foster a holistic education by promoting participation, but the problem, which is not limited to Malta, is that I don't think our university, as a whole, has fully realised the importance of student activeness and participation. The problem boils down to credit."

A university should take an active role in trying to promote student participation as part of the course and, stressing the importance of credit given to student involvement, Dr Fenech feels that, although there are lecturers who appreciate the work students do within student organisations, there are still some who tell students that participating in such organisations is a waste of time.

"Little do they realise that these organisations are offering students practical skills that are not offered by the courses, skills that are beneficial when it comes to employment. The question is: How employable are our degrees at university? Many say they lack a more hands-on approach and are not fully compatible with the needs of the workforce," he said as he introduced another problem faced by higher education in Malta - the adaptation of the university to today's needs.

In a modern society, how fast is our university developing?

Nowadays it is important that university degrees are recognised in other countries and, for this, courses have to be relevant to the needs of society. "For example, we have an increased use of ICT. Is university keeping the pace set by the needs of society? I don't think so. Courses are still very formal whereas abroad they involve e-learning - which is the use of ICT to enhance the learning experience. One of the reasons is funding," he explained.

On the whole, Dr Fenech added, we do have good quality education and our university is doing very well in taking the opportunities that Europe is offering. But there is always room for improvement.

And the same can be said for the implementation of the Bologna Process. When it comes to the implementation of the Bologna Process the university is very active on a European level. In fact, it is also involved on the Bologna follow-up group.

The problem is in the implementation of policies on a local level.

"I'd say we are quite advanced when it comes to the Bologna Process but we still have areas that need to be tackled. One example is mobility schemes. We have certain faculties that still offer resistance to the notion of mobility. To take one example, there are over 1,000 students in the Faculty of Economics, Management and Accountancy (FEMA) and only six went on an Erasmus programme last year.

"More importantly, we don't have a national quality assurance framework. This should be the government's priority and it's not. It would be good to have external quality assurance reports of the university so that people in the country can know what quality they are investing in."

Of course, upholding Bologna is not only up to the university. Students themselves have to show interest, get involved and understand the importance of an active student life.

Dr Fenech said that it is very important that students get involved as participating in student life gives them a more holistic education which allows them to put theory into practice and, at the end of the day, this makes the student more employable.

Students do not always realise the value of participation.

Having said that, he believes that student participation in Malta is quite high when compared to other countries. The problem is, how much importance is given to extra curricular activities?

"The real problems that student representatives are facing is that they don't get much credit for what they do. Students do quite a number of things in their free time; they are active but they are faced with a choice on how to divide their time. We haven't seen an increased investment into student grants and we must recognise the fact that students are choosing a part-time job over being a student representative, which is a time-consuming task that brings no income.

"When it comes to student representation in Malta, we are heard, we are involved, but when it comes to giving actual credit, we lag behind."

Students are experts in their area and, for that very reason, they deserve to be heard. Besides, they have a lot to say.

This week representatives from 50 student unions from 37 countries will be holding a conference in London during which ESIB will discuss its views on taking higher education to the third level - the doctorial level.

They will be discussing doctorial studies and the link between higher education and research, which has come into focus through the Bologna Process.

Research has also been the focus of the Lisbon Strategy which was agreed upon by member states of the European Union and which aims to increase funding in research and development to reach the margin of three per cent of the union's GDP by 2010. For many, the line between the Bologna Process and the Lisbon Strategy is not clearly defined.

"The reality is that you have the Bologna Process that drives for better quality education which is as accessible and transferable as possible. Then you have the Lisbon Strategy, which is a more economically-based process. Both require reforms - yet for different reasons and through different ways.

"ESIB stresses that education should not be reduced to a purely economic goal but that the social objectives must be at the heart of such a process," Dr Fenech concluded.

To achieve the goal of a European higher education area, the Bologna declaration states that the following means should be used:

¤ Promotion of the necessary European dimensions in higher education.

¤ Easily readable and comparable degrees.

¤ Adoption of a system essentially based on two main cycles: undergraduate and graduate levels in all countries.

¤ Establishment of a system of credits.

¤ A European dimension in quality assurance.

¤ Improvement of the free movement of students and teachers.

¤ Lifelong learning.

¤ Higher education institutions and students.

¤ Promoting the attractiveness of the European higher education area.