Overseas attractions

guardian.co.uk 30th August 2006
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High tuition fees are driving postgraduate students abroad where they can study in English for a fraction of the price, says David Brill

A rise in the numbers of UK masters students seeking cheaper courses in Sweden and the Netherlands has prompted the National Union of Students to call for more affordable courses at British universities.

So far, the numbers involved are a trickle compared to the nearly 367,000 British postgraduates in UK universities and the 45,800 European Union students who come to the UK for masters and other postgraduate courses. But the competition could spell trouble for UK universities, which have come to rely heavily on postgraduate fees from overseas students.

Sarah Harrison, 22, who earlier this year received a bachelor degree from the University of St Andrews, said the cost of studying for a masters in the UK had forced her to look elsewhere. Next week she begins a masters in international studies at the University of Uppsala in central Sweden.

"I was told it was going to cost about £13,000 altogether to come to King's College, London for the year. I just didn't have that money," she said. "I was always going to do a masters, but the funding has definitely pushed me out of the UK."

Founded in 1477, Uppsala is the oldest university in Scandinavia and one of the most highly respected. "The lecturers and professors are world class," added Ms Harrison, stressing that a qualification from Sweden was every bit as valuable as one from the UK.

For Kristina Lewis, the high cost of studying for a masters in conservation biology at Kent University - £8,000 - led her to Lund University in southern Sweden, where she is due to start a postgraduate degree in development and management.

The big draw to Sweden is that universities do not charge any fees. They also offer an impressive range of courses taught and assessed entirely in English. In the past 10 years, more than 130 British students have chosen Sweden as the place to further their studies, but with the average cost of a masters course in the UK now set at around £5,000, more British graduates could be tempted to head to Scandinavia.

It's a problem acknowledged by the NUS, which does not want financial considerations to force students' hands. "While some students make a pro-active choice to study abroad, NUS feels strongly that they should not be priced out of pursuing postgraduate studies in the UK," said Wes Streeting, the union's vice-president of education. "We firmly believe that UK postgraduate courses should be offered at an affordable rate."

Alec Forss, 25, recently returned from a year at Uppsala, having graduated from the University of Birmingham in 2003.

"I'm really surprised that more postgrads don't go abroad," he said. "All the books I read were in English and all the teaching was done in English, so the language simply isn't a problem. It was a really good experience - I'd recommend it to anyone."

Mr Forss, who had planned to stay at Birmingham for his masters, added: "It makes economic sense. There are no tuition fees in Sweden. You still have to pay living costs, but I calculated that the whole year was probably 50% cheaper."

University accommodation cost Mr Forss £250 a month, a price not dissimilar to that paid by students in the UK. At Uppsala, however, this monthly sum paid for a new room with en suite bathroom, television, free internet access and all bills.

Having experienced the Scandinavian education system first-hand, he said he was against tuition fees. "My girlfriend's from Finland and has just finished her studies. They get €450 (£300) a month as a free grant to study, for six years. Then they give you €200 on top of that as a loan if the €450 isn't enough. So I think that sums it up. They've got their priorities right there."

But Sweden is not the only option for students turned off by the postgraduate tuition fees in Britain. Masters courses in Holland start at €1,500 (£1,010) for the year, but many EU students are eligible for a €1,000 rebate. That could put the cost of a year's study at just £337, with average student living expenses between £450 and £650 a month, according to the Study in Holland website.

Holland is one of the most popular destinations for British students on the postgraduate exodus. Catriona Stirling, from Edinburgh, is about to undertake a course in international and comparative private law at the University of Groningen, which has accepted more than 300 British students in the past seven years.

Ms Stirling chose to study in Holland primarily to spend time abroad, rather than for economic reasons. "I wanted to do a masters and I thought it would be good to see another country as well," she said. "The lower cost is definitely a bonus though."

She went on: "Tuition fees are bad, generally, in terms of social mobility. Education - getting a good university degree and good qualifications - is very important. It's the number one thing that can help you get a better job, make more money and achieve more in life."

Sarah Harrison added: "A lot of other countries have an entirely different perspective on tuition and education to the UK. Over there it's given to you if you want to take the opportunity, whereas over here you only get the opportunity if you pay for it."

For more information, on studying in Sweden and Holland, see www.studyin.sweden.se and www.studyin.nl.

High flyers 'should do apprenticeships'

guardian.co.uk 25th August 2006
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David Brill

Students who earned good grades in maths and science at GCSE should consider taking apprenticeships rather than traditional academic career paths, a leading scientist has advised.

John Morton, the chief executive of the Engineering and Technology Board, warned that too many pupils were rushing into higher education without considering vocational options.

"This is not just a university numbers game. While we congratulate our students on their exam achievements, we urge pupils with an ability and interest in maths and science to seriously consider pursuing a vocational pathway via a paid advanced apprenticeship," he said.

Rather than following the traditional route to A-levels then university, students could join an apprenticeship program straight after their GCSEs, train to become an engineer, for example, and then study for a degree or a diploma while working.

"It's a route to an exciting career in science and engineering, and it's an area where there is strong demand," said Dr Morton. "Companies such as Network Rail, EDF Energy, Centrica and the National Grid are all crying out for higher quality technicians."

He also advised prospective applicants of the financial benefits that apprenticeships can bring. "Our research tells us that the average salary is around £31,000 for registered technicians," he said.

"It's skills that underpin your career rather than education and that's what people are willing to pay for. This is a real opportunity. I'm concerned that people may do other courses at universities which don't have the same career options available through apprenticeships."

Diane Garnham, chief executive of the Science Council, has also stressed the importance of proper career advice for GCSE science students. "Many young people and their parents see science as too difficult, too nerdy, too male and with poor earning potential," she said.

"We hardly ever see young scientist role models, let alone a young woman scientist. We have to show just how much science is used in all areas of society and the economy. And we must give young people decent careers advice and information on the opportunities open to them if they get a good start with science GCSEs and A levels."

Engineering is a field where Dr Morton was keen to highlight these opportunities, believing that the shortage of technicians was affecting the economy in this country.

"The government is doing quite a bit through the introduction of the engineering diploma. That comes in 2008 and we really need to make sure that people are aware of that as an opportunity," he said.

GCSE marking errors up by 13%

guardian.co.uk 23rd August 2006
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David Brill and agencies

Errors in GCSE marking rose by nearly 13% last year since 2003, it has been revealed.

With the latest set of results due tomorrow, many students will query their grades in the hope of achieving a better mark. Last year, a record 45,439 queries were submitted - a rise of 24% from 2003 - and 11,000 grades were changed.

"Exam boards must get their act together," said Sarah Teather, education spokeswoman for the Liberal Democrats, whose parliamentary questions revealed the scale of the problem. "Every summer, hard-working pupils have to endure newspapers and politicians saying exams are getting easier and belittling their achievements. The stress that increasing numbers of pupils endure after receiving the wrong grades goes unrecognized.

"Too many students are having to battle bureaucracy to correct mistakes made by exam boards."

The government has invested heavily in the exam-monitoring body the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). Spending on the QCA has gone up by 70% since 2002/3, to £135m, while schools spend an extra £42m since that period on entering their students into exams.

"The government must justify the rising costs of the exam system, by demanding better performance from exam boards," Ms Teather said.

A QCA spokeswoman said: "The number of appeals remains a small proportion of the 26m papers taken every summer. Over £100m has been invested in making sure there are enough markers and examiners, who are rigorously trained and monitored, to improve the system."

Schools failing children in care, charity says

guardian.co.uk 23rd August 2006
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David Brill and agencies

The education system is failing to help children in care to break out of a "cycle of disadvantage", according to the children's charity Barnado's.

A survey of 66 young people who had spent much of their lives in care showed that just seven of them left school with five or more GCSEs at grade A* - C. Fewer than half were currently in training, employment or further education.

"The cycle of disadvantage that haunts these children as they grow up shows no sign of being broken as they enter adulthood," said Martin Narey, chief executive of Barnado's.

"Our report shows that many looked-after children have academic potential and the desire to work hard and would have liked to succeed in education, but the state, as a parent, fails them terribly. Dreadful GCSE results compound the disadvantages they face and commit them to unemployment and long term disadvantage."

The young people surveyed had attended an average of five schools; seven in the group had been to more than 10.

"My education broke down completely because of the number of moves I'd had," said Aravia Pavey, 16, who was placed in care when she was three. "At times, when the authorities decided to move me, it wasn't even to placements within the same area but to placements based in completely different towns. I never had the chance to settle.

"Whenever I moved schools I received no extra help with catching up. I didn't have a huge amount of back-up with my education all round."

School can be a difficult experience for "looked-after" children. Half the group said they had been bullied because they were in care. Forty-one had been excluded from school, for periods between one day and two years.

Some comparisons emerge from a separate poll, also commissioned by the charity, of 500 parents whose children took their GCSEs this year.

While 97% of parents said they praised their child when they did well at school, almost half of the care group said that they had never received such praise. Just four of the latter recalled ever being praised by a teacher.

A DfES spokesperson said: "We all recognise that children in care often underachieve significantly. That's why we will shortly be publishing a green paper which will include a wide package of reforms designed to improve their academic performance and their life chances.

The secret of happiness

guardian.co.uk 23rd August 2006
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The Open University has come top of the National Student Survey for the second year running. How does it keep its students so happy? David Brill investigates.

"Choosing the Open University was one of the best decisions I ever made," says Kieran-Lee Evans, who is studying for a BSc in psychology.

Today sees the OU top the National Student Survey for the second year in a row. What is their formula for student happiness?

"Fundamentally, it is because we are committed to meeting the needs of our students," explains Will Swann, director of students.

"We have a more demanding student body than many other universities do, because they're older, they're more experienced, and they expect high standards of service. The quality of teaching is enormously important to us."

The OU is dedicated to distance learning, using cassettes, TV and the internet as well as books. The quality of these teaching materials and the course contents appear to be big factors in the university's success.

"I find their learning programmes interesting, clear and concise," Mr Evans says. "They're focused, as well - there's not much room for error in their materials."

The OU has around 180,000 students, almost all part-time. Among the undergraduates, 70% balance their studies with a regular job. Mr Evans had a full-time job before he enrolled and had to decide whether to study full-time or part-time and continue his job.

"My family are all quite academic and went to conventional universities, so you'd imagine that I would have done so too," he says.

"I'd say that, in the past, a place without a good rating in the league tables was not even a university in my eyes. But my experience has changed the entire way I view education."

Having previously studied at the University of Wales Newport, Mr Evans considered going on to St George's in London. Instead he chose the OU, and his barely contained enthusiasm leaves little doubt that this was the right decision.

"I'd highly recommend a degree at the OU to anybody. I'm trying to get my mum to do one at the moment," he says.

Student support is another area in which the OU has something to teach other universities. "I think a lot of people who don't know the OU don't realise [how much] individual support we give our students," Mr Swann says.

"We have a growing number who drop out of conventional university after a year or two, finish their degree with us and tell us that the amount and quality of support they got from us was higher than the support they had [before]."

Mr Evans echoes those sentiments. His experience was that conventional university assignments and study programmes often lacked focus. "Many students just do what they're doing without any set direction or purpose. The OU tends to be quite specific about what you're looking at and why you're looking at it," he says.

The university is aware of the risk of complacency after winning the student satisfaction survey again. However, Mr Swann says: "It not only confirms the excellence of what we do but is also a spur to us to improve. There will be plenty of people chasing us."

"Over the next year we'll be putting an increasing emphasis on being student-centred. We already use the web extensively, but we'll be using it more to increase accessibility. We'll also be putting a lot of effort into making ourselves more accessible to students from widening participation groups."

Voiceless children get jokes

guardian.co.uk 23rd August 2006
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David Brill

Children who speak with computer aids are discovering the joys of joke-telling, thanks to new software that enables them to create their own puns.

The Standup (System To Augment Non-speakers' Dialogue Using Puns) project was developed by researchers at the Universities of Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh. Eight young people at Corseford school, near Glasgow, tested the system over a 10-week period.

The software, which combines dictionaries, grammatical information and rules about the structure of puns, allows children to create their own jokes by discovering patterns in words and phrases.

"The children clearly enjoy these jokes and being able to engage in the practice of telling them," said Ruli Manurung, of the School of Informatics at Edinburgh University.

"After the sessions, they would get to choose what their favourite joke was and put it on their particular voice aid. We heard from the teachers that some of the children just kept telling them to all their friends, family and neighbours."

Current computerised speech aids enable basic communication but hinder fluency and spontaneity. They provide little scope for experimenting with words, in humorous or other ways.

"Many people who use communication aids tend to be passive communicators, responding to questions with one or two word answers," said Annalu Waller, at the University of Dundee school of computing.

"This research shows the importance of providing individuals with novel language. It has been wonderful to see young people with complex communication needs taking ownership of puns and using them to control their communication."

Creating Standup led its researchers to ponder why we find certain things funny. "We know very little about the science of humour and jokes. We've identified this small class of jokes, which are actually very simple [in structure], but then some of the ones Standup comes up with are quite puzzling," Mr Manurung said.

"What is the difference between a constant doughnut and a quick harm? One is a steady ring, the other is a ready sting," is one pun the programme generates, suggesting the technology may be in need of a little refinement.

Jimmy Carr has even been in touch with the researchers. "He was thinking of working our jokes into a show by having a man v machine competition," Mr Manurung said. What that says about the comedian remains a moot point.

· Standup will be demonstrated at a workshop at the University of Dundee school of computing on the weekend of August 25 and 26

Peace looms in battles of the carpet stain

guardian.co.uk 22nd August 2006
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Students should not be alarmed by the delayed introduction of mandatory rental deposit protection; help is available right now. David Brill reports

More than 1 million students will move into rented accommodation over the next six weeks, handing over vast sums of money in deposits.

Without financial protection, many students will be at the mercy of their landlords and, at the end of their leases, could find themselves charged £20 for a light bulb or hundreds of pounds for carpets that were stained before they moved in.

It will soon, however, be mandatory for all landlords to join a deposit protection scheme, whose introduction has been delayed from October this year until April 2007.

The new requirement - which will cover all short-hold tenancies within the private rented sector - may come too late for students starting in the new academic year but they have been assured that help is available in the meantime.

"There is no need for second and third year students to wait until mandatory deposit protection is in place, some time next year," said Lawrence Greenberg, chief executive of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS).

"Students can already take advantage of deposit protection and the no-cost, independent dispute resolution we provide."

As well as advising renters to use its deposit protection services, the TDS suggests they use only affiliated letting agents, who are also members of the industry's three professional bodies: Arla, the NAEA or Rics.

Over 1,300 letting offices now offer deposit protection but surveys suggest many tenants and landlords remain unfamiliar with the TDS, which was launched two years ago.

"Sometimes these disputes are found in favour of the landlord, sometimes the tenant, but in most cases we find merit on both sides," Mr Greenberg said. "The rate at which we have been adjudicating and apportioning deposit monies has risen sharply ... from under 200 cases for the whole of 2005 to well over 300 within the first six months of this year."

In one case, the TDS became involved when a landlord retained a tenant's entire deposit, of £1,525, citing damage to curtains, floors and the kitchen hob. Following investigation, £926 was returned to the tenant.