Comments on: Whitlamite nostalgia in higher education

By: Club Troppo » Friday’s Missing Link

Club Troppo » Friday’s Missing Link — Fri, 08 Dec 2006 07:53:24 +0000

[...] Whitlamite nostalgia in higher education - Andrew Norton Jenny Macklin may not survive as the ALP Shadow Education Minister, but if recent statements from the Dreaming Team are any guide, her 1970s worldview will continue to drive Labor higher education policy. Both Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard appear to be Whitlamite nostalgists. Andrew also debunks some on the left who seem to have

By: David Rubie

David Rubie — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 23:04:21 +0000

Boris wrote:
“

By: conrad

conrad — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 21:09:56 +0000

I’m with DD and DA on funding for early(ier) education also. I think its almost pointless worrying about equity at university until this is fixed, otherwise things like scholarship schemes simply mean that you go from 5% to 10% of people from poorer backgrounds (or whatever the real numbers are). I also doubt that Australian universities are going to come up with them, since they won’t be able to afford them as easily as the big US universities that have much more money.

In addition, I’d also agree that it is more worthwhile even if the educational returns are not more than at young adulthood, since large equity divisions still occur thanks to further education. Thus whilst you might not learn as much later on (which is debateable), it still changes your likely long-term outcomes.

By: Sinclair Davidson

Sinclair Davidson — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 20:15:31 +0000

Actually, ‘properly funded’ could mean less federal money.

By: Boris

Boris — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 13:31:22 +0000

“If the current government had properly funded university placements over the last ten years, …”

You mean from higher taxes, right?

By: Bannerman

Bannerman — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 12:13:33 +0000

I fail to see the point in your rant, Andrew. If the current government had properly funded university placements over the last ten years, you’d not have had anything to critique Rudd on, would you? So he got a cheap education. Big deal. Pity there wasn’t more of it, or alternatively, at least some assurance that once the children are finished racking up enormous HECS debts, they’ve at least a fighting chance at a job which will pay enough to allow the debt to be repaid. Intervention? Better at the front end, young fella. Bit late for society in Oz now though, eh?

By: Don Arthur

Don Arthur — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 07:30:16 +0000

I agree with DD’s comment that “we are now making too much fuss about tertiary education and nowehere near enough fuss about making sure kids don

By: Andrew Norton

Andrew Norton — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 03:32:41 +0000

Andrew L - I have added more text to that para to try to clarify my meaning.

By: Jimmythespiv

Jimmythespiv — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 03:31:03 +0000

Andrew Leigh

Not suggesting that subsidised education shouldn’t be subsidised via HECs for the midle class, the wealthy, or the working poor. I am just suggesting that HECs is not oerly onerous, and that those who enjoy ssubsidised education via HECs, and thereby go on to earn more than the average, should contribute modestly to the cost of it.

By: Andrew Elder

Andrew Elder — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 03:23:29 +0000

It