Comments on: Is the sun really setting on British higher education? http://sedgemore.com/2010/01/is-the-sun-really-setting-on-british-higher-education/ physicist, journalist and science writer Tue, 22 May 2012 09:20:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Francis Sedgemore http://sedgemore.com/2010/01/is-the-sun-really-setting-on-british-higher-education/comment-page-1/#comment-4887 Francis Sedgemore Tue, 12 Jan 2010 14:14:34 +0000 http://sedgemore.com/?p=6456#comment-4887 I'm not sure if any country has got vocational higher education right, but the old UK polytechnics had much going for them. It's maybe worth noting that Apple Computer's chief designer Jonathan Ive was educated at a poly. There have been many, many other brilliant people who graduated from these much-maligned institutions. I’m not sure if any country has got vocational higher education right, but the old UK polytechnics had much going for them. It’s maybe worth noting that Apple Computer’s chief designer Jonathan Ive was educated at a poly. There have been many, many other brilliant people who graduated from these much-maligned institutions.

]]> By: Gaw http://sedgemore.com/2010/01/is-the-sun-really-setting-on-british-higher-education/comment-page-1/#comment-4886 Gaw Tue, 12 Jan 2010 13:41:49 +0000 http://sedgemore.com/?p=6456#comment-4886 Re the fate of the polytechnics, I don't think we'll ever get vocational education right in this country. The awareness that it's not being done properly and that it needs fixing have been around for at least a hundred years. I agree with you that the death of the poly was a backward step and that the 50% target is both ridiculous and damaging. Having employed a few of them - in almost entirely non-graduate jobs - my heart goes out to the arts graduates from minor universities whose expectations are only exceeded by their debts. We will harvest some bitter fruit here in the future. Re the fate of the polytechnics, I don’t think we’ll ever get vocational education right in this country. The awareness that it’s not being done properly and that it needs fixing have been around for at least a hundred years.

I agree with you that the death of the poly was a backward step and that the 50% target is both ridiculous and damaging. Having employed a few of them – in almost entirely non-graduate jobs – my heart goes out to the arts graduates from minor universities whose expectations are only exceeded by their debts. We will harvest some bitter fruit here in the future.

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