Wednesday, 7th January 2009 - 11:20CET
UPDATED: University students hold noisy rally - University administration reacts
(Adds University rector's appeal)
The University Students' Council (KSU) this morning called on UMASA, the trade union representing university lecturers, to lift directives which will force the postponement of first semester exams due in 10 days’ time.
KSU president Roberta Avellino, speaking at a noisy rally attended by some 400 students in the University common room, said the directives were disproportionate and unfair on students. They meant that exams would have to be held later in the year and in the summer, and they were particularly damaging to international students.
UMASA has directed lecturers not to hand in exam papers, as talks with the government on a new collective agreement continue to drag on.
Ms Avellino said said that both the trade union and the government were being stubborn, and the consequences on the students were unacceptable.
The government, she said, should deliver on its promise to invest in higher education.
The rally brought together all student organisations, including those on opposite sides of the political fence.
Among the banners displayed was one which said “Stop testing our patience, start testing our knowledge.”
Another, by the international students, read: “Delaying our exams equals our flights and second semester out of sight”.
The University of Malta administration in a reaction to the rally augured that it would be possible for negotiations between the stakeholders to restart, in the interest of the students themselves and all parties concerned.
"Time is very much of the essence in this issue. University exams normally start on the 17th January. It would still be possible to save the day should a solution to the impasse be found some four to five days prior to the established starting date, if exam papers are prepared in advance," the administration said.
"Should the stakeholders refuse to restart discussions and directives are not lifted, then the University Administration would need to explore the exams issue together with KSU and the Unions so that a way forward which is the least damaging for the students be mapped out."
University of Malta Rector, Prof. Juanito Camilleri, said that he was in regular daily consultation with the parties concerned in order to chart the best way forward. He said he was convinced that all parties had the good of the University at heart and appealed for discussions to continue with immediate effect so matters may be resolved as soon as possible.
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Comments
That's exactly what I meant by "mass producer of graduates and degrees".
Without going into the merits of IQ scores as a reliable representation of a student's capabilities (there's quite a debate about this in academic circles), I get what you're hinting at. Some people make you wonder how on Earth they could have made it through.
So who cares if the half the graduates have an IQ of 25?
As a student, I do get a stipend, and i DO use it for extra-curricular purchases (who wouldn't, come on..) but I have no problem in saying that, for me, the only way to really improve the University is by:
1. Removing stipends, or allocate them an a means tested basis
2. Set an entrance/yearly maintenance fee
3. Subsidize private universities, or rather, stimulate competition, as subsidies would violate EU rules
Imbaghad naraw!
That's why I said it's better if the stipend is given in the form of books in the first place, so nobody gets pissed in Paceville with stipend money - which falls under the cap of "it's used for anything else" after all. Then again, earning money as an incentive for studying it's not really helping in the yield of a truly well-rounded student, in an intellectual sense. Because in Malta, the feelin i get is that the student is still being considered as a number, and the ultimate aim is to pass exams and move on. Again, this is my point of view.
I spoke also to an English friend of mine, and told me that she knows people who after finishing uni, get a well-paid job so that they afford to pay the loan back. Don't know now due to the current recession problems though.
Another thing, hopefully without sounding utterly impertinent heh...still, why have you chosen to study in the UK if Malta pays you to take advantage of the best education?
That's right. Without mentioning any course names as it would be unfair on the respective Deans of the faculties, some of which are already making sweeping changes to the outdated system, there are particular courses which take 5 years to get an Honours degree and it would then take three whole years to get a warrant.
At the same time, if you were to take the foreign equivalent qualification in Malta, many people manage to get the degree PART TIME in 3 years whilst gaining valuable experience in the respective field of work. What's more, it then only takes ONE YEAR to get the warrant once you're qualified. And this is for the same type of degree as that offered by the UoM, only more credible because it is a foreign body.
Unfortunately they don't tell you these things at University, because otherwise I'm sure that 90% of the students already taking this University course would choose the foreign qualification.
Besides, I know of absolutely no student who would starve to death without his/her monthly stipend. Apart from medical students (and perhaps Engineering) who have the really tough courses requiring considerable amounts of studying, most students can easily fit in a part-time job in their daily schedule. I know, this defies the whole point of the stipend scheme, but this is what students are doing anyway.
And the Smart Card? Don't even get me started.
Yes, I am aware that there are some five-year Honours courses - I mentioned the four-year courses because they're the norm. Without taking any of their merit, I cannot understand why pharmacists need to take five years to graduate when in the same time one can become a doctor, architect or accountant. I was told by some pharmacy students that in the UK, the degree only takes three years.
But the issue here is not the duration itself, but the degree awarded. A friend of mine studying architecture told me courses abroad are shorter. In Malta, a five-year course will only lead you to an undergraduate degree (+ two more years before you get the warrant.) Same with accountants, who after five whole years of studying cannot continue for a Ph.D before they do a Masters degree somewhere. These should all be awarded a Masters degree immediately, although I am informed there are talks about this, at least for architecture.
@Silvio Abela
Yes, some Hons courses are now available in 3 years, but I don't think the sciences (incl. ICT and engineering) would have a lot of time-fillers. As much as FEMA's, for example.
with all due respect, you're putting words in my mouth to try and justify your point. i never said i don't like being at university. what i don't like is having a lecturers' strike affect my goal of getting a degree. it's unnecessary, uncalled for, and not part of the curriculum i signed up for. i'm at my final year, thank God....and i'm not keen on letting it all be messed up just because lecturers decide not to correct my final exams and assignments.
in regards to your final statement..."Furthermore in regards to government to not giving you a stipend, I think that you will be the first one who goes on the street together with all the other students having a tantrum!"
....well you thought wrong. please do not make general assumptions. i would gladly pay off my stipends after i graduate. providing of course, that my academic performance is not hindered by strikes, irresponsible lecturers, and other holes and dents in the system.
If here in Malta we are making a fuss...why are you studying in the UK in the first place?
I'm sorry, the government isn't kind by giving us stipends. What if it were books instead? Now that's surely excellent sponsorship.
@ Silvio Abela
A smart car can buy cars????????? Why did I buy a computer in the first place, damn it!
As for the brain drain, I've got some Maltese friends who got attached to their Erasmus placements.
The son of a good friend of mine is a doctor in the UK and doesn't really seem to want to come back.
And a brain drain might actually ease the pressure of finding new job opportunities in our own islands.
Regarding knowledge and in-depth reading of subjects, how come those who are taking a B.Ed course, to teach Maths at secondary schools, need to know Analytical Geometry axioms which never appear in any secondary school maths copybook?
Furthermore in regards to government to not giving you a stipend, I think that you will be the first one who goes on the street together with all the other students having a tantrum!
this issue is not related to stipends. the quality of education provided to us is more important than that. issa if we're being given stipends to justify a shabby and poorly constructed education system, i'd rather we didn't have stipends at all. whether or not we receive stipends...we expect not to be exploited and used as leverage during our 4 years at university.
Some of you only mention the worst things. It can't be that bad. Since October 2008 a lot of 4-year hons. degrees have been reduced to three, namely: engineering, ict and others. B'Ed is divided in two parts of 2-years that's why it's still a total of 4. On others I'm not informed.
Having thousands graduate every year is a good thing. Having many of those leaving the island straighaway is NOT. I would suggest that at least the graduands work in Malta for a few years "to pay off" society for sponsoring them.
I would also remove most of the "rubbish" students can buy with their smart card, like clothes, mobile phones,cars etc and leave the card strictly for "studying" purposes.
I would also like to remind some that the University's courses comply with the Bologna process, unlike these so called "degrees" that one finds by the dozen.
Also remember, a certificate (or a degree) can get you an interview, your knowledge and drive will get you the job. It doesn't matter how many certificates a person can produce but their knowledge and in-depth reading of a subject, matters. A lot.
Our Honours course doesn't even last four years, but FIVE years. Can you believe it?! An Honours course lasting five years?
You are now officially my newfound outsider hero.
Having said that, I re-iterate a previous statement I have made: the UoM issue goes further than just the academic's salaries, or smothering rallies.
In Greece and Italy, students braved the streets and shouted their own disapproval. Only the violence tarnished the protests.
And in Malta...we held banners with KSU stamps, in a room...and then they say how truly represented us students are.
Students should stop being alienated by frivolities and start looking at things in a truly objective manner, because this is what's keeping this country from becoming a "centre of excellence", to use a now well-known cliche'.
And if there's one frivolity that I would do away with is the politics in the KSU, because all of us know were sympathies mainly lie, be it SDM or PULSE. I do have my own sympathies, but I'd rather leave them out of university, if us students were to honestly unite.
And if people cry out, "What about my right to vote?", aren't the Local Council and General Elections enough?
I'm not saying in any way that this is the way we should go. Receiving tertiary education free of charge is generous enough, and more. People in the professional category (not the majority of them, granted) are among those who have a penchant for underdeclaration of income. Others jump at the opportunity of careers abroad. So we honest taxpayers are actually sponsoring a brain drain.
I'm sure this is not the case for all courses, but one must admit there's quite a substantial amount of busywork assigned to students which contributes very little to expand their intellectual horizons.
Hopefully, once the UOM becomes fully compliant with the framework established in the Bologna Process, all undergraduate Honours courses will be down to three years instead of four, for starters. I'm positive this will not burden the students with more stress. It will not be a matter of compressing four years' worth of material into three, but rather a much-needed process to separate the wheat from the chaff and do away with credits of little academic value (or as I like to call them, the time-fillers).
This is what we should be protesting for, as students.
Any assessment done by a human being on another human being is not 100% reliable, it is up to the person drawing up the assessment mechanism and leading the exercise to ensure that the system is as free from bias as possible, like in any other research exercise after all. At least, HAVING an assessment mechanism would be indicative in a small way - much better than not having any such system as is the case with performance bonuses given to lecturers, for instance. I agree that biases should be monitored, but the assessment should not ask for GOOD / POOR ratings as such. Imagine rating a lecturer's attitude towards assignments, a range from "Often assigns work to students - - - "Rarely assigns work to students". Students would indicate where the lecturer best fits on that range, for example.
@ J.Borg
I agree 100% with having student's stipends tied to their performance and attendance. Why not? I wouldn't have had an issue whatsoever with that in my student years, so yes, bring it on.
Are you sure about PB? Check with the University's Finance Department... ;) And what kind of assessment is tied to their PB please?
"Do you expect to have time to study and revise when you are working and being faced with a problem? You will be given the order of the boot."
oh for crying out loud.
we're STUDENTS. students study and revise. why do they study, you may ask? to be able to work in the FUTURE. hence the tests and assessments - which are meant to determine if we're capable of getting a degree or not. so for now, they study. then they find a job after they get their degree. Ftiemna s'issa? Ok. So in the FUTURE, when we're working (and not studying) we can deal with a problem when we're faced with it, WITHOUT revising and studying. because we'll have done that at UNIVERSITY.
Put on your reading glasses and check out my comment again: I never asked WHO was using the students: I was simply challenging your utterly ridiculous assumption that students "couldn't care less for other peoples", NOT that student organisations have political agendas.
With regards to the actual GOV-UMASA dispute, yes, the government IS being intransigent: UMASA officials are equally hard-headed in demanding astronomical pay packets. So be a little less selfish and compromise. Set aside personal gains and maximize (if such term can be used) society's welfare.
The government has the duty to renegotiate the wage package and (FINALLY) sign a new collective agreement, as should have been done immediately upon expiry in 2003. UMASA however cannot expect to get the wage packets it is demanding: raise your hand anyone who does not think the proposed salaries are unrealistically high.
As a student in my final year, I would be more sympathetic with UMASA were it not for the substantial amount of lecturers who 'read out' lectures, rehash last year's notes (at best!) and deal out assignments without ever bothering to correct and return them.
As to your comment:
One poster reads " Make our education less of a psychology struggle" . Now forgive me if I am wrong but shouldn't that be less of a PSYCHOLOGICAL struggle since this is describing the type of struggle? So much having two official languages, one seems to clearly be going to the dogs.
That's what I said at first when I saw the banner, however I than realized that PSYCHOLOGY was in italics and not in bold, and so if you're a bit creative it should read, Make our education less of a struggle, and psychology refers to the fact that they are psychology students, but I don't think that the students did not realize this themselves... That's how I interpreted it after I gave it some thought.
My oh my....you are so not upto date on MCAST or you are one of those people that is ready to judge without never having been there. MCAST is the so called Malta College for Arts, SCIENCE and Technology. If your statement made sense it would mean that MCAST would have an institute for science with a decent science lab in it! The course was run in the Business & Commerce institute and now in the Community Services Institute and using a makeshift physics lab! I know because I studied Applied Science there and had it not been for my lecturers my MCAST experience would have gone down the drain!
Also, MCAST did not even have the space and resources to accomodate all the students that applied for the computing courses last September! So where is the money that is at MCAST right now? It is true that there is a project in the pipeline but the same can be done for the University of Malta. However, the current situation at MCAST is not as colourful as you made it sound!
Just wanted to clarify that for anyone who read your comment.
For your information industrial relations is a subject lectured at the Uni.
William Gatt
I would protest against Gonzipn arrogance and intransigence which is used with all those who have an issue with the Government.
I never said that you should refuse the stipends. I brought to the attention of the readers that if students from eu countries come here, work for some months and pay NI and other taxes, they would be entitled to a stipend same as Maltese students. How long do you think the Uni or the Government will be able to give stipends, including to Maltese students?
I. Galea
I am dumbfounded by the comments some of the students make which clearly show that they have no idea of industrial relations. Do you expect to have time to study and revise when you are working and being faced with a problem? You will be given the order of the boot.
Andrew Martinelli
It is not UMASA that is using students but the Government. The readers here can judge against whom the vast majority of complaints were posted by students. Compare how much UMASA and the Government were mentioned.
For your information NO we are not the same students that Boowed Alfred Sant - in the rally there was a variety of people.it was not political at all>example i went to the rally but i was not there when Mr. Alfred Sant came to the univ
Hey Mr, you should be more mature - the new generation of students is not interested in politics like the old people do - the new students are intelligent enough to think with their brains and not follow their ancestors ideas
Because we had a Labour Government. And today we don't.
If UMASA and the government want to be believed they should both come out and say what exactly it is that they're offering or requesting. Only after this is done could we, the people out here, truly decide which side is right or wrong..........I do know this goes against the spirit of negotiations, but hasn't the government already revealed the exorbitant UMASA wage proposals?? So now that the proper negotiation process has been tampered with there is no other way but for both sides but to come clean and show their proposals in public!!
In the meantime lets not make bus drivers out of our lecturers as whatever anyone says they've had a pivotal role to play in the University's success throughout these 20 years and no sly, ulterior motives by those who find todays' protest as an opportune political spectacle can ever change that!!
""MY EXAMS ARE IN 10 DAYS"
So what? Do you study to learn or just to pass the exams?"
....MORE proof that you don't know what you're talking about. honesty lgalea, sometimes i wonder whether you post outrageous comments just for the sake of winding us up and reminding us never to underestimate the brash ignorance of certain people. students study towards examtime because:
a) they need to revise. they're students, not computers.
b) they were busy doing other things throughout the semester, like...oh i don't know, perhaps assignments, 300-hour placements, presentations and a dissertation?
and all this revising could be in vain. sure we'll have learned what we need to know, but preparing ourselves for exams which might not even happen, and the hours of researching for assignments we're not sure will even be corrected...its all just too much for us.
Apart from controversy hope a solution is found for the sake of both parties. These students are the future of this country. And they are also the teachers and lecturers of tomorrow.
I would only object to KSU 'political correctness' - when it should have sided with the lecturers from day 1.
In Malta it's Gazaza.
I will make this short and sweet. Mr (or Mrs for the matter) I Galea, what would you do if you were a student? Also if you were given a stipend, would you refuse it?
I'd really like to know, since you always seem to have an answer ready up your sleeve.
Let the lecturers strike and postpone our exams date... then when they finally decide to examine us... we shall strike ourselves! What can they do to 10,000 students?? Make us all repeat a year? That would be fun to see!!
As for the protest. Lecturers have a right to protest but so do students. Unfortunately the KSU administration only had the guts to hold a protest indoors. Why not to Valletta as they did 12 years ago?
Students should have rather asked for more resources to be devoted to the post-secondary education. Nobody expects them to renounce voluntarily to their stipends but one feels that the key to the reform of the tertiary sector is the reform of the stipend system as it will free resources for areas such as the library.
Ironically, it is befitting of the stipend generation that instead of rallying against the atrocities being carried out in Gaza, they should rally to hold their exams on time ! Sir, miss, please hand in the exam papers so that our exams will suffer no delay ! It is forty years after 1968 and nothing seems to excite today's students so much as a delay in the date of their exams.
And about the "exorbitant" salaries, the lecturers are demanding, the Ministers' Cabinet did not need anyone's approval to give themselves an exorbitant raise claiming they do enough for two jobs. The stubbornness is on both sides, but on the Govt's side it has a level of its own.
secondly this is not a strike as the lecturers are still lecturing ( even today when they were not supposed to due to the rally) this means that they're being paid and so not missing on anything for their part except the solution of the collective agreement. A fine strategy by umasa I must say... but despicable since they're threatening our future. Oh how I wish there could be a way for the students to pressure lecturers in such a way! You really should look back and remember what being a student entitles you to!
Dear Alistair...that's a good idea. But......... to be fair...since you suggest this to both KSU and UMASA, one also needs to introduce a system which helps assess which students should get a full yearly stipend based on criteria such as how many lectures students attend in a semester, how many labs do carry out, how many assignments they all submit on time, how may avoid copying bits and pieces from internet.... How about that Alistair??
Alistair, the point is that in all sectors of society, there are excellent students and not so good & deserving students. Similarly, there are excellent academics and not so good & deserving academics..... That is why not all academics get a full PB.
I'm sure that noone expects a collective agreement for such a massive institution to be negotiated over night. "
You are not talking about the Chinese army or government employees are you? With your reasoning, the Chinese Government would take at least a millennium to reach agreement with them.
Daqt nibda nsabbat rasi mal hajt!!!
Ara ma twaqqax il-ħajt tal-Canteen
"MY EXAMS ARE IN 10 DAYS"
So what? Do you study to learn or just to pass the exams?
P Debono
Bahrin tal-bnazzi?
charmaine mangion
Tantx tgħajjat. If students from eu countries start wanting to attend UOM, they may work for a few months, pay NI and will be entitled for stipends. How long do you think that UOM and the Government can continue to give stipends in this case?
Why, oh WHY do you have to bring in politics every time? Why are you always so negative?
It is true that some students wouldn't even be in University had an IQ test been a requisite, and it is true that partisan politics exists even on campus.
It is also true however that KSU+Students Orgs openly criticized BOTH the GOVT and UMASA for the standstill in negotiations. It also made a special call for your 'despised' gonzipn to seriously invest in university: but I'm sure you didn't notice that.
Re: your comment "students couldn't care less about other people's rights.."
==> INT BIS-SERJETA?
So using us as leverage falls under 'caring' for you, is that right?
RE: your comment: "pampered students"
==> If you weren't so biased against anyone who holds different beliefs than yours I'm sure you would notice that there are other pampered groups on this island. But I guess it pays not to notice.
I will be checking in every 30 mins awaiting your response.
stipends have NOTHING to do with it. whether students receive stipends or not, their education and future careers should never be toyed with.
I am TRYING to prepare for my finals, it took me EIGHTEEN YEARS to get me where I am today. this is the most important academic year of my life, as it is for many other students who are currently as outraged as I am about this issue. we're hanging on a line here, not sure of what's going to happen, and how badly we could be affected.
@ Igalea I am truly dumbfounded at the stupidity of the comments you post, every single time. your blatant statement about the "abysmal quality" of "pampered" maltese university students and making industrial relations compulsory for all courses (!!!!!) only goes to show even more, that you have no idea what you're talking about.
Please understand the student position fully -- we are not taking sides but asking to be left out of the matter!
As to the comment on not needing to invest in university...
1.it's an utter disgrace that all those millions are spent on MCAST while the university budget is decreased year-on-year - I really do not see how we can become "a centre of excellence" in FS and IT with this strategy;
2.don't fall to the lemons problem here since paying a mediocre pay leads to those who deserve good remuneration to leave and university will end up with the bunch of do-nothings you mentioned only giving lectures. The way to address the non-performing lecturers is having a real performance incentive system in place and not by paying lecturers in monkey money. Do you realise that some students are offered the same salary of the M.A. assistant lecturer who taught them before even leaving university? I'd be more than delighted if the few utterly useless lecturers I have had over the years were fired and their pay distributed to the performing ones, though UMASA would obviously object.
How about the introduction of lecturer assessments, or lecturer awards from students? A lot of comments seem to back the idea that some lecturers do NOT deserve a payrise, whilst others do. I personally agree with this, having had a mix of both admirable and honest lecturers as well as unprepared lecturers who used (outdated) notes from 30 years ago! (Yes, 30, way before their collective agreement expired!) What this system would do is to highlight discrepancies across the academic staff within University, and it would hopefully put pressure on underperforming lecturers. The KSU could hold surveys across the University population and present an official report to the Rector and to the Ministry of Education.
One more thing, do ALL lecturers still get their FULL performance bonus regardless of their performance? I agree with having a new collective agreement, but let's do away with rewarding a full bonus to everyone please, as this takes away from the credit of truly hardworking lecturers.
KSU & UMASA Representatives, please reply. Thanks!
Also, one cannot expect a big number of students to attend today's rally as everybody is at home studying for the supposedly upcoming exams. No students are willing to take the risk of not studying, and then 5 days before the commencement of test week they get to know that the exams are infact going to be held. So it is not justifiable to claim that the students are not interested in this issue because they did not attend.
I am also happy to see that finally the KSU is willing to take a stand and protect the students, so as to avoid the disappointment of a few years ago when the stipends were lowered with only a few days notice. Well done KSU!!
"But please, do not forget that our students are the only students in Europe who are privileged to receive stipends for their studies." -- This statement is (a) completely irrelevant, and (b) incorrect, for there are many other institutions that give stipends to their students and offer free education (one example: TKK in Finland).
Just 400 out of 10,000 students? That makes 0.04% present and 99.96% absent ---> I think you got your maths wrong
But please, do not forget that our students are the only students in Europe who are privileged to receive stipends for their studies.
If you weren't living on planet Earth at the time, it was a very rainy day today so attendance was bound to be low anyway. And in case you weren't at University, the rally was held inside, which meant there was a huge space constraint. But the indoor area of the canteen/common room/KSU was full to the brim.
I am one of those who had to accept a lower stipend, and I also recall that our year never protested for our (unjust, abrupt and drastic) reduction of our stipend.
These students organizations which are in Gonzipn's pockets couldn't care less for other peoples rights and industrial relations.
I suggest that the subject of industrial relations be made compulsory for all courses in University so that these pampered students can learn about workers, and workers includes academics, rights.
As i said, everybody has the right to strike, but that should never effect the rights of others. We are talking about university exams for crying out loud! The students had nothing to do with the collective agreement in the 1st place, so much so, that for the past 5years we were never involved in anything. UMASA now thinks that they can put pressure on the government by using the vulnerability of us students to get what it wants. I never questioned WHAT UMASA wants, but i strongly disagree with HOW they are requesting it. Everybody knows what pressures exams bring with them...just add the uncertainty of not knwing whether the examiner will turn up for my oral exams, and whether exam papers will be handed out when im seated for my exam in 2wks!!
Daqt nibda nsabbat rasi mal hajt!!!
2 out of those 5 years throughout which the collective agreement has been pending was at the fault of UMASA themselves.
Of the remaining 3 years, I'm sure that noone expects a collective agreement for such a massive institution to be negotiated over night.
Irrelevant for how long the collective agreement has been pending, and whose fault it is, UMASA where the ones to issue the directives that negatively affect students. Even if the gov't were rather laid back about the issue... they never used us students like UMASA did..
KSU should be lauded for refusing to take sides and for speaking so clearly about the repercussions on us students and the institution in general.
Well done KSU
+
AEGEE, AI, AIESEC, AS, BETA psi, COMMA, ELSA MALTA, GhMU, GhSK, GhSL, GhST, IAESTE, ICTSA, INSITE, JEF MALTA, KSJC, MADS, MKSU, MMSA, Mov. GRAFFITI, MPSA, MUSC, PULSE, S-CUBED, SACES, SDM, TSA, UESA, ULGBTS, CHAPLAINCY, USTA.
Secondly with regards to the Rector's comments if I understood them correctly, a decision will most probably be taken only FIVE days before the starting date fo exams. This is a complete and utter injustice to us students who have to cope not only with the tension that exams normally bring about but also with the added pressure of not knowing what is going to happen!
2 out of those 5 years throughout which the collective agreement has been pending was at the fault of UMASA themselves.
Of the remaining 3 years, I'm sure that noone expects a collective agreement for such a massive institution to be negotiated over night.
Irrelevant for how long the collective agreement has been pending, and whose fault it is, UMASA where the ones to issue the directives that negatively affect students. Even if the gov't were rather laid back about the issue... they never used us students like UMASA did..
May i remind the students/KSU and once i was i a student myself that....
When nurses, doctors strike, patients suffer.
when airport, airline emoployees strike, passengers suffer,
when teachers strike, pupils/students suffer.
and conversely one day that doctor on strike will be a patient,
that teacher might be a passenger,
that student might be a doctor, a teacher...a lecturer.
L-ISTUDENTI TAL-LLUM HUMA IL-HADDIEMA TA' GHADA.
All is fine. Blame the students for your beloved collective agreement then.
If most lecturers deserved an exorbitant raise then I would understand their situation, but most of them (with a few notable exceptions whom I admire greatly) don't even deserve 1 additional euro cent for their efforts, or shall I say lack of.
Why are you blaming UMASA when UMASA has been patiently avoiding this situation for 5 years? Would you continue working with a Collective Agreement that expired 5 years ago? I think, you should do the contrary and THANK UMASA for being so diplomatic and patient in continuing with the delivery of lectures and exams for 5 years. But......but.....there is a limit for everything. As much as UMASA is concerned about the impact on students when actions are taken, UMASA is also concerned with protecting its members who cannot keep on working with a Collective Agreement that expired 5 years ago.
@Andrew Zammit Manduca
Based on the above, clearly, it is **not the Union** that is greedy but whoever expects academics to keep on delivering work and an increasing workload (more students, more research projects, more courses etc.) with conditions that expired 5 years ago. Mr Zammit Manduca...can you really keep on working in such conditions??
It's weird that while the older generation of politicians seem to get lost in endless, immature bickering, the younger generation has united for a common cause and showed the government and opposition what co-operation is all about. Let us hope this signals the start of a new era of politics in Malta.
I follow the Times of Malta comments and it is not the first time that I come across your comments. Other commentators describe you as a PN apologist. Is it so? are you the same PNs local councils PN representative Paul Aquilina? If so please stop blaming the lecturers and blame your Party in government for not fulfilling its promises. Lecturers deserve the right for a decent salary just as much as us students deserve the right to do our exams in 2 weeks time. Remember, if you pay peanuts you get monkeys. So stop all this crap and back us students against the Governments impasse!!
'400 attending out of 10,000 students'
Some people are really selfish. They expect others to protest on their behalf and to stand up and be counted u huma joqoghdu gallerija. All students should have been there after all this directive affects all of them.
You have a right to be tested yes. But if you really acquired the knowledge you claim to have gained, what's the difference in practicing it now or practicing it in 3 months' time? If you can't even hold information for 3 months ... how can you expect to retain it for a lifetime?
At this stage on of the most important things to consider is that with their actions (all parties) more than 10,000 students are affected.
With reference to what Neil Ferris said about Pulse & SDM holding the same banner, yes it's great to see it, because after all we members of these student organizations, fight for rights of students. When there is a problem affecting all these students, we have to join forces to make our voice stronger, just as we did with all the other student organizations.
ms. avellino and ksu i completly disagree with you that government should invest in higher education by giving in to threats by lecturers! as an ex university student graduating last year from my m.a. and previously from my b.a. i can say that most lecturers do not deserve the raise they are requesting. even most of those who are supposed to be full time lecturers have their consultancy firms and other part- time jobs! we should invest otherwise in our higher education such as by introducing new courses which are so far non-existent !
It is the union's right to protest and this directive is one way to do so.
The union could have made other directives like not delivering lectures but this could be more damaging to students instead it has opted for a directive which gave plenty of time to the authorities to wake up. |t is by no means the union's fault
The ball lies entirely in the govt foot and it is the govt who stopped short of promises
where is gonzi pn?
remember what words of praise our hon president said to this govt. on new year's day? Are they really true?
I think it's time both parties respect OUR RIGHT TO EDUCATION!
Well done to all those who attended....this morning was great!
THEY ARE USING STUDENTS AS A BARGANING TOOL
WHY DON'T THE LECTURERS PUBLISH THEIR PROPOSALS FOR THE PAY RISE THAT THEY WANT?!
THEY WANT EXORBIANT PAY INCREASES!
KSU highlighted all the repercussions if this situation persists.
by the way - IT WAS GREAT TO SEE PULSE AND SDM HOLDING ONE BANNER!