Strike while the issue is hot
Posted by Vicki Scholtz | 19 May, 2006The academic strike over here in the UK continues, with the arrival of exam season. Academic staff - members of the AUT and Natfhe - are variously refusing to invigilate, set and / or mark papers, causing mass panic about whether or not students will be able to graduate, and - if they do - whether or not their degrees will deemed "less valid" for being Class of 2006 degrees (awarded on partial marks, for example).
The Guardian did a survey about effects on various campuses, deducing that those universities that have a lower union membership (such as Oxford and Imperial College, London) will suffer less disruption, while disciplines in which academics are more likely to be unionised (such as Sociology, History, and Education) are more likely to harder hit. The message is clear - if you want your child to be assured of a good, safe degree, send them to Oxford or Imperial to do something like Science or Business. And slip them membership forms to the Conservative Party while you're at it, no doubt.
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