Modern history undergraduates have been left stunned after learning that over a fifth of their tutorials are to be axed. No students were consulted about the controversial measures, provoking an angry response from historians whose degree courses will be directly affected. Under the proposed changes, modern history students will now receive an average of less than one tutorial a week over a three-year degree course. Jonathan Edwards, the President of the Undergraduate Joint Consultative Committee for history, said, “The UJCC sees the tutorial as the foundation of the history course at Oxford, and opposes any move away from course based on tutorial teaching.” The History Faculty made the decision to cut tutorials in order to free up time for academics. Dr. Chris Haigh, chairman of the History Faculty board said, “Under current arrangements, history tutors are seriously overworked, and we have to address issues of job-satisfaction, while maintaining the quality of the student educational experience.” The news comes after the University’s History Faculty recently lost its status as the country’s leading history department. It slipped to fourth in The Times league table after losing its 5* rating for teaching and research, placing it behind city rival Oxford Brookes. It is known that at least four tutors are planning to leave the faculty this year sparking fears some of Oxford’s finest academics may be poached by other universities. Professor Niall Ferguson, who presented the television series Empire, is cutting down on his time at Oxford this year and told Cherwell, “The Oxford system of tutorial teaching is indeed quite laborious in comparison with nearly all other universities.” His main employment is now at New York University, though he retains his post at Jesus. Seven of the fourteen cuts in tutorials have already been made, most significantly as the result of the introduction of a compulsory thesis. However, it appears that further changes, which will reduce the total number of tutorials from 81 to 67, have been put into effect without liaison with the current or previous UJCC. Linsey Cole, a UJCC member said, “The whole point of a UJCC is to ensure students are consulted and adequately represented when such fundamental changes to teaching are being proposed and in this situation, this clearly did not occur.” The History faculty claims that its proposals have been underway for some time and are in no way expected to jeopardise students’ degrees. One Professor of history told Cherwell that it was time for change. “Undergraduate tutorial teaching at Oxford is a pedagogical fetish which should be rethought and cut back. What the Faculty doing is right and long overdue.” However, students have raised concern that no details of replacement teaching have been given. Sian Grieve, Wadham’s history representative said, “A change to classes rather than tutorials would not be acceptable if Oxford is to maintain its status as a leading university.” The History Faculty denies that the move is ‘resource-driven’.
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The JCR President of Pembroke has criticised The Times for its publication of its article, ‘Oxford’s value for money league table points way forward’. The newspaper has been accused of manipulating the findings of Oxford University’s Student Union college inequalities report in order “to widen the discrepancy between colleges.” Exeter College emerged at the top of a league table, published alongside The Times article, that ranks Oxford colleges according to the value they offer students. Harris Manchester and Pembroke were placed bottom for providing the least for students’ money. Ryan McGhee wrote to The Times, along with nine others who had compiled the Student Union study, claiming that the article fails “to compare like with like – your table compares the highest rent bands in the most expensive colleges with the lowest rent bands in the cheapest ones.” The table exposes a huge discrepancy between the wealthy colleges, which can afford to use cheap rents as an incentive for the brightest students, and those at the bottom which in general produce lower Norrington Table results for a far greater charge. Exeter is almost twice as good value as the bottom colleges according to the study, which compares colleges’ academic record with the cost of attending them. Robin Hopkins, JCR President at Exeter, said that any excitement about Exeter topping the table was overshadowed by current negotiations over rents and charges. However, he said students do currently feel happy that they are not overcharged and believe food and accommodation are good value. However, the decision to write to the Times was unpopular with some of those named as having signed the letter. One JCR President feared that the Student Union would be seen as petty and that the article as a whole reinforced the original report’s conclusions.
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Oxford researchers Dr Miriam Moffat and Professor William Cookson have taken a dramatic step towards enhancing our understanding of asthma. The pair, and their team at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics in Oxford have identified gene that predisposes the carrier asthma and atopy, a form of hypersensitivity that causes allergies. The discovery comes as a result of hard years of research, which has put the Oxford team in the select group of only a handful of organisations that have made similar discoveries. However, scientists are warning sufferers not to rush down to their GPs just yet. Professor Cookson the first to admit that the task translating the findings into treatments “will not be accomplished overnight.” The association of asthma with genes lessens the likelihood that weather conditions are to blame, which are for many are an unalterable reality of daily life.
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Only a week after faulty electrics at Mansfield College caused a fire that left undergraduates without access to their computer room, the fire brigade were called out again, this time in response to a false alarm. The smell of smoke caused the main building to be evacuated, leaving students without facilities for several hours. Opinion amongst the students appeared to be angry as many finalists were hurried outside. A third year PPEist, Jonathan Lindley told Cherwell “This is a farce. We have enough on our plate without sirens going off.” The college is to look into its fire and safety provision before the beginning of next term.
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Keble MCR has published a report encouraging JCRs and MCRs to revise their financial relationship with the Oxford University Student Union while remaining affiliated to it. The Keble Common Room, which in the 1999-2000 academic year was disaffiliated from the Student Union, claims that dissatisfaction with “value for money” is rife amongst fellow student JCRs and MCRs. It points to a national survey it conducted that shows that OUSU is the only Student Union that charges subscription fees. In recent years a number of Common Rooms, including Oriel JCR, have disaffliated. However unlike many JCR and MCR debates on the value of OUSU, Keble MCR does not advocate disaffliation as the key. In cocompiler Andrew MacDonald’s words, they want to take the debate away from a “binary discussion” of “afflilation vs disaffliation.” It furthermore stresses the valuable work that OUSU does, pointing to its active and successful struggle over top-up fees as the current controversial issue. The compilers of the report, sent to OUSU and imminently to JCR and MCR OUSU representatives, hope that their statements will stimulate ’”constructive criticism” and an internal realignment of OUSUCommon Room relations.
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Oxford University should cut its ties with UK government to go private “loudly and proudly,” according to a senior research professor at the University, rather than continue reasoning and begging with the state sector. Concerned with the current financial situation of publicly funded institutions Nick Trefethen (the American head of the Numerical Analysis project and fellow at Balliol) advocated privatisation in latest edition of Oxford Magazine, the historic discussion forum of the University. Emphasising the necessary support required from alumni contributions, Professor Trefethen’s proposals would nonetheless require large student contributions, comparable to the £40 000 plus paid by undergraduates in the States. “We can embrace the reality that there is not a single state-run university, not one on earth, that Oxford and Cambridge are worried about” he wrote. “In our self-selected peer group, we are poorer than Yale, poorer than Princeton, and far, far poorer than Harvard or Stanford.” He believes that in order to remain great in the 21st Century the University has to lead public opinion away from its commitment to state funded education and place itself in fairer competition with the Ivy League. Professor Nick Trefethen joined Oxford in 1997 after distinguished work at Harvard and Stanford universities and now researches for the Universities Computer Laboratory. By going private Trefethen believes the University can end its attempt at “reasoning with parliament, begging the Higher Education Funding Council, entreating the UK to fund us better and control us less.” However Professor Trefethen’s proposals have received little credibility within the University. The University Press Office told Cherwell that the Oxford Magazine represents the views of Oxford academics only, “The University feels it has a future within the sector of state funding.” The Student Union showed a similar lack of concern with the article, President Will Straw labelled the proposals as “laughable.” He further questioned, “How does Trefethen propose to increase access and wider participation by unleashing market forces upon those considering applying to university?” By abandoning state funding Oxford would move alongside Britain’s only current private university, Buckingham. Its Vice- Chancellor Dr Terence Kealey commented that private institutions “are excellent not only because, by charging full fees, they are prosperous, but also, by being independent, they are not bound by government targets”. Undergraduates at Buckingham pay £40 320 for a two-year course qualification, but with grants being available for students from the Home Counties. Although the University is openly considering the movement the private sector, Trefethen’s comments have aroused concern among students. It is feared that removal of the cap for tuition from the level of £3000 currently proposed will facilitate an effective move to private funding with state’s backing.
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An Oxford chemistry graduate planning to launch the first English language newspaper in Iraq for more than a decade. The Baghdad Bulletin, the brainchild of Ralph Hassall, 23, is due to be published next month, with around 5000 copies printed, and plans for an online version to attract international readers are well underway. A number of key academics, journalists, and politicians, Arab and Western alike, have been approached to contribute. Ralph intends the Bulletin to act as a forum for Iraqis to discuss the future their country. “I want to get Iraqis talking about what should happen the country now the war is over: what should the billions of dollars promised in aid be spent on? Who should spend it and how?” he said speaking from Jordan. Not everyone may be so convinced of the validity of such an enterprise. James Lazou, a Wadham student who played a prominent role in the Oxford Students Stop the War Group, expressed his concern about the project to Cherwell. “I find the concept of an English language newspaper being the forum for Iraqis to debate their future, very worrying, and a reflection of wider colonialist attitudes to the country.” Mr Hassall, who admits to being “a patriot,” has embarked on a potentially very lucrative path. As former City media analyst Celia Leaberry explained, if the future of Iraq is secured, a national newspaper will very likely bid to take over the Bulletin. If, however, violence should break out again in Iraq, the fate of the paper looks less certain.
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