There is a growing pressure on academics not to raise concerns about course standards so as not to damage their university’s reputation in the market, the Committee was also told.
Asked the panel for their opinion of the Quality Assurance Agency and whether it needed greater powers. The QAA was not delivering what it had been intended to, Sally Hunt, General Secretary, UCU replied. Independent, robust assessment of courses was vital, and this was not being provided, she said.
Increased funding and the ability to make its findings transparent were both necessary changes, she added, whilst the external examiner system also needed to be made more transparent.
Veronica Killen, Northumbria University and Dr Gavin Reid, University of Leeds both agreed with concerns raised by Dr Iddon about a growing lack of contact time for students with their teachers.
Changing the line of questioning, MP Gordon Marsden pointed to the changing profile of the student body and asked how this had affected teaching over the last five to ten years.
It was noted that students who had come from weaker schools had been poorly advised. Students now often had to work as well as study to afford tuition fees, which had made life harder for all involved.
Disadvantaged students were often the best and most determined, but they brought other demands which meant they required a lot of time and input from tutors.
Moving the session on, Conservative MP Tim Boswell asked what the UCU’s attitude was towards protecting students or teachers in a dispute.
There had been lengthy communications on the NUS on this issue, Ms Hunt replied. Whilst they did not want to put students at risk, taxpayers’ money was currently being used to challenge the UCU’s right to ballot its members to guarantee job security, and this had to be challenged, she said.
As with all trade unions, the UCU was focussed on protecting members’ jobs and ensuring they did not have to pay for problems they were not responsible for, she added.
They simply wanted a civilised conversation, she concluded.
Closing the session, the Chair asked whether every lecturer in the country should be properly trained to teach.
All of the witnesses agreed that this should be happen.
John Denham MP, Secretary of State, Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, and Sir Alan Langlands, Chief Executive, Higher Education Funding Council for England both gave evidence to the Innovation, Universities, Science and Skills Select Committee you can watch their performance here