Tim Firth indicated that lowering university admission standards will result in the dumbing down of the education sector. Firth was reacting to a report that indicated that from August, the universities had been admitting students with lower grades.
Tim Firth, head of Wrekin College in Wellington, Shropshire, a £33,500-a-year boarding school ($43,000), slammed university admission standards by claiming they had been lowered. He termed the current admission process was ‘dumbing down’ the education system by admitting unqualified students.
In August, it was revealed that universities would be able to admit students who have not reached the required academic grades. This move was met by mixed reactions, with some seeing it as a progressive move, while others were terming it as a method of lowering down the standards of education.
Firth opposition to current university admission
Tim Firth is in the latter category and has been very vocal in denouncing this move. In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, he said universities are now admitting students who, ten years ago, would not have been eligible.
He continued by saying that currently, any fool can get into the university. He also noted the deafening silence among academics and other education stakeholders by saying they had vested interest in this process. He argued that the cause of this silence is because universities are now more determined to fill vacant positions than follow set out standards.
He also slammed prestigious Russell Group which has universities such as Birmingham, Warwick and Southampton for taking part in this process. The group universities had also indicated that they would be lowering the admission of students with A-levels.
This comes amid increased scrutiny of university admissions after a report revealed that some universities were ‘bribing’ students so that they can be enrolled in their colleges. Some schools were offering as much as £4,500 ($5700) for students who would accept last-minute placements in their colleges.
The bribes included ‘clearing scholarships’, laptops, fee discounts and sometimes cash as much as £200 ($255). These, according to Firth, shows the level these schools are willing to go to meet admission numbers in their schools.
Experts noted that these university admission processes are being implemented by universities to increase their popularity with students. In fact, the more firsts they can give, the more popular they become. This later translates to higher admission numbers. How this is influencing the education system, however, it is hard to tell because no concrete data is showing that students coming out of universities now have poor quality education than a decade ago.
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