Warwick’s Vice-Chancellor speaks out against TEF

The Vice-Chancellor of Warwick, Stuart Croft, published a blog post today in the Times Higher Education explaining how many UK universities, including Warwick, felt forced to join the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF).

The TEF sees the government assessing the teaching quality within UK universities. However, in his post, Croft describes how the University does not believe that it accurately measures high-quality teaching, as little of Warwick’s teaching achievements will be reflected through the TEF.

Warwick made its submission to the TEF on 26 January. However, Croft stated in his post: “We feel that we have been backed into a corner.” This is due to the fact that the TEF has become linked with tuition fees and possibly the recruitment of international students.

Croft went on to voice concerns about other measures being raised in the Higher Education and Research Bill which would limit UK universities’ independence. He stated: “The proposed measures treat education as if it is a commodity, just like any other.”

Croft concluded his post with a message to the government: “Our sector, while not perfect, is the envy of the world… Let’s make sure it stays that way.”

Croft’s post comes after he mentioned trying to get more media coverage on this issue during Warwick’s “Any Questions?” event on 23 January.

Nat Panda, Warwick Students’ Union’s Postgraduate Officer, stated in response to Croft’s post: “To be clear, the TEF is hated by students, academics and management.” He added that this makes the boycott of the National Student Survey (NSS) even more important as it opposes the TEF directly.

Croft’s blog will also be featured in the print version of the Times Higher Education later this week.