THE Report: Some university students “almost illiterate”

A survey by Times Higher Education (THE) has found that 48% of academics did not believe students were adequately prepared for higher education due to the lowered requirements for entry into university, with one lecturer commenting that some students were “almost illiterate”.

Only 24% of academics surveyed thought their students came well prepared for class, and 52% thought students turned up for seminars without doing the requisite reading.

Many academics pointed to a trend that the standard of students admitted to universities are slipping, with one lecturer commenting that some students were “almost illiterate”.

Lecturers also had reservations about students’ attitudes towards their studies, with one academic lamenting that: “students study to pass exams, not to study a discipline”.

Issues such as the English standard of international students (33% of academics felt the English standard of students was inadequate) as well as plagiarism (60% have caught students cheating at least once) were also at the forefront.

Many lecturers felt this reflected the trend of the increasing marketisation of higher education, and the concept of a degree as a stepping stone to a well-paying career rather than a learning process.

One lecturer told the survey: “Many universities have shifted their focus towards student satisfaction at the expense of academic quality.”

The National Student Survey (NSS) was pointed to as to blame by some, with 43% of academics stating they felt it gave students too much power. One lecturer stated: “because we have to challenge the students… the NSS results can be inaccurate”.

The NSS is touted to incentivise universities to raise teaching standards through surveys of student satisfaction. However, 74% of academics do not believe it will improve it, and just 7% think it accurately represents the quality of teaching.

Nevertheless, the jury is out for whether students today are less well-equipped for university than in previous years, as although this opinion was held by 39% of academics surveyed, another 34% disagreed.

Another lecturer told the report: “When 45% of school-leavers go to university, standards must be different from what they were when 7% did – we should be open about that and welcome it.”