The University of Mauritius is going through difficult times. This is not new, you will say…
The blame is being subtly shifted to lecturers who are bearing the consequences of drastic changes in policy. In fact, most people are thinking that lecturers have asked for an extra week of holiday because they are utterly lazy. It has even been said on the radio that lecturers were absent yesterday and that students were sent back home for the first day of lectures. Very convenient, isn’t it?
But let me tell you that this is not true. We were present yesterday and we are present everyday at work. People do not realise how much work goes on behind the scene. Unlike primary and secondary school teachers, we do not get any holidays when there are no classes unless we apply for official leave.
The truth is that we were asked by top management to delay start of semester by one week for most courses. If the information did not get to the students, is it our fault?
And by the way, the reasons cited in the media for the delay are completely ‘à côté de la plaque’. More crucial issues are being omitted. And our Union is quite unsuccessful at getting the message across. But for God’s sake, stop putting the blame on us…
Hello Christina!
This seems too much! To blame the lecturers???
I never heard this in my life no matter where life took me in this world.
If this is what is done over there, then there are some huge problems at the “mansarde” of their bodies…
Crisis in Tertiary education!
Gokool, a UoM lecturer, on sabattical leaves merely confirms not only his academic calibre, but also his managerial incompetency. He is an “ad hoc” Minister of Education, without any long term policy. He simply reacts to events as exemplified by the fiasco at Eastern University. If Mr Gokool can approve the payment of a salary of nearly 150,000 rupees per month to the new vice-chancellor ( of unproven ability, according to colleagues at UoM) of the other university, how can he pleads poverty and lack of financial resources.
If Navin is so serious about making Mauritius a hub for knowledge, he should transfer Gokool to a less demanding Ministry in his proposed cabinet reshuffle. How can UoM demand that students undertake group work at the final year of any degree. In most countries I’ve taught, group work is accepted only in the first and second years of a degree programme. At final, there should not be collective project/disertation. Marking groupwork in the final year of a degree programme is pedagodically unacceptable.
How can the VC of UoM accept to increase the number of students without increasing the already depleted resources: physical, financial, human. Perhaps, the VC should step down! Did he fight for more financial resources from the government.
The other VC at Pointe au Sable seems to be better connected politically via his close links to the government. There was no need for a Univesrsity of Technology who merely replicates what is done at UoM.If Mr Gokool is sensible, he should close down the other University, and transfer all the resources to Reduit.
Christina, having spoken to your colleagues in Accounting, lecturers should not be blame for the chaos. The VC is equally inept to the needs of his staff. Teaching a larger number of students requires training via staff development.The style is different relative to teaching 40 as opposed to 600 students.
well said Phil, UTM should be closed 🙂
I don’t understand how gokhool as a lecturer could be that bad to the university..probably he was a bad lecturer…