It is like we have been dealt the worst hand. First, the recession causes doom and gloom to abound and then a government comes in that wants to shrink spending, squeeze it until there is nothing left. I do understand the reasoning behind this but education is far more important than winning the next election. If the Conservative Party in the UK are pragmatic then they should surely realise education needs funding and that it is education which pushes growth. How else do you get specialists in every field? Instead they’d rather give tax breaks to higher earners and big businesses which has its benefits but it is like repairing the top of a skyscraper when the foundations are crumbling.
Everything that students are being told about their futures relates to hard it is going to be?
The message we are being told is not: “if you work hard, you will get a good job.” It is: “if you work then there is a chance that you will get a good job, just a chance mind you as there are oh so many people with degrees still seeking employment.”
What kind of a future is that? No wonder depression is rising and people are feeling despondent about their future. No wonder students aren’t motivated to work hard as the rewards are being constantly pulled higher up, out of reach of the vast majority. By the vast majority, I mean the less well off. There’s no question that money is the most important aid to help a student’s education. Yes, it depends on how the money is spent as well as the student but the root of it all is finance. Without some sort of financial backing, the quality of education will deteriorate. This is the sad reality of the consumerist world we currently live in.
In today’s world, teachers will not advance in their methods of teaching if they do not have incentives. That is the basis of liberal economics as financial incentives are seen as essential to the economy. So if the same theory is applied to jobs such as bankers then why can it not be applied to teachers? However, the government and society in general decide that other things are far more important such as renewing nuclear submarines or hosting the Olympics. I have yet to meet a single person who has been benefited by the Olympics.
The reason why finance is so important is because it is the root of the vast majority of worries people have. Whether it is their future, whether it is their job, whether it is paying the bills or whether it is -like me- paying for university. This is why students need to be taken care of, money needs to be pumped into the education sector and only then will it rise and will the depressive fog ease from the minds of students.
It is the 21st century, technology is advancing at an alarming rate yet the world is full of grimaces and fake smiles as people walk around with a burden of sadness weighing them down. Increasing funding for education will solve a great deal of worries and right the injustice that students face today. At the age of 21, when a person is supposed to be free, happy and looking upon the world with eager and excited eyes, 21st century 21 year olds have their heads lowered, eyes cast down and their backs bent with the weight of their problems.
Dear elders, you have failed us.
A WORRIED STUDENT 