I’ve written before about attempts in Canada to create more separation between university teaching, on the one hand, and university research, on the other. In 2009, I wrote this opinion piece about an attempt by five university presidents to each acquire a larger share of university research dollars. And last
Continue readingTag: post-secondary education
CalgaryLiberal: A Merger That’ll Never Happen
The left in the province of Alberta will never merge. There are four core reasons for this to be the case. Firstly, the NDP is directly tied, through its organization, its employees (many of whom who work for the federal NDP as well), and other means, cannot get the nod
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Quebec Tuition: Between a Rock and Hard Place?
In the context of student protests over Quebec tuition fees, my friend Luan Ngo has just written a very informative blog post on Quebec’s fiscal situation. While I encourage readers to read his full post, I do want to use the present space to make mention of three important points
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The Quebec Student Protests: ‘Going International’
A recent article by Stefani Forster, of the Canadian Press, suggests that the Quebec student protests may be starting a larger social movement outside of Quebec. According to the article: In the last few days, Quebec’s student protests have received coverage in French news outlets like Le Monde and Agence
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Quebec Students: “Faire Leur Juste Part”
Simon Tremblay-Pepin, an emerging social policy scholar, has recently blogged here (in French) about Quebec tuition fees. He points out that, when one adjusts for inflation, Quebec tuition fees are headed into uncharted territory. Indeed, contrary to some recent spin from the Charest government, Tremblay-Pepin makes two important observations: 1.
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Discussing Quebec Student Protests on Talk Radio
Last Friday, I blogged here about the Quebec student protests. Subsequently, I was invited to appear on 580 CFRA News Talk Radio, with hosts Rob Snow and Lowell Green. I should note that Mr. Green is the author of several books, including: -How the Granola Crunching, Tree Hugging Thug Huggers
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Rex Murphy’s Naive Take on the Quebec Student Protests
On CBC’s The National last night, Rex Murphy weighed in on Quebec’s student protests; the transcript can be found here, and the three-minute video here. He calls the protests “short sighted,” points out that Quebec already has the lowest tuition fees in Canada, and suggests the students’ actions are “crude attempts
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: When a University Recruits Abroad, Who’s in Charge?
A few years ago, I wrote an opinion piece on “pathway colleges”—i.e. private companies that recruit students from other countries and then ‘bridge’ them into Canadian universities by providing pre-university courses, including English as a Second Language. A recent CBC News article underlines how perilous such recruitment of post-secondary students from abroad can
Continue readingCalgaryLiberal: Why do the Progressive Conservatives exist?
If you wanted a honest conservative choice it’s obviously the Wildrose you should vote for. They’re forthright in their view on conscience rights, creating competition in the health care industry (read: privatization) and their own brand of fiscal conservatism. That’s conservative. If you wanted a honest liberal choice it’s obviously
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Afternoon Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – The revelations just keep on coming in Robocon, to the point where the news of an offensively-named burner cellphone account used to leave fraudulent messages with Racknine has already been overtaken by more ridings and staffers being implicated – even as the Cons
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The Affordability of Post-Secondary Education
Carleton University’s Ted Jackson teaches a graduate seminar course on post-secondary education in Carleton’s School of Public Policy and Administration. Earlier this month, I was invited to give a guest presentation to Professor Jackson’s class. I focused the presentation on affordability challenges faced by students wanting to pursue post-secondary education.
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The Universal Student Transit Pass
I have an opinion piece out on the City of Ottawa’s universal, student transit pass–also known as “the U-Pass.” Points raised in the op-ed include the following: -U-Pass programs exist for roughly 30 universities and colleges across Canada. -For a U-Pass program to be introduced, students typically must vote in
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Tips on Recruiting International Students
It’s no secret that a major priority of Canadian universities is to recruit substantial numbers of international students, who in turn pay very high tuition fees once they arrive in Canada. Recent evidence suggests that insofar as Canadian universities want to continue doing so, they should work with senior levels of government to
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Impact of Increased Health Privatization on PSE
An article in yesterday’s Village Voice looks at the rising costs of post-secondary education (PSE) in the United States. It points to research suggesting that the “biggest single factor” contributing to the rising cost of PSE for both private and public institutions is the cost of employee health benefits. I would infer
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament In Review: October 31, 2011
Monday, October 31 saw a study in contrasts as two matters were debated in the House of Commons: a private member’s bill which understandably saw broad agreement, and an opposition motion which should have but was instead met with a painful level of denial from the Cons. The Big IssueThat
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament In Review: October 25, 2011
Tuesday, October 25 saw another day of discussion about the Canadian Wheat Board. But this time, the topic of debate was set on the opposition’s terms, as the proceedings focused on Niki Ashton’s motion calling to allow grain producers to vote for them…
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Federal Post-Secondary Education Act
Last month, the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) released a document entitled Public Education for the Public Good: A National Vision for Canada’s Post-Secondary Education System. I found the document to be quite informative, filled with a lot of useful statistics. For example: -Enrolment is rising in colleges and universities across Canada. Since the late 1990s, full-time enrolment has […]
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On virtuous choices
Margaret Wente’s latest isn’t that far off of my criticism of most of her reactionary pablum. And the fact-checking of her column is entirely deserved. But she does manage to highlight an important choice, even if she rhetorically assumes exactly the w…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading.- Stephen Maher nicely summarizes Tony Clement’s sad committee appearance yesterday:The evidence shows that Clement chose the projects himself, in some kind of mysterious process in his riding office. He has stea…
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Access Copyright
I have an opinion piece out on Access Copyright, English Canada’s longtime copyright middleman. I argue that Access Copyright is a bit like the Blockbuster Video of Canadian university libraries—once indispensable, and now almost obsolete (largely due the Internet). Within a year from now, it’s possible that no Canadian university will still have day-to-day dealings with […]
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