Last week, OCUFA representatives attended roundtable consultations on higher education reform in Ontario. Led by Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities Glen Murray, the consultations are intended to explore questions and recommendations made in the discussion paper, Strengthening Centres of Creativity, Innovation, and Knowledge.
The sessions are organized around four themes, each extracted from the discussion paper: Quality Teaching and Learning Outcomes; Expanded Credential Options and Supplements; Technology-Enabled Learning; and Entrepreneurial and Experiential Learning. Each of the three regional sessions (such as Laurentian and Fanshawe College) cover all four themes, while the GTA half-day sessions are focused on a single theme.
OCUFA has numerous concerns about the consultation process and the framing of the consultation themes, but will continue to participate actively in the remaining three sessions. In particular, we are worried that the government is not recognizing the significant innovation and productivity that already exists in the university sector— for example, the average faculty member now teaches 22 per cent more students than they did in 2000.
The next session will be on August 9, 2012 at the University of Waterloo on technology-enabled learning.
This article originally appeared in the OCUFA Report. To receive stories like this every week in your inbox, please subscribe.