Looking inwards and outwards
Jon Lucas
Student unions, as I’m sure many of you are aware, are just like any other union. They are there to represent the rights and opinions of their members. So does this mean that they look at institutional practices and work closely with educational policy and student welfare issues, or do they look outward, to the wider political world, and encourage students to do the same? Well, a bit of both actually.
The purpose of the student union and NUS is to ensure that at both grass roots college level and at a national government level, there is representation for all students, from all courses, minority groupings, cultures, creeds and backgrounds. Quite a big remit you say? It is, and rightly so. If your institution is changing the way that it does certain things, and this affects your education directly, you should have a voice.
At the same time, if the government looks to pass a paper on mental health, and you are passionate that they are wrong, you should have the same voice. Education and student welfare are key issues in every institution, and I am sure will be for a good many years. But that isn’t where it ends. After your education you all move into the working world, and you are all affected by the decisions passed at the top level of the government, and this is why student unions work with external politics.
Brookes is a good example of a campaigning and political union. For example, we are soon to host the first ever student-led People and Planet Conference.
Our students cared about this, formed a society, and are now to receive national press coverage highlighting their achievement. Last year we played host to the first ever National Student Pride event, organised by our LGBT society. Let’s be brutal about it, most political issues are welfare related, and political engagement is educational. Student unions should remain this way, and should encourage their students to participate in all issues affecting their lives, not just the courses.
“Students need freedom in their further and higher education. Freedom should exist to allow students to make decisions for themselves as to their course, mode and level of study. Freedom must not merely exist in the academic arena but also outside the classroom to other aspects of student life such as accommodation, support and recreational activities. In order to make choices, students need full and accurate information about their learning and their rights.
The provision of such information is the responsibility of the college, the student union and the Government. Real freedom is impossible without accurate information that is published and easily accessible.”
3rd Nov 2005