Higher learning, the higher cause

 IT was heartening to see one of the country’s premier learning institutions hold its graduation over the weekend. 

The University of Technology saw off 936 graduates (266 were women) in its 46th finishing ceremony and despite the challenges faced by staff and students over the previous months, the signs last Friday painted a positive picture of the institution’s prospects in the coming years.

The university has always been the main producer of the nation’s technical expertise from a diverse range of engineers and scientists to architects, surveyors and bu­­­siness managers, basically the know-how to build and maintain Papua New Guinea. 

Although the institution may have been mired in controversy over the course of the past few months with regards to student strikes and a sense of disenfranchisement among the workers, the goal of achieving tertiary qualifications and being prepared to enter the work force was not lost. 

One need only look at the numbers receiving diplomas, degrees, masters and even doctoral certification to see that the cause of education was not forgotten. 

If the future looked uncertain in the earlier part of this year when the student body and faculty united to fight for the reinstatement of Vice Chancellor Albert Schram, it was because they firmly believed in their cause and come hail or shine they would stand by their beliefs. 

They did not take the easy option and bow down to the powers that be who were pushing an agenda they disagreed with.

These are the same students who urged the state and its agents to act in the best interests of the institution. That is an achievement to be proud of and it is an ideal that all other institutions will no doubt learn from and be inspired by. 

What does this mean for the university itself? Firstly, the obvious conclusion one can draw is that the school is very much alive and making progress. 

That this university was nearly closed on account of a protest and yet still manages to churn out hundreds of young men and women ready to do their part for the country gives one pause to consider – maybe one can learn something valuable from this example.

One can be sure that there were many wonderful stories of success, achieving goals and dreams that were part of Unitech’s special day. 

A strong and vibrant Unitech means it will continue to produce what this country needs – people who are highly trained and qualified but have the ability to rationalise and think in broader terms of the community and the country.   

That same determination and resilience was evident on Friday as students received the rewards they had chosen to risk for justice and the right to be heard and considered.

Schram declared that the university had “substantially improved” over the past few years and was continuing on that path despite negative publicity.

He listed no less than six key factors that had shaped the institution and its students and they had to do with constant assessment of students and the curriculum, establishing advisory committees for all the faculties, increasing the number of teaching staff, working with the relevant state agencies to ensure the university was meeting all that is required of it by law and building strong and effective partnerships with other educational institutions, locally and ab­road, for the betterment of its students.

“It’s not only the quantity of the graduates that matters; it is mostly the quality of a country’s graduates that will determine whether the country can convert economic growth into development,” Schram said.

But Unitech still faces problems it must address in order to forge ahead on its way to excellence. 

The axiom that a school is only as good as its teachers, tutors and lecturers can be balanced by the fact that its infrastructure must be of a standard to support that teaching otherwise one will hold back the other and ultimately stunt or stagnate growth. 

Dormitories, science labs, lecture rooms, a library, re­source centres, internet access, reliable power and wa­ter supply and basic amenities that are in keeping with an institution of renown. Unitech’s fortunes will depend on how much support the state gives it but Schram and his team know that the students have demonstrated the ability to ach­ieve their goals in trying circumstances.