Backing suspended
I aspire to become a doctor, but I can’t afford it!
IASPIRE to become a Doctor, but I can't afford it! Many High School students who completed Year 13 in 2020 have been disadvantaged because of COVID pandemic.
The disruption in learning has had huge impact on the academic achievement of students. Apart from many weeks of disruption in learning, students had no access to online teaching and learning support.
The COVID pandemic has forced the Ministry of Education, Heritage and Arts to relook at technology capabilities and workforce training to plan for swift transition to online delivery.
The ministry is compelled to invest in technology infrastructure, however, online pedagogy requires significant investment in digital technology and upgrade of teacher skills.
The COVID challenges on education sector is not unique to Fiji. Governments in many countries such as Australia recognise the disadvantage that high school students have faced.
Policies are introduced at national level to reduce the fees in certain courses to align with jobs and employment outlook in post-COVID environment.
Universities have also taken steps to make offers to students based on Year 11 results (equivalent to Year 12 in Fiji).
Some universities have also revisited their course entry criteria to provide flexibility and pathways for many students to access tertiary education.
New policies and university flexibility are designed to widen access and provide fair opportunity for all groups of students to access and succeed in higher education.
In the US, medical schools offer admissions flexibility to increase the access of students in medical courses.
The Fiji Government announced that from 2021, students will not be able to access any loan or scholarship in elite courses such as medicine and dentistry.
Such courses are only accessible to citizens who can pay the tuition fees out of pockets.
The policy is designed as a cost cutting measure which favours rich citizens who can afford to pay the tuition fees for their children.
At a time when students expect more financial help and flexibility, the government has rather taken steps to directly disadvantage hundreds of high academic achievers from poor backgrounds some of whom are first in the family to access tertiary education and had aspiration to undertake medicine or dentistry courses.
Apart from many high school leavers, many students who did not achieve the minimum mark to gain admissions in such courses between 2018-2020 have undertaken courses such as Bachelor of Science with the aim to get admission into medicine and dentistry.
A wide body of research provides evidence about how education improves social, economic, health and wellbeing outcomes.
Research also provides evidence about the ripple effect of educational attainment on the family and future generations.
Students who completed Year 13 in 2020 and beyond need more help and support. Changes in the policy will have detrimental impact on students, their families and the broader economy in post-COVID environment.
It is very unfortunate that many government officials including the Prime Minister, Attorney-General and Minister of Education, Heritage and Arts and their team visited Vanua Levu and witnessed how rural communities were impacted by Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasa.
Many of the villages and outer Islands have less than 10 per cent citizens who have attained tertiary education — very few or perhaps none in medicine and dentistry courses.
Government officials sympathise how people are affected, yet they fail to recognise how access to elite education could help social mobility of citizens from disadvantaged communities.
The changes in government policy related to tertiary loan is undertaken without any evidence-based modelling within the wider national socio-economic and political context.
The Government has only looked at the financial modelling as part of cost cutting strategy.
Deep dive into the data will show that since the introduction of the government loan scheme, access to medicine and dentistry courses has widened participation and success of students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Many of such students would not have been able to become doctors and dentists without government loan scheme.
The data will also show that more than 80 per cent of students who had access to such courses historically are from high socio-economic backgrounds who are not necessarily passionate to become doctors or dentists; rather, they are attracted to these professions because of associated high remuneration.
If my views are accurate about lack of access in these courses to the poor, then the government needs to ask itself if the change in the policy is doing justice to the public.
It is unfortunate that key tertiary education institutions that offer medicine and dentistry courses have not raised concern about how the policy will disadvantage people from poor backgrounds.
Tertiary education institutions have a moral responsibility to ensure that citizens have fair access.
Universities such as FNU and University of Fiji could reduce the tuition fees significantly until COVID recovery.
Reduction in the fees together with government support will be welcomed by students and parents. Many citizens are fully aware of the low standard of health and medical services in Fiji.
Policy changes such as improving access in medical and dentistry courses will build future workforce capability to improve the quality and efficiency of health and medical services.
Education has changed the life of many students and families especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
An investment in education is the future of Fiji's economic recovery in post COVID environment and it will empower individuals and their families to be self-sufficient.
The changes in the policy will impact many youths in Fiji who comprise more than 50 per cent of the country's population and who are the key electorate.
The cost of such neglect will no doubt have dire consequences in Fiji's national development.
Students who completed Year 13 in 2020 and beyond need more help and support. Changes in the policy will have detrimental impact on students, their families and the broader economy in post-COVID environment. ~Mahsood Shah ~