Adam Behr asks why arts education is under fire when the UK’s creative industries generate more revenue than cars, oil and gas.
Recent guidance issued by the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, to the Office for Students reveals conflicting priorities in government and pours fuel on fires burning in an already troubled higher education sector. The focus on science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) – “strategically important high-cost subjects” – is met by a freeze on funding for arts subjects such as music, fashion and drama at undergraduate level.
This amounts to a cut in real terms in the face of inflation, and there are cuts in grants for postgraduate provision – as well as the programme for widening participation to support access to higher education for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
It follows a previous tranche of cuts in 2021 and comes as universities in general – and the arts and humanities in particular – are struggling. Inflation has added weight to the burdens felt across the sector, bringing long-term tensions to the surface as the university funding model starts to unravel... Keep reading on The Conversation
Recent guidance issued by the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, to the Office for Students reveals conflicting priorities in government and pours fuel on fires burning in an already troubled higher education sector. The focus on science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) – “strategically important high-cost subjects” – is met by a freeze on funding for arts subjects such as music, fashion and drama at undergraduate level.
This amounts to a cut in real terms in the face of inflation, and there are cuts in grants for postgraduate provision – as well as the programme for widening participation to support access to higher education for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
It follows a previous tranche of cuts in 2021 and comes as universities in general – and the arts and humanities in particular – are struggling. Inflation has added weight to the burdens felt across the sector, bringing long-term tensions to the surface as the university funding model starts to unravel... Keep reading on The Conversation