Unintended consequences of growth

06 February 2012

In the drive for greater tertiary attendance we have netted negative unintended consequences—dropouts, underemployment and a heavy debt burden for both the individual and taxpayers. The question is determining the ability, and I might add the disposition, to benefit. In egalitarian societies, open admission institutions appear to have exceeded their ability to identify students who have the potential ability and disposition to benefit. In the normal distribution the yield from the left tail exceeds the right. Admitting students lacking the potential ability and disposition to benefit is a disservice to those students. It is the institution and not the student at fault.

William Patrick Leonard

Receive email updates from UWN

Global newsletters    Africa newsletters    Other
    (other includes related events and webinars)

Data will be processed according to our standard terms & conditions.

Research focuses on production of jet fuel from halophytes

UAE University staff

With an eye to developing a clean, alternative aviation fuel to reduce carbon emissions, researchers at the United Arab Emirates University have been focusing on the production of jet fuel from sustainable resources such as halophytes, which are salt-tolerant plants that could be cultivated on a wider scale in the region’s coastal areas.

The value of being human: How teachers can work alongside AI

Michael Milligan

Artificial intelligence is now a part of our evolution in technology and teachers need to be encouraged to find ways to bring AI into the classroom and have students use it in a way that is beneficial to them in the long term.

Ground-breaking research on seawater biodesalination

UAE University staff

As water scarcity reaches critical levels globally, a research team at the United Arab Emirates University seeks to revolutionise seawater desalination practices, offering a path to mitigate water scarcity while championing environmental preservation.