[LINK] Students failing to log on to Internet boom

[Bernard Robertson-Dunn]

SMH
Sat 5/2/00
http://www.smh.com.au/news/0002/05/pageone/pageone2.html

Students failing to log on to Internet boom 

The supposed IT bonanza does not compute,
reports PAUL SHEEHAN.

The Internet boom is bypassing thousands of Australian students and the
economy appears to be losing ground to other advanced nations in investment
in research and development.

<snip>

Although the number of university graduates with IT skills grew by 148 per
cent during the 1990s - and by 26.5 per cent last year alone - according to
the Minister for Education, Dr Kemp, the bulk of the extra IT graduates
were foreign students.

"What the minister failed to point out was that most of the increase in IT
graduates during the 1990s was full-fee-paying foreign students," says Dr
Bob Birrell, director of the Centre for Population and Urban Research at
Monash University.

Many Australian students with superior TER scores cannot gain university IT
training because computer courses are already fully stretched and are
loaded with full-fee students. "The competition for places is now so stiff
that the cut-off points for computer science have gone up sharply, which
further excludes a lot of qualified students," says Dr Birrell.

Australia is slipping down the world rankings in research and development.

<a lot more snipped to the end>

Oh look, another unintended consequence. We are training our international
competition at the expense of our own people. What a smart thing to do.
Short term, narrow focus gain - long term, broader loss.

Dare I say it? They didn't think it through.

-- 
You do not lead by hitting people over the head.
That's assault, not leadership.
-- Dwight D. Eisenhower

Regards
brd

Bernard Robertson-Dunn
Canberra Australia
brd@dynamite.com.au