Independent News and Media - owners of Independent Newspapers - wants to make more money by entering the education business. Peter MacMenaminis not happy at the prospect
What is private sector higher education, why does it exist, who does it exist for and what are its values?
Many would take the view that education is not something which can be sold in the marketplace as a commodity. Most true educationalists would in general be shocked at the concept that first, second or third- level educational institutes could or would be run on the basis of a business enterprise where the objective is to make profits and to satisfy shareholders.
The entry into the field of higher education by Independent News and Media, parent company of the Irish Independent, Sunday Independentand Evening Herald, should therefore be a matter of concern to such educationalists.
The values and social responsibilities attaching to an education system are significantly influenced by the society in which the education system exists. Public sector education establishments, whether they are at first, second or third level, are set up by statute and will in general have broad educational principles enshrined in the relevant statute.
They may have obligations to plan and to advise statutory bodies (the Government or the Higher Education Authority) of the plan, to promote regional development or the Irish language, to provide for gender balance, for access to education for the disadvantaged and to contribute to the development of the State in terms of stated values.
Normally (with some notable exceptions) they will also have an element at least of democratic accountability both at the level of the board of governance where there is frequently representation of elected persons both from within the organisation, staff representation and from outside the organisation.
In addition there is a level of financial accountability in that there are the normal demands on the spenders of public funds to be accountable and answerable, ultimately to the Oireachtas.
In higher education, in both universities and institutes of technology, the concept of academic freedom for members of academic staff is enshrined in the relevant statutes. This freedom is rightly valued by educators and it exists in order to protect the values of the educational system and to prevent untoward influences being brought to bear on individual members of the academic staff.
Specifically the college is obliged to preserve and promote the principles of academic freedom and members of the academic staff have the freedom, within the law, "to question and test received wisdom, to put forward new ideas and to state controversial or unpopular opinions".
Where, therefore, do the values and social responsibilities of an educational institution arise when such an institution is owned and controlled by a multinational company?
It is clear, and perhaps right and proper from their perspective, that multinational companies focus only on one outcome, the bottom line - the profit, the share value. Educational values don't have an impact on the profit line. Academic freedom is unrelated to the share value.
So whether it be INM with its ownership of its newly established "Independent College" (in itself a contradiction in terms), or whether it is Dublin Business School, Portobello College or a chain of language schools throughout the country which are owned directly or indirectly by Kaplan - a subsidiary of the Washington Post which proudly announces that none of its employees is represented by a union - there's a question for each of them: where do they obtain their values?
The answer to that is clear, they derive from the ability to make profit and nothing else.
There will be nothing relating to equity of access to education or any indication of education as being part of the social fabric of Irish society and that as such it should accord in its overall policy with this goal of increasing equity in society by providing a level of education in accordance with the needs of the individual not in accordance with their ability to pay.
Indeed, probably nothing directly relating to education need feature at all because as far as the shareholders' profits are concerned all that matters is the size of the profits and whether these come from the sale of education, furniture or anything else, the bottom line is profit, not student welfare.
• Peter MacMenaminis deputy general secretary of the Teachers' Union of Ireland