I slept on this. A campaign for *intergenerational fairness* is lobbying to damage the financial viability of Universities based on the logic of the market. I think the conclusion is that HE industry bodies have utterly failed to establish the public good narrative. 1/ https://twitter.com/siangriffiths6/status/1266986248956239872

When the ‘product’ is framed as increased earnings and longer lifespan, it’s fair to evaluate degrees on these terms. When recruitment/advertising is geared around the student experience, it is fair to evaluate institutions on these terms. 2/

I am sad that @inter_gen is not considering the improved social access to HE that fees have supported. I am sad that they are not considering future generations, who will not have the chance to go to University if Universities shut down. 3/

I am also sad that people are not acknowledging how students are feeling right now. It is just true that they do not have access to the social life which is such an important part of higher education. 4/

Similarly, academics are correct in saying that online teaching is hard. I am finding it exhausting. I don’t think this point engages with students’ sense of loss, though. 5/

University managers still need to allocate funding in ways which keep buildings maintained. The fee comparisons with the (fantastic) @OpenUniversity are all the more galling because the market logic has penalised the OU for holding onto its values. 6/

Universities are where the vaccine is being researched. Universities are where the food banks’ accountants are trained. Universities are where the people who will rebuild the economy are developing. Universities benefit the public. 7/

But the mechanism through which they benefit the public is by helping humans - one by one - to grow into something. The product of Universities is humans who think and who feel. This fact seems to get drowned out in all the noise. /end