REFLECTIONS ON UNIVERSITIES, THEIR CRISIS, EDUCATION AND THE RECESSION

This paper reflects on some of the current issues facing the education system, including higher education. The university system is believed to be in crisis, but its crisis does not stem from the recession alone. This paper reflects on university faculty, curricula, organization and research, calling attention to the inadequacies of certain proposals regarding the faculty and the modification of certain curricula without the matter having been given sufficient thought. Spell attention is paid to the dangers of controlling the way research is conducted, with the consequent monopolization by a few private entities of the evaluation of university research. Lastly, the paper reflects on the cutbacks in the policy of scholarships for non-university education, without the academic and social consequences of such a policy having been considered, and gives thought to the increasing role assigned to subjects related to Catholic education in the educational system.