Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1441473
11 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 9 JANUARY 2022 OPINION Carmelo Abela Compulsory attendance, or redundant intendance? the ability to actually eat some- thing, every once in a while? (Without, I might add, having to depend on others to deliver the food directly to your door?) It's a no-brainer, as far as I can see. But then again, it is – or should be – a pretty pointless question to even ask at all: be- cause either way, it would still boil down to 'breaking quaran- tine'; and as such, it would still defeat the whole point of even having quarantine procedures in the first place… Meanwhile, there is other teenie-weenie little problem: the same system is only ap- plicable to the estimated 30- 40,000 voters who are likely to be in quarantine on that day. It entirely overlooks the ex- istence of around 90% of the rest of the electorate – i.e., somewhere around 300, 000 voters – who will NOT be in quarantine… and those peo- ple, it seems, have been left to vote under the same old, 'busi- ness as usual' circumstances we have always been used to (in other words: for all the world as though there isn't actually a health crisis going on right now in Malta…. at all). We all know what that means, in practice: first, they must queue up for hours outside a crowded polling station: only to eventually enter a tiny, en- closed cubicle, where they will breathe the same air... sit at the same table… heck, even use the same flipping pencil, for crying out loud… as literally thou- sands of other voters before them: any one of whom could conceivably have been carrying – and transmitting – the Omi- cron virus... So… what sort of 'protocols' has the Electoral Commission devised, exactly, for all those thousands of voters? What measures will be in place in (or around) the polling stations themselves… for instance, to minimise the possibility of what will otherwise be an una- voidable 'post-electoral surge'? The short answer, it seems, is… absolutely zilch. And what do you know? It takes us back to precisely that same old under- lying injustice that causes riots in other countries: you know, the same old double-standards, whereby some people who de- pend on crowd-events – art- ists, musicians, party-organis- ers, Carnival enthusiasts, etc. – are all forced to make huge sacrifices of their own (often to the extent of renouncing their own income in the process)… … while the same concerns are not allowed to even re- motely disrupt the unfolding of the single greatest – and certainly the most gregarious – 'Carnival' of them all: General Elections 2022… I don't know. Call me a pes- simist as much as you like… but maybe those 'Kaiser Chiefs' were actually on to something, with that 2005 hit single of theirs. 'Nuff said… AS a result of the nature of free education in Malta and its accessibility, the share of the Maltese population having tertiary edu- cation has been continuously increasing. In 2005, this number stood at 10.3% whereas, in 2020, this number had almost trebled, go- ing on to stand at 28%. It goes without say- ing, therefore, that improvements are being made, at least on paper. Statistically speaking, more Maltese stu- dents are graduating from university and other colleges than ever before, and they're being rewarded for their studies once they enter the job market for that matter. How- ever, if there's one thing that remains to be addressed, it is the critical thinking aspect. I'm saying this because we should not satis- fy ourselves with the attainment of degrees and diplomas. The attainment of certificates is important, but what's equally important is the ability to use one's intellect to question, and to challenge the sta- tus quo. This is something that must also be addressed in our schools. Youths should not be addressed as robots but should be treated as what they are: distinct human beings with tremendous amount of potential. For this to take place, however, more interaction is a must. One cannot expect that lec- turers narrating recycled PowerPoint presenta- tions will somehow lead to students achieving this much needed critical thinking. On the contrary, this level of much need- ed critical thinking can be achieved through increasing activism and experiences, as well as more interactive lectures. Most universi- ty graduates that were active on campus will say that what made their university expe- rience truly one to remember was not the material that they studied, but the things that they learned when they were active in debates, organizations and events at univer- sity. To make matters worse, not all students have the same study preferences. Some might prefer to go through the reading ma- terials by themselves and to study alone, whereas others might be more open to at- tending all lectures. In any case, it is useless to force students to attend lectures physically, if their mind gets to be elsewhere. What I'm getting at is the fact that in certain circumstances, attending lectures forces certain students to be less produc- tive. This is especially the case since that time could have been invested elsewhere, in other activities on campus, that could have better equipped the said students with the capacity to think critically. The way that I see it, compulsory attend- ance is a double-edged sword. Students indeed have to be active and committed to their institution and their course, especially since relatively all courses offered in public institutions are funded by the population at large. However, it is also true to state that compulsory attendance is not the best and only way to measure this commitment. In other countries, different systems are utilized to get around compulsory attend- ance. I was told by a family friend that in Sweden, students only have three to four lectures per week, however, they are then expected to conduct readings by themselves to ensure that they get to cover the subject. Another student who obtained a Master's de- gree via distance learning told me that he too only had two or three lectures per week – which could either be viewed live or recorded and afterwards students were expected to conduct further research and to discuss their find- ings on online forums. This system could per- haps be explored by Mal- tese institutions. Furthermore, a blend- ed approach that balances attendance with student activism could also be explored. In such a scenario, students would be able to compensate for the lack of their attendance to lectures by involving themselves in dif- ferent activities such as debates, seminars, and discussions on campus, ensuring that their time is invested in activities that ena- ble them to be more productive. Naturally, if this system were to be tested out, exams and assessments will still need to be passed by all students, ensuring that those who ob- tain degrees are fit for purpose. What I would say, however, is that degrees and certificates by themselves do not make a critical thinker. It is experiences and in- teractions that do so. And increasing these experiences and interactions on campus by incentivising students to be more active will therefore ensure that they will be better equipped to gain critical thinking skills. Carmelo Abela is minister within the Office of the Prime Minister It is useless to force students to attend lectures physically, if their mind gets to be elsewhere