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At the end of 2012, the government announced another radical withdrawal of state funds
as well as a radical reduction of admission capacity of higher education institutions.
WE HAD A DREAM - DIPLOMA!
I had a dream - Diploma!
As a response to the announcement, thousands of secondary students,
university students and teachers took to the streets at several locations in the country.
THE SIX POINTS OF STUDENTS
At the forum of the Student Network held on 10 December 2012
at the spherical hall of the Eötvös Loránd University,
we approved the claims of the students, that is, the six points.
The government fulfilled almost none of our claims. We'll keep on fighting.
The Student Network's initiative of the six points was joined by
the Secondary School Network, the Teacher Network, the Hungarian Rectors' Conference
and the National Union of Students. This latter has undertaken
to represent the students' points during the negotiations with the government.
Taking after the Student Network, university teachers formed their own network as well.
As members of the Teacher Network, we work for the Hungarian higher education
to protect its values and to support its development and reform.
Nowadays, less attention is payed to the matter of public education
while high schools, vocational schools as well as primary schools
are piled high with problems.
The time has come for us, secondary students, too, to make our voice heard.
[Where is that life of freedom? Where is that life of freedom?]
1. PUBLIC AND HIGHER EDUCATION SHOULD BE COMPREHENSIVELY REFORMED.
So far, the government has only declared such reasons for the nationalization of schools
which were declared in the era of state socialism. I had my own experience
of state-led, 'hand-operated' public education using centralized curricula,
as a secondary student and a university student, and then as a teacher as well.
It didn't work. This was one of the reasons why we changed the political system.
The government has reduced the upper age limit of compulsory education to 16 years of age.
This prevents social inclusion from having any opportunities.
Restoring previous conditions is not a reform.
We consider the conditions before 2011 the minimum requirements
while we continue protesting because
the education governance is already incapable for guaranteeing even this minimum.
2. UNIVERSITY ADMISSION CAPACITIES SHOULD BE RESTORED!
AT LEAST TO THE 2011 LEVELS
Last year, half of those applying for higher education applied for those programmes
whose admission capacities were drastically reduced by the government.
Then, admission capacities were cancelled by a negligent gesture
while the government is still trying to make access to these programmes difficult.
As opposed to governmental communications, it is not true
that young people newly graduated in law or economics are less sought after.
The unfavourable treatment of the 16 concerned programmes
is completely unreasonable and unacceptable on a professional basis.
We claim that, until public negotiations on the reforms
with the inclusion of all concerned parties begin,
university admission capacities should be restored
to the 2011 levels for all graduate programmes
because secondary students taking final exams this year
relied on those data when choosing a profession and preparing for their final exams.
Proportions of admission to the 16 discriminated subjects: 2012: 32% 2013: 10-20% (expected)
3. WITHDRAWAL OF STATE FUNDS SHOULD BE STOPPED, WITHDRAWN FUNDS SHOULD BE COMPENSATED.
A university is an intellectual and economic centre.
Hungarian towns without their universities will become deprived of opportunities,
they will only continue to become impoverished.
So far, the access to academic knowledge and arts has been free for everyone.
By leaving universities high and dry, our palette of diversity may lose these colours.
I don't want to live in a colourless town.
The best state investment is education. There is no other sector
which provides such a wide range of benefits and such a high profitability.
It contributes to social mobility, generates long-term gains in tax revenue,
considerably improves the state of national economy
and trains autonomous and conscious people
who are actively engaged in community life as well.
Tendency of state funds per student in percentages compared to the 2009 value:
4. STUDENT GRANT CONTRACT
4. STUDENT GRANT CONTRACT SHOULD BE REPEALED!
Youth has to be legally bound to stay in the homeland only in a country
where future is not worth planning.
More than two decades ago, we said 'no' conclusively to the closure of borders.
Let's rather build a country which is worth living in
and where everyone choose to stay of her own free will.
Mobility is a basic value in the 21st century.
Distances are shrinking, choices are increasing.
We don't want the Berlin wall to be rebuilt in our country.
5. THE AUTONOMY OF UNIVERSITIES
5. THE AUTONOMY OF UNIVERSITIES SHOULD NOT BE RESTRICTED!
The university is ours.
It is those ones' own who do academic activity
in a competent and responsible manner;
those ones' own who teach, research and learn at the same time.
Students', teachers' and researchers' continuous learning is at the core of work at a university.
University makes you free.
It is a mistaken idea that universities
are to yield people who adapt automatically to labour market demands.
Trained people are also citizens being competent and responsible for their choices.
The university is the university's own.
In order to gain the highest social benefit from the work at universities,
their value system to be followed has to be determined
not by the prevailing government from above and from the outside
but by the participants of higher education.
6. ALSO THOSE COMING FROM DISADVANTAGED FAMILIES
SHOULD BE PROVIDED WITH THE OPPORTUNITY FOR ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION!
In today's Hungary, the fortune of one third of children
is predestined at the moment of birth.
Schools should fulfil their duty of eliminating any inequalities of opportunities.
As opposed to that, Hungarian public education preserves
and even deepens social inequalities, also when compared to other nations.
There is a lack of efficient, freely accessible grant system
based on students’ achievement and living conditions.
I have six children. My income is not enough for maintaining my family.
Though my eldest son attends university,
our family cannot afford to finance his travel fees, accommodation and study equipment.
My daughter, who is a top student, prepares to be a doctor
which plan, unfortunately, our family cannot undertake to support
while it depends neither on our will nor on her knowledge.
Each of us should have a place in the Hungarian society.
Talents should be supported to come to fruition while we may not lose any one child.
Overrepresentation of graduate parents' children in higher education
Hungary
We claim a real autonomy for schools.
We claim an academy of sciences and not only a football academy.
And we don't believe in fairy tales any more.
We insist that disadvantaged students have equal opportunities
so that the best ones of us don't say good bye to us having enough of governmental ***.
The time has come to see other kinds of Roses in bloom.
Free university, free press and free verse!
It is exam period now - and we are preparing for our future.
And we are serious: we won't give in.
NOTHING ABOUT US, WITHOUT US!
WE'LL KEEP ON PROTESTING! 11 FEBRUARY [locations]