After reading Ed's (Guild EEO) blogpost arguing that students are excluded from the democratic processes and the campaigns in the Guild I want to start having an open discussion on the topic. In brief, Ed raises two distinct points I want to address. Firstly, that students are excluded as engines of change and, secondly, that the Guild gives students a lower platform than Sabbs to share their views. I will now address these points:
Firstly, I stood on a manifesto of student led, bottom-up campaigns that involve students at every level. Being a Sabbatical is not about leading every campaign but about facilitating campaigns and empowering students to lead their on campaigns. Guild campaigns can only have credibility when the momentum comes from students. At the moment I am looking into ways of how to make this pledge a reality and any ideas are welcome. In the meanwhile, I can only facilitate the campaigns of those students that raise issues with me! Guild Council is the Guild’s policy making organ. Sabbatical officers, while working to achieve their manifesto pledges (on a basis of which they were elected), can be mandated by the students and every student can hold us to account. I agree with Ed that for too long we have allowed students to be disengaged and I hope that this year we can work together to change this!
Secondly, have I been given a platform which is disproportionately superior to fellow student bloggers? Well, according to my google analytics statistics only very few visitors to my blog have come via the Guild website so hence many people have come through word of mouth and my own advertising via facebook and twitter. I do not understand the point that students are being given less of a platform than me. The example Ed cites is Nick Petrie (whose blog I avidly follow). He promotes his blog well through twitter just the way I do. More importantly though he is the editor of Redbrick which gives him a platform of which I can only dream of. What is more any student can write for Redbrick or blog and as I stood on a manifesto pledging that Redbrick should be an uncensored and critical newspaper I fully believe that we are giving students a good platform.
And to all the student bloggers, tweeters and town-criers I have one simple request: share your ideas with me and make me aware of your issues and desires! I read blogs and tweets from students every day. Actually, right now I am working on a blog post on the topic of the 10:10 campaign after I saw tweets and blogs from different students being both inquisitive and constructively critical.
I am confused by the essence of the accusations of the Guild excluding students and would invite anyone to take the time and discuss this with me. I will leave you with this quote:
‘Realise that if you have time to whine and complain about something, you have time to do something about it’
In that spirit, if students feel passionately about an issue then they shouldn’t waste any time radically tiptoeing around the issue but come and see the officers and discuss how together we can actually go about achieving that change.
You do us all a diservice when you are in denial about the nature of your role.
ReplyDeleteThe entire nature of democracy and the reason for the guild existing in the form it does is that everyone on a level platform and an equal footing is not enough to get a fair point across and register anymore then a swirling mass of disagreement on the universitys radar.
The entire purpose of your role is to be on a higher platform and to be louder then everyone else; and yes you in some form have the right to speak on behalf of the mass.
All arguments about the guild and its influence boil down to education. You educate the students and the members as to how the guild works, and that even thou their point might not be made in the way they desire, it will be made in the best way possible. You educate them as to why the system is the way it is and how they can change it if they desire. And you educate the Uni about our point of view.
Douzens of presidents and hundreds of guild sabbs before you have expressed the same lines of thoughts as you, and the vast majority have changed their position or never achieved anything. The responsability lies firmly on your shoulders to be a leader and not a facilitator, to construct democratic systems and methods of opinion forming and educating that will direct the way you steer the guild.
If your role was to facilitate and be a victim of circumstance and resigned to the ebb and flow of the student body, your role would be filled by a member of staff and not a 'sabb'.
Sentiment and seemingly virtuous musings about everyone being equal and you being there to hold everyones hand read well on a blog, but at the end of it all we want you to grow some balls, be opinionated, led from the front, speak loud and proud and make more of an impression on the old guys over at the uni than that of some of your airy fairy predecesors.
@Anonymous1
ReplyDeleteVery interesting. The philosophical leadership debate.
I agree with your analysis of the presidential role in part. Leadership is a two-way process though.
Good leaders lead whilst listening and engaging their constituents. A leader is a strong representative and not a benevolent indoctrinist. This year I will be opinionated and lead from the front, however, I will never fail to interact with students. There always has to be a feedback loop.
That was exactly my point. Your post was one part of that two way process, mine was the other, at least you saw exactly what i was getting at. Just dont forget that you need to be open and truthful with the electorate and its not enough, ney, appropriate to dress up in the robes of one part; you need to be seen for what you are, to be fully appreciated and fully utilised.
ReplyDeleteAnd besides, if the other sabbs are worth their salt then the moment you veer too unilaterally down one of the roles or stop listening to the students they will be right on your ass making your life hell until you get back in line with due process and expectation. You have been built up in the eyes of many for years and have not only the weight of your role to carry but that of expectation. Dont try and start acting differently now. Pretend your still the President of Shackleton and you wont go far wrong :o)
I think the point is that we need to be led in the direction that we want to go in. Fabian has the contacts and the relationships to make our needs heard at the right level. But he can't go off half cocked and lead without being told where to go.
ReplyDeleteAs far as providing a platform, the internet is about as neutral as it gets, we can all use Facebook, Twitter and google to promote ourselves. Of course the Sabb blogs are highlighted and linked to from the main Guild website, but as they are now their primary means of submitting a Guild Council report it is important that they are promoted.
Although i am obviously biased i believe that publications like the Radish and Redbrick are where the student voice should come from, it is how we speak to the University and to the Guild and as long as we all remain uncensored by the Guild and University and challenged by the student body to be truthful, accurate, responsible and to promote debate then we can do this successfully.
We invest power in few people because it has often proved to be the most effective way to achieve common aims, we should remember that we are all students and we all have a voice, but you have to use the damn thing.
hey fab,
ReplyDeletei think you and edd must concede that people who blog/twitter/facebook about the guild already are probably the ones getting their voices heard, (as much as edd might argue otherwise, he actually does get the odd motion through GC) because they are already active in the guildy process...being on society committees, submitting motions, etc.
i think creating NEW platforms and reaching out in new ways has to be your main aim, and engage with the other 95% of students, who don't follow the guild twitter, and really do not engage beyond the odd pint at joes, or getting smashed at Carnage.
nick's right in that its prob through Redbrick, and any other student media of reasonable circulation, that students get their (one-way) guild interaction..because they can do it passively while waiting for lectures, rather than actively having to log on the guild website, lovely the site is :)
sad but true, as it is now, getting involved is too much effort for most students. this is just epitomised when you promote Guild Council as the 'organ for change'. pleasepleaseplease get some more organs, Guild Council is to an outsider deeply boring, officious, and probably at times intimidating. a great big suggestion box in joes would be a start...or at least some emails straight to our my.bham addresses, so people can send a reply in 2 mins, rather than attend 2hour GC meetings :)
good luck fab!
Hi Helen, you are right. We are actually working on a lot of the issues you raise at the moment and hopefully you will see some changes soon. As we are reviewing our democratic structures I am trying to introduce models including open and inclusive topic specific assemblies and the idea of forums. In the meanwhile, there is a suggestion box at reception but we'll think of ways to make that more prominent.
ReplyDeleteHelen, just to address one of your points which i hope you will find exciting.
ReplyDeleteWe are very aware of how one way something like Redbrick can be and changing that is very high on our agenda at the moment. We have a new website being built that we will launch just before freshers. We hope that with this new website and a combination of social media, freshers 'surgeries' an open door policy for the Redbrick office and other ideas that we have that Redbrick will become more of a two way process. With healthy responses to articles, good discussion and debate.
We are aiming to massively increase the writer base for Redbrick, so that we can be more representative and to engage in as much 'crowd sourcing' (asking people what they think) as possible.
Somehow we have to find a way to make students understand that they have to make a (little) effort to engage and the return they will get on that is massive.
We are also hoping to live blog Guild Council and break it down and make it more accessible to more students because although i absolutely agree that we should be creating new organs. The fact is that GC is one of our most powerful means of mandating change.
but i can't even vote in guild council, or put a motion in! why would students who can't take part want to watch it live? i understand the representative principle, but how often do you think society chairs actually tell their members what they will be voting about in that weeks GC, on their behalf?
ReplyDeletei agree that GC is important, and it would be great to have more publicising of upcoming debates, the latest results of motions etc, but if you raise awareness of its importance i think it will just highlight the gap between what happens at GC and real students ability or even desire to get involved in it
(new redbrick sounds interesting though! looking fwd to more debate etc!)
I've replied on my blog http://edwardbauereeo.blogspot.com/2009/09/re-fabians-reply-to-guild-of-officers.html
ReplyDeleteI think we broadly agree, thank you for joining in the public debate I find that very encouraging.
Helen, every student has speaking rights at Guild Council and can submit a motion. I definitely agree though about the lack of feedback from Guild Councillors. As a geography student, I've never in my 3 years had any feedback from our Guild Councillors and have hardly seen them at meetings, never mind speak out on issues that affect GEES students. If students aren't hearing what goes on there from their representatives they're hardly likely to know what it does or want to get involved.
ReplyDelete