of ntu student writes e-mail expressing opinion on the drop in education standards

SGFRAG posted an email written by an NTU student sent to the NTU Chief Planning Officer, Mr Chan Kwong Lok. In the email, the student commented on the drop in education standard at NTU and questioned the need to charge additional fees for students attempting special terms.

Dear Chan Kwong Lok,

I writing this email to you to express my personal opinion in an informal and frank manner.

Firstly, I feel that there isn’t a need to charge additional fees for students attempting special terms. The cost of $500 for a Singapore citizen is extremely high given the economic conditions now (cost of inflation and so on). OAS claims that it is for the provision of higher quality of education in NTU. If a fee needs to be charged, can it be made lower and more affordable?

Here are some queries that I have with regards to the above issue
Why is it that only that minor in entreprenuership is not covered?
What about other minor programmes?
Why must students taking special term be penalised economically?

and enquiries to new “real estate” developments in NTU.
Why is it that the prices of food in the new food court so high?
Why are we bringing in outlets like old chang kee and sakae sushi when our own library expansion project is delayed?

I have been in NTU for 1 academic year and I personally feel the quality of education rendered to me is of low quality. Basically, I am struggling to learn over here and most of my lectures could barely be understood. I came from Ngee Ann Polytechnic before joining NTU and I can proudly say that the quality of education is much better there.

Here are my opinions on the quality of education here at NTU;
Hands on training is minimal (Most of the lab sessions are conducted by PHD students (most of them) have serious communication problems with the students) and the main method of assessment lies on examinations; clearly the real world has little relation to examinations as key performance indicators.

How is NTU going to train world class engineers? When will Singapore’s level of technological innovation match Germany or Sweden? When will a true born Singaporean win a Nobel Prize? Basically, content is just taught through and no effort is made to teach the actual concept. Everyday, we are drilled with the concept of examinations and we are end up as mindless drones to the entire system. The intellectual and EQ connection between the students and most of the professors are virtually non-existent. My mentor is also non-existent, he doesn’t appear in any of the meet the mentor session, so much about nuturing talent.

I really hope that NTU can adopt a more practical and less exam oriented curriculum with more focus to the side of professional development. For a start, we should try to introduce the small class/seminar system so that the students can learn better and there will be a better intellectual stimulus between the professors and the students.

To highlight how much standing we have lost.
Take a look at the times world ranking of universities. In 2007 ranking of technological institutions, NTU was ranked 25th, as compared to NUS (10th position). What happened? Aren’t we supposed to be the premier technological institution in Singapore? As such, NTU really needs to rethink its management policies and working culture if we are going to further our standing.

To prove my point, lets look at some of the illogical things being done on our campus
1. Why is it that every time it rains, why does the sheltered areas get wet? Why is it that rain shelters in NTU mysteriously start from no where and end out in some awkward location?
2. Take a look at one our internal campus bus service, it has a NTU advertisement on the bus promoting some ecocity concept. Yet the bus is emitting greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels. As a suggestion to boost our public image and point, why not operate a bus (with the ecocity advertisement) based on the EURO IV emissions standards?

If NTU can’t even provide the basic needs for its students, than seriously the university should conduct a complete shakedown on its operating procedures and policies.

That is all I have to say for now. As you are the registrar of this university, it is up to you bring these issues up to Prof A and Prof B for further discussion. I am all but just a undergraduate.. (I am seriously sick and tired of going to feedback here and there to my school, that is why I chose to write to you).I am sure you are able to find many undergraduates facing the same issues as me.

On a final note, I have discussed many of these ideas with my peers. Many of them (most have resigned to this fate) have said that my ideas are too “revolutionary” and one man can’t change the system in NTU. Well I am going to try… and I hope that things can really change for the better in NTU.

Yours sincerely,
X