Gavin Keeton (Students still face huge financial burden, April 24) shares some of my views on the financing of higher education (Break the mould of how we educate and who pays, April 13). He says correctly that reform of higher education funding requires attention to costs, academic productivity, resistance to change, the relevance of many degrees and student guidance. But he fails to consider the fundamental question. How can students still face huge financial burdens and how can there be a "missing middle" and very poor students if all academically eligible students can obtain long-term, full-cost educational loans from a properly capitalised National Student Financial Aid Scheme? The higher-education reform debate is superficial and fragmented. The mandate of the fees commission must be extended to include an evaluation of the efficacy of SA’s higher education system. One thing is certain — the current Oxbridge/massified hybrid is unsustainable. On their work thus far, Arthur Heh...
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