Police accused of using excessive force at student protests

Website link to video: Police ‘try to hit students with batons’ at protest

Students were involved in a series of angry confrontations with the police in central London on Thursday as allegations circulated that officers had used unacceptable levels of force to break up campus protests more than the previous few weeks.

Video footage obtained by the Guardian appeared to present one officer striking a hooded protester in the encounter right after college students occupied portion of the University of London Senate Home headquarters on Wednesday.

On Thursday about 200 college students held a “Cops off campus” rally outdoors the University of London Union creating, which led to more violent confrontations with scores of officers that spread to surrounding streets. A Metropolitan police spokesman mentioned there had been 36 arrests.

Michael Chessum, president of the University of London Union, explained: “The level of police force that we have noticed in the final couple of days is absolutely unprecedented on university campuses. It seems pre-planned. It is as if they are reacting to a riot situation – taking the degree of force – and utilizing it towards college students protesting on a university campus.”

On Wednesday, demonstrators had occupied element of the University of London Senate House headquarters. Police and the university’s private security staff broke up the demonstration and five protesters had been arrested, with one particular held on suspicion of assaulting an officer.

College students claimed the police and personal safety staff had been unnecessarily violent and accused officers of assaulting them. Video footage seen by the Guardian appeared to show one particular officer striking a hooded protester in the encounter. In the footage, the demonstrator – who gave his identify as Tee Jay – fell to the ground and the crowd was pushed back.

Jay, 24, from Hackney, north-east London, explained: “Nothing was mentioned. The police have been attempting to clear the crowd of individuals. I turned my back to [the police officer] to variety of walk away, he pushed, I kind of turned round to see who it was – ‘Why are you pushing me?’

“The punch came and I went straight to the floor, then I acquired up and left.” The University of West London media production student said he was component of the group that occupied an region of Senate Home.

Another protester, Helen Singh, a philosophy pupil, claimed she was pushed over by officers, who were “punching men and women indiscriminately”. “We had been walking away from the protest. I was pushed to the ground and my glasses smashed into three pieces,” she stated.

A police spokesman mentioned: “We have acquired no complaints in relation to police action at Wednesday’s protest.”

On Thursday, at a demonstration against police techniques, which had been organised before Wednesday’s incident, about 200 demonstrators marched from the pupil union to Senate Home.

When demonstrators arrived, there have been skirmishes with police, who have been previously within the premises. Several much more police vans arrived and more than the subsequent two hrs there have been a series of clashes among small groups of protesters and police in the surrounding streets. College students again claimed the police had been hefty-handed.

Chessum mentioned he believed the “unprecedented response” by the authorities was component of an try to cease the student protest motion gaining momentum.

“They know from 2010 [when there have been large-scale pupil protests in London and close to the country] that this kind of heavy-handed policing puts individuals off, and I think this is what they are making an attempt to do this time.”

Police accused of using excessive force at student protests

University data can be a force for good

If managed properly, data analytics can aid pupil retention and improve knowledge. Photograph: Google

Data analytics is practically nothing new. Commercial giants this kind of as Tesco have been collecting buyer information since the early 1990s and with advances in technological innovation the method has turn into hugely much more sophisticated – the retailer is now in a position to accurately anticipate its customers’ preferences. Analysing action data is turning into more commonplace in universities, too, specially when it aids influence pupil engagement and retention.

It should not automatically be noticed as a dark artwork. Less costly and a lot more powerful engineering is creating it attainable to check pupil behaviour and their digital footprints to ascertain their likelihood of success. Information evaluation has also designed much more touchpoints in which academics can intervene and provide assistance if they truly feel a pupil is at threat of dropping out.

Historically, due to the multitude of variables affecting any a single student’s engagement and retention, it has been challenging for universities to anticipate or comprehend why some students drop out. Before fees have been introduced, it was not often obvious that a student had left an institution till they failed to flip up to the end of year exams. Now that college students pay out costs in 3 annual instalments, they are a lot more very likely to come forward sooner if they wish to leave to avoid incurring further costs.

Why are universities so concerned with retention? Properly, it goes each methods. Besides the clear economic incentive of not wanting to incur losses when students drop out, universities are keen to demonstrate worth to their college students now paying out costs of up to £9,000 per 12 months. They want to offer you the much more personalised knowledge today’s students expect.

Gone are the days when the lecture register was the only signal of pupil engagement. A lot of increased schooling institutions are now seeking at a huge selection of information in addition to attendance to decide pupil engagement and anticipate retention. Manchester Metropolitan University has carried out examination that reveals a direct correlation in between the two. Engagement indicators contain how frequently a pupil swipes into the library, how several borrowed books are logged on the technique and how frequently they sign into their virtual finding out atmosphere – all of this exercise leaves a data record that can be interpreted.

In an surroundings in which many college students have a lower quantity of speak to hrs and are anticipated to undertake important self-directed studying, universities must comprehend student data to improve the general expertise. There is also a better emphasis on relationship management between institutions and students and this commences from the application stage. Digitally savvy candidates are performing a lot more desk study prior to they attend open days. In response, much more universities are producing videos, podcasts, virtual tours of the campus, as effectively as monitoring view on social media web sites. The University of the West of England employs student ambassadors to check Facebook pages linked to the institution to assist the university gather applicant opinions.

A single university that has been particularly powerful in harvesting student exercise data is Leeds Metropolitan. Through its task, Pupil Monitoring and Retention Up coming Generation (or STAR-Track:NG – acronyms don’t have to be forgettable) the university combines information in its current methods with demographic info and presents it in a single portal application. The goal: to boost pupil support services by supplying college students, tutors and assistance officers with a broader image of pupil engagement with the university on each an academic and social level.

When you take into account that students depart a digital footprint in a range of areas, and touch factors can include student solutions, economic aid, billing, registration and admission, it can be a daunting prospect to analyse such a plethora of information. A crucial concern for universities is not having the in-property skills to manage the data and also fears that exploiting this kind of action data could cross the data safety line.

Regardless of these reservations, data analytics in universities is only set to create and mature more. One US university has designed a targeted traffic light technique, which is gaining reputation in the Uk, to track student academic experience and thus retention. The program compares action data of preceding college students with behaviour of recent students to give a clearer prediction of how particular behaviour will impact on their academic success. If a pupil profile is flagging up as amber, the university can swiftly engage with that personal and offer you them personalised assistance to get them back on track.

Students are living in a globe the place far more and much more of their daily interactions are personalised and anticipate the exact same from their university and total studying knowledge. Activity information presents unprecedented insight which, if employed in an efficient and ethical way, can assistance higher training institutions in proactively managing pupil retention – and expectations. At its greatest, it can even support universities exceed them.

Ruth Drysdale is an eLearning programme manager at Jisc – stick to it on Twitter @Jisc or uncover out a lot more about these problems at the Jisc Digital Festival 2014

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University data can be a force for good