There were lots of news stories on Saturday, so check them out if you haven’t already. Comments on the stories below or any issues of the day are welcome.

1. Labour is continuing to argue with National over student loans. Grant Robertson’s post title on Red Alert over the weekend was that Steven Joyce was perpetuating myths on student loans. The Labour MP picks up on Joyce’s statement that students don’t face an incentive to pay students loans back, but Joyce’s statement is in the right direction, if incomplete – students face no incentive to pay back their student loan earlybecause the loan’s real value will decline over time with no interest being incurred.  My suggestion would be that we stop calling this policy a loan scheme – it’s mainly an allowance scheme now – or that we put real interest back in the equation, rather than have MPs argue over semantics. Maryan Street of Labour takes a different spin on the issue, suggesting that National is seeking to close down access through student loans scheme changes. Both Labour MPs are trying to chip away at National in the absence of specific issues, but I’m sure they will be more effective once National says something serious on the issue.
2. In an era when duplication in qualifications is a problem, I was curious when I saw a story about qualifications for cadet forces. So I checked out the National Certificate in Cadet Forces (Foundation Skills) Level 2 and found that it has 50 credits, and only 21/34 compulsory credits are specific to the ITO (Learning State) and domain (Cadet Forces). Within the compulsory Cadet Forces domain unit standards, some of them cover skills that must be covered by other unit standards (leadership, firearms use, risk management, radio telephone use). Overall, I was left wondering whether we needed a qualification in Cadet Forces when other qualifications might do the trick.
3. Orientation: Otago police tell students to be good.
4. In the UK, researchers are suggesting that students might be drug-tested at examinations in the future. This is not to make sure that students are “appropriate role models”, like in sport, but because drugs like Ritalin can greatly improve alertness and attention. HT Dean Carroll
5. The European Commission has released a new paper titled Assessing Europe’s University-Based Research - Expert Group on Assessment of University-Based Research. I haven’t read all (or much) of its 151 pages, but I may do and you should consider doing so too if research assessment is your thing.
6. Some of you may have been following the story of the professor who shot her colleagues in Alabama, apparently as a result of not getting tenure. The Chronicle of Higher Education had an in-depth story on the issue over the weekend that is worth a read – much better insight than a wire story.