GUCU Motion Opposing SEAtS

Motion for GUCU Branch Meeting passed March 2019

This Branch Notes:

  1. That Goldsmiths is piloting a new centralised online system for taking registers in the departments of MCCS, Anthropology, and Music;
  2. That the stated aims of the potential introduction of this new  system are three fold:

To provide support in helping students experiencing difficulties and allowing for learning and pastoral interventions;

To help support staff responsible for student administration;

To help the College meet its existing legal obligations with regard to its license to sponsor international students on Tier Four visas as well as commitments regarding student finances.

This Branch Believes:

  1. That it is not appropriate to tie the monitoring of international students for Tier Four License purposes to systems which are designed to provide support (both learning and pastoral) to all students, including international students;
  2. That the taking of registers is a system that must be limited to checking student attendance in order to provide learning or pastoral support. 
  3. That any other use of the taking of registers gravely undermines the trust that must exist between academic/professional staff and students in the provision of necessary support and discriminates against international students;
  4. That while we recognise that the College must meet its legal obligations for retaining its license to sponsor international students, it must to so in a way that disaggregates those processes from processes that are intended to provide students with support.

This Branch Resolves:

  1. To call on Goldsmiths to disaggregate the processes of collecting data for its Tier Four License from any students support systems, including the taking of registers;
  2. To call on Goldsmiths to conduct an Equalities Audit and Impact Assessment on the possible introduction of SEATs and to share these with GUCU representatives;
  3. To call on Goldsmiths to meet with GUCU representatives on this matter;
  4. To call on the Pro-Warden responsible for the current pilot to share the reports on the pilots with GUCU representatives and to consult fully with GUCU over any proposal to role this system out across the university.