Photography education - 'food for thought'

I have recently come across a discussion paper by John Kippin (Association of Photography in Higher Education) entitled 'Why Study Photography' . It's an interesting read and debates the contexts and merit of photography education. However, its underlying arguments worry me and in many ways confirm some of my beliefs regarding how some academics view photography education.

There is a palpable air of distaste in the article towards the teaching of technique and key-skills and how this denigrates the value of their qualification. But they must now realise that both students and 'industry' are becoming all to aware of how ill-prepared and ill-equipped the majority of the graduates they are producing. I agree that research and contextual studies are extremely valuable in a higher level course but they should not detract from the teaching of essential key skills. Too many graduates leave these institutions with at best the barest knowledge of 'depth of field' let alone basic lighting skills and work-flow practice.

From long discussions with ex-students, photography degree courses seem to be in many cases a numbers game where institutions try to enrol as many students as possible whilst restricting access to resources and tutors. This has resulted in 'fofo' education - 'fuck-off and find out'. This is where a ill-prepared/over-pressurised  tutor sends his cohorts out to research usually irrelevant or spurious subjects rather than tackle the core needs of the unit he/she should be teaching.

This practice was high-lighted in the various 'end-of-year' shows I visited this year, where there was little evidence in the vast majority of work on show, of any student reaching a minimum level of professional competence. More disturbing was that many of the students who I spoke to, had not been told by their tutors/peers how inadequate their work was. Only a couple had experienced a 'critique' in their 3 year education and then only once or maybe twice.  So what may I ask were the tutors doing for the rest of the time. For photographers, of any level, feedback is their most valuable tool. Without it, we have no way to gauge or judge our progression and development.

John Kippen also claims in his piece about the high employee ability of photography graduates, but it is curious when other trade bodies have asked the association members for data regarding their ex-students, only a couple were prepared to comply and even that information was sketchy at best.

I would ask John Kippen and his colleagues at their next conference, to take a long hard look at their courses and ask the brutal questions about them that everyone is. Are they their just as a numbers game and a way of providing employment to academics or do they truly care about developing and progressing students in to the career which they are truly passionate about entering. Without the links with industry and the necessary skill set, these students will fail and not only that - they will also have a mountain of debt to deal with!

Richard Southall
www.emphasis.biz
www.richardsouthall.co.uk