ABSTRACT

The student protests of the late 1960s had many causes. The expansion of higher education and the recognition of higher education as a right by the Robbins Report as well as the rise of youth cultures surely contributed to a changing student attitude, in particular towards academic authority. One of the central issues of the protests concerned the disciplinary powers that the institutions of higher education had over their students. As students were not adults in legal terms, universities and colleges were standing in loco parentis, which gave them the power to strictly control not only academic matters but also student life. An issue that caused considerable discontent amongst many of the student protesters were the existing examination practices. Though most of the radical protesters agreed that a reform of the education system was a crucial step in the demolition of capitalism, there was major disagreement concerning the actual role of the student in the fight for power against capitalism.