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Access Policy and Practice in Further and Higher Education: Investigating

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Title: Access Policy and Practice in Further and Higher Education: Investigating


1
Access Policy and Practice in Further and Higher
Education Investigating success as lifelong
learning turns into widening participation
  • Margaret Andrews (PhD)
  • M.T.Andrews_at_gre.ac.uk/ mtandrews30_at_hotmail.com

2
Overview
  • Litany of research into failure of
    non-traditional students
  • Kennedy (97), Archer et al (03), Quinn et al
    (04)
  • Lack of research into the student experience
    (Silver Silver 97)
  • Lack of research into the under-represented
    student experience (Leicester 93)
  • Lack of research into what works (Newby 04)

3
Backdrop
  • FE is under-researched (Avis 04)
  • Research into HE is data free (Silver and Silver
    97)
  • Kennedy Report neutral WP practice
  • WP uplift/ premium FE HE
  • Post 92 pre-92 HE
  • Education in the market place
  • Beacon and failing/ coasting colleges

4
Access WP
  • Access social justice, movement, Freire
    (72), student-centred
  • WP voc HE FE, 14-30/ basic skills
  • Sixth forms, Sixth form colleges/ centres
  • WP - economic needs
  • New Labour WP reproduction of structural
    inequalities
  • WP Academic (A) and utilitarian (a)
    access (Jones and Thomas 05)

5
Lifelong Learning
  • Lifelong learning A/access equal ops
  • Expansion of tertiary education 1918 Act
  • Post war debates French and North American
    traditions of adult education
  • OECD 1970s lifelong learning
  • Lifelong learning policy in England - Green Paper
    The Learning Age (DfEE 98) Blunketts (00)
    speech at Greenwich
  • Lifelong learning employability (Griffin 00)

6
Participation - increase
  • After 1992 universities increased 34 -112
  • HE Students from 900,000 to 1,800,000 (DfES 03)
    2m (DfES 03)
  • Under 21s in HE 15 in 98 to 30 in 93 35 in
    05 (HEFCE)
  • 40 BME,16 White students at home
  • 1994-95 3 million students in FE (FEFC)
  • 1997-78 3.8 million student in FE
  • 2004-05 6 million students in the learning and
    skills sector (DfES 06)

7
Positive Approach
  • Interest in understanding why underrepresented
    groups succeed
  • How/ if FE and HE enabled students to succeed
  • Perspectives of those affected by WP policy
    students, teachers, managers

8
Theorising success
  • Bandura (97) expectations self-esteem
  • Bourdieu Passeron (77) cultural reproduction
  • Bourdieu (86) cultural capital habitus
  • Spady (70) Tinto (75, 87, 05) suicide,
    rites of passage student integration
  • Yorke Longden (04) lack of fit between the
    student and institution

9
Cont..
  • Astin (84, 70) student involvement
    commitment (I-E-O)
  • Seidman (95) early support integrated advice
    counselling
  • Pascarella Terenzini (70, 85) tested
    Tintos theory students early education
    experience characteristics of PCET institution
    Learner centred management (91)
  • Braxton Lee (97) tested Tintos theory of
    involvement social activities, friendships

10
The Study
  • Quantitative data from MIS v qualitative
    interview data
  • 2 FE 2 HE case study institutions
  • Case study facilitate multiple sources of
    evidence when researching numerous contextual
    variables (Yin 1993)
  • Explain the social condition organisations work/
    not effectively (Miller et al 04)
  • Phenomenology priority to the voice of the
    subjects (Miles Huberman 94)

11
Cont
  • open mind not blank (Denscombe 98)
  • Ethical issues
  • Data documentary, interviews ( focus and 11),
    MIS, questionnaires, field notes
  • Pilot 2001-2002
  • Interviews 62 mature students 41 FE 21 HE 1st
    year of study 28 staff incl. teachers, heads of
    schools, directors principals, professors
  • Programmes BTEC, NVQ, LOCN Access, BSc, BA,
    Certificates and Diplomas in HE

12
Findings - themes
  • Geography students teachers
  • Tension between mission practice
  • Meeting individual needs who are they?
  • WP and financial motivation
  • Pedagogy lack of
  • Definitions of success
  • Student Services
  • Pre-entry IAG prospectus
  • Descriptors for students - deficit

13
Widening Participation
  • it exposes staff and strands students how do
    you take students who have been used to a
    hierarchical, didactic model of being respectful
    who want to learn at the feet of Socratesto a
    liberal, interactive model of learning? Being a
    student is a deeply emotional experience and
    deliberately recruiting underrepresented groups
    (older male learners, students from Nigeria and
    Eastern Europe) exposes staff to accusations of
    racism, sexism, disableism etc. The middle aged
    women who never thought theyd get to university
    feel desperately insecureunsure of themselves
    and lack confidence. They are often over
    dependent on their tutors we must not strand
    these students. There is no funding which
    recognises that staff need time to prepare for
    working with under-represented students. (Head of
    School New University)

14
Widening Participation
  • were getting more white males in the 2030 age
    cohort. That changes the dynamic because young
    white men have a particular way of behaving that
    is not the same as women full stop, generally.
    (Teacher - Old University)

15
Teaching
  • I think on the whole the teaching is very good on
    this course because my niece is doing a course
    here and her standards of teaching doesnt sound
    the same as mine. I think weve got some really
    hard core, veterans teaching us, honestly.
    Theres some that are better than others but
    overall the standards are very good. And they do
    actually help, well its helped me, in
    particular. The programme manager, I suppose her
    lessons help to plan your study, stuff like that
    James and Teresa nod in agreement. And the
    passion that some of the teachers put into their
    classes! English literature, shes fantastic!
    the two colleagues nod again and say umm
    simultaneously (Alicia, parent 11 year old, aged
    30-39, Black UK, Access student, NBC).

16
Cont
  • Its easy to say what the bad ones. The bad ones
    dont acknowledge the level at which the class is
    at, the good ones do. The bad ones will do their
    standard lecture and thats it. Youre not
    allowed to intervene to ask questions and they
    will make you look stupid. Whereas the good
    lecturer will understand where the class and
    where individuals in the class are and will kind
    of welcome questions, even if they are, even if
    they may be silly questions. There is some sort
    of preparation they havent turned up with their
    notes written on the back of a cigarette packet
    but are equally as flexible enough to follow
    where the class is. (George, White, 50-59 Old Uni)

17
Cont
  • Teachers mattered FE HE
  • Friends and family
  • Tutorials
  • Respect disrespect

18
Respect
  • theres some teachers in this college that
    think were about 16. I do, I find it very
    offensive actually (Alicia nods). Sometimes yes,
    you just think, Im not a child, why are you
    talking to me like this? (Teresa, parent of 19
    year old chid, aged 30-39, Access student NBC).
  • Because youre older than me you find it more
    offensive than me but Im used to teachers
    talking to me like that. Teachers talk to young
    people like that all the time. (James aged 20,
    African Caribbean, Access, NBC).

19
Conclusion
  • Institutional factors contributing to success
  • Individual motivation
  • FE managers, teachers HE managers
  • HE teachers
  • Students instrumental definitions of success
  • Unchanged institutions
  • Strong social identity, networks home base

20
Cont..
  • Hard working, frustrated, teachers and managers
  • Students managed their dissatisfaction
  • Students staff, valuable resource
  • Dissatisfaction survey Elton 2004
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