THINKING STRATEGICALLY: SUPPORTING WIDENING PARTICIPATION THROUGH LEARNING AND TEACHING STRATEGIES

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THINKING STRATEGICALLYSUPPORTING WIDENING
PARTICIPATION THROUGH LEARNING AND TEACHING
STRATEGIES

• JOHN CATER
• EDGE HILL
• 23 JANUARY 2001

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Why Edge Hill?

• retention rates good
• significantly above benchmark on recruitment
  from state schools and from low participation
  neighbourhoods among young and mature students
• comprehensive learning and teaching strategy and
  widening participation statement both well linked
  to mission

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Why Edge Hill?

• highest widening access premium allocation for
  participation of under-represented groups
  (Circular 00/12)
• top of THES table for learning outcomes and
  efficiency for 1997/98 (THES 4.12.99)
• second top in Financial Times Composite
  Performance Indicators table (FT December 1999)

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Why Edge Hill?

• EH Benchmark England
• From State Schools or Colleges 99 92
  84
• From Social Classes IIIM, IV V 35 31
  25
• From Low Participation
• Neighbourhoods 22 15 12
• Projected Learning Outcomes
• Efficiencies 87 83 85
• Retention 1997/98 90 89 91
• Retention 1996/97 (HEFCE 1999) 93 90
  90

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Are We Serious About Access?(Peter Scott
26.10.00)

• successful nations are those which strive to
  mobilise the talents of all their people - not
  just a socially pre-selected minority
• democratic entitlements and civic rights cannot
  be brushed aside
• excellence and access are not a zero-sum game
  teaching privileged, well-prepared students
  requires less investment than teaching less
  well-prepared students from deprived backgrounds
• two ideas have to be accepted .. value-added
  .. (and that those) which add more value should
  receive matching resources.

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Getting Strategic About Widening
Participation(Action on Access John Storan
Review of WP Statements in response to HEFCE
99/33)

• Best Aspects
• aims objectives (A Os) 46 covered well
  or very well
• student profile 45 covered well or very
  well
• mechanism for Achieving A Os 34 covered
  well or very well
• Worst Aspects
• targets for student
• retention (Non-Trad. Students) 9
  covered well or very well
• use of PIs 13 covered well or very well
• targets for Under-Rep. Groups 19 covered
  well or very well
• Cross referencing between Initial Strategic
  Statements and teaching and learning policy,
  disability statements or financial planning was
  uncommon. Most statements did not link their
  widening participation strategy aims and
  objectives with their formula-funding allocation
  or their additional student numbers.
• In general there is little evidence of an
  integrationist approach to widening
  participation.

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Getting Strategic About Widening Participation
From Mission To Action

• increase partner/compact schools in low
  participation neighbourhoods (LPNs) by 10 p.a.
• develop two new programmes p.a. for Y9 and Y12
  pupils
• develop two new partnerships p.a. offering
  guaranteed access from partner FEIs
• develop two new bridging/transitional programmes
  for GNVQ applicants
• increase applicants from LPNs and social classes
  IIIM-V by 15 over three years

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Getting Strategic About Widening Participation
From Mission To Action Activities

• Fastrack (Spring/Summer access programme for
  mature candidates)
• Bridging Summer School for Access (enhancement
  programme for younger disadvantaged)
• Lancashire Compact (developing and sharing best
  practice in WP)
• Aim Higher (removing progression barriers in
  Merseyside)
• Liverpool Study Support Scheme (Y10 pupils in
  inner city schools)
• Developing Inclusive Provision Project (students
  with learning difficulties and disabilities)

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Why Higher Education Colleges?Efficiency
(against Benchmarks), all HEIs (HEFCE 00/40)

• Projected Benchmark
• Norwich School of Art Design 94
  84 10
• Buckinghamshire Chilterns 90
  80 10
• Bretton Hall 94 85 9
• Westhill 89 80 9
• North Riding 91 83 8
• St Mark and St John 91
  83 8
• Newman 92 85 7
• St Martins 92 85 7
• Bath Spa 90 83 7
• Canterbury Christ Church 89
  82 7
• Highest ranked university (Plymouth) is 12th (88
  82 6)

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Edge Hill Retention - What Went Wrong?
Retention 1996/97 (HEFCE 1999) 93 (benchmark
90) Retention 1997/98 (HEFCE 2000) 90 (benchmark
89)

• many students from social classes IIIM, IV V
  and low participation neighbourhoods need
  maintenance grants
• motivating, supporting, developing and changing
  Part I students is key
• any mid-year assessment in level 1 should be
  formative (but serious)
• multi-subject Part I may be of questionable worth
• personal tutors and effective student support
  systems matter

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Strategies Students

• start early, finish late
• six weeks to change the world

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Strategies Teaching Learning

• where have the best tutors gone?
• the as well as model
• personal tutors are not an optional extra
• quality is not discretionary

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Strategies Academic Staff

• ideological commitment vs inherent conservatism
• communication, communication, communication
• be excellent at something changing priorities
  and rewarding them

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Teaching Learning Strategy Edge Hill

• Four key strands
• quality learning opportunities for students
  (knowledge and skills, ICT, induction, empowered
  independence, work experience, Records of
  Achievement, inclusivity and support)
• continued professional development for staff
  (induction, ILT, PGCs in Teaching and Learning
  and in Research Supervision, conferences,
  courses, curriculum design, materials
  development, peer review, exchange)
• continued development of the learning
  infrastructure and the support infrastructure
• monitoring and evaluation of learning and
  teaching (critical review, research into teaching
  and learning, pedagogic networks, monitoring
  trends in teaching and assessment, externality)
• ACTION PLANS - Objectives, Annual Targets,
  Performance Measures, Responsibility, Monitoring
  and Review

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Strategies Government NDPBs

• a third leg, not a walking stick
• mission-related funding? Value-added funding?

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