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Margaret Andrews (PhD) M.T.Andrews@gre.ac.uk/ mtandrews30@hotmail

Access Policy and Practice in Further and Higher Education: Investigating “success” as lifelong learning turns into widening participation. Margaret Andrews (PhD) M.T.Andrews@gre.ac.uk/ mtandrews30@hotmail.com. Overview. Litany of research into failure of ‘non-traditional’ students

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Margaret Andrews (PhD) M.T.Andrews@gre.ac.uk/ mtandrews30@hotmail

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  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@gre.ac.uk/ mtandrews30@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 – 1970’s lifelong learning • Lifelong learning policy in England - Green Paper The Learning Age (DfEE ‘98) & Blunkett’s (‘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 Tinto’s theory: students’ early education experience & characteristics of PCET institution ‘Learner centred management’ (’91) • Braxton & Lee (’97) – tested Tinto’s 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 1:1), 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 Socrates…to a liberal, interactive model of learning? Being a student is a deeply emotionalexperience 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 they’d get to university feel desperately insecure…unsure 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 • …we’re getting more white males in the 20–30 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 doesn’t sound the same as mine. I think we’ve got some really hard core, veterans teaching us, honestly. There’s some that are better than others but overall the standards are very good. And they do actually help, well it’s 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, she’s 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… • It’s easy to say what the bad ones. The bad ones don’t acknowledge the level at which the class is at, the good ones do. The bad ones will do their standard lecture and that’s it. You’re 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 haven’t 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 • … there’s some teachers in this college that think we’re about 16. I do, I find it very offensive actually (Alicia nods). Sometimes yes, you just think, I’m 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 you’re older than me you find it more offensive than me but I’m 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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