Promoting Equity in Higher
Education
Eastwood Hall
27th January 2010.
The contribution of flexible and
lifelong learning to widening
participation
• Dr Muir Houston, DACE, University of Glasgow
• Prof. Mike Osborne, DACE, University of Glasgow
• Dr Velda McCune, LTC, University of Glasgow
Brief Biographies
• Velda McCune: students' perspectives on their learning
in higher education; students' development as learners
within higher education; and university teaching-learning
environments.
McCune, V. (2009). Final year biosciences students' willingness to
engage: Teaching-learning environments, authentic learning
experiences and identities. Studies in Higher Education
Christie, H, Tett, L., Cree, V. E., Hounsell, J. & McCune, V.(2008). ' A
real rollercoaster of confidence and emotions': Learning to be a
university student. Studies in Higher Education 33(5), 567-581.
Hounsell, J., Christie, H., Cree, V. E., McCune, V. and Tett, L. (2008).
Talking and sharing: the role of peer support and retention in Higher
Education. Journal of Access, Policy and Practice 6(1), 35-51.
Biographies (cont.)
• Mike Osborne: Professor of Adult and Lifelong
Learning He is Director of the Centre for Research
and Development in Adult and Lifelong Learning and
Co-director of the PASCAL Observatory
Morgan-Klein, B, and Osborne M. (2007) The Concepts and Practice of
Lifelong Learning. London: Routledge
Osborne, M, Sankey, K and Wilson, B. (Eds) (2007) Social Capital,
Lifelong Learning and the Management of Place: An international
perspective. London: Routledge
Osborne, M, Houston, M and Toman, N. (Eds,) (2007) The Pedagogy
of Lifelong Learning: Understanding effective teaching and learning
in diverse contexts. London: Routledge
Biographies (cont.)
• Muir Houston: Lecturer and product of a
flexible route into higher education as a
mature student.
• Left school @ 16
• Apprentice Mechanic – four years dayrelease for City and Guilds
• Returned to College to do an HNC Social
Science aged 30. Followed by BA(Hons.),
MPhil., and PhD.
Research synthesis
• The available performance indicators suggest
that there have been modest improvements in
widening participation for students from lower
SES but marked inequality remains, particularly
in relation to certain types of institution and
career paths.
• Question: is there a unofficial divide developing
between institutions and/or subjects?
Research synthesis
• There is some limited evidence of flexible
learning contributing to widening participation for
students from lower SES but much remains to
be done by way of evaluating the impact of such
initiatives. Action is needed to ensure that
flexible provision which meets the needs of
students from lower SES becomes a more
mainstream activity and is available more
equally across different types of institutions.
• Question: how best can identified good practice
be disseminated and implemented?
Research synthesis
• The performance indicators suggest that the
percentage of disabled students in HE has
increased but there is insufficient evidence to
fully evaluate the impact of flexible learning on
widening participation for disabled students and
further research is needed in this area.
• Question: To what extent and in what ways does
improving provision for disabled students help all
students?
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
Higher
Managerial &
Professional
22.5
21.5
21.4
19.6
19.9
20.0
18.0
Lower
Managerial &
Professional
28.2
27.7
28.0
26.4
26.0
26.0
24.3
Intermediate
Occupation
12.5
12.0
12.1
11.5
11.2
11.0
11.1
Small
employers
and own
account.
6.7
6.7
6.7
6.4
6.6
6.6
6.2
Lower
supervisory
& technical
4.3
4.6
4.5
4.3
4.1
4.1
3.7
Semi-routine
9.3
9.4
9.5
9.6
9.5
9.6
11.7
Routine
4.6
4.4
4.5
4.3
4.4
4.4
4.9
12.0
13.8
13.5
17.9
18.4
18.3
20.2
Unknown
2008
Cause for concern?
• The availability and use of data to track
relevant groups of under-represented
students is not ideal.
• This is especially problematic in relation to
non-continuation
• Considerable variation both between and
within HEIs in all aspects of flexibility,
access, WP and progression.
Flexibility - general
•
•
•
•
What is it?
In what areas does it operate?
In what forms does it manifest itself?
Is it effective in widening
participation?
Flexibility - specific
• Flexibility in admissions procedures and
processes.
• Flexibility in mode (of attendance and of
delivery)
• Flexibility in location/environment
• Flexibility in teaching and learning
Some examples of flexibility
reviewed
• Flexibility in admissions criteria – the entry
of those with VET qualifications
• Widens participation of target groups
• However, they seem to have lower
performance and higher rates of noncontinuation
• Lack of staff awareness and lack of
consistency across and often within
institutions
FE in HE, or HE in FE
• The delivery either of FE provision in
Higher education environment, or, perhaps
more often, the provision of HE
programmes in an FE environment.
• Issues of consistency, access to specific
institutions, transition from one
environment to another, staff awareness of
student pathways.
Flexibility in teaching and learning
for disabled students
• Provision varies both across and within
institutions.
• What are reasonable adjustments?
• Issues for students in declaring disability
• The use of blended learning
• Improvements in provision for disabled
students benefit all students
Part-time
• Disparity in funding arrangements
criticised - what should be done?
• Should the part-time/full-time dichotomy
be removed?
• What would that look like for intuitions and
students?
Non-partcipants
• Why do those that are ‘recruitable’ not
wish to participate?
• What can we do to convince them of the
worth/benefits of participation?
• Without them can we meet the targets in
the Leitch review?
The removal of funding for ELQs
• What will the effect of this be on flexibility and
widening participation?
The Government’s development of policies for
upskilling is not integrated with a similarly welldeveloped and equally necessary suite of policies
for re-skilling in order to meet the challenges of the
Leitch Review.
• The proposals risk destabilizing part-time higher
education in general.
• They impact most on many of the institutions and
departments that have been at the forefront of
educational innovation, widening access and
participation.
• Implementation of the proposals may have a
disproportionate and unintended effect on particular
groups of adult learners. (NIACE)
The demise of extramural provision
• Can Open Courseware take the place
largely vacated by the extramural
movement in providing academic course
and programmes aimed at personal
interest and developing individual
potential?
• Open University – Open Learn
• MIT Opencourseware
Funding in an economic
downturn/recession
• Mandelson – promised to slash public spending
on higher education by £950 million over the
next three years
• Lammy – universities should not rely on an
ongoing review of tuition fees leading to a "largescale increase" in income. …. it would be a
“good few years” before universities could
expect to see any significant rise in funding from
the public purse.
Funding (or lack of it) cont.
• Mr Lammy said more students would be
expected to enrol on part-time courses,
study at home and take part in work-based
training as an alternative to traditional
three-year degrees. How?
• Oxford, Cambridge, the London School of
Economics, Durham, Essex and
Edinburgh will cut or freeze the number of
places open to British undergraduates
Does this help WP and flexibility
• Research funding should be channelled to Britain’s
top 30 universities to halt a “progression to
mediocrity” in higher education. Arthur, Russell Group
• Research money needs to go to the places that can
get best value from it. And that is the top 20-30
universities where you have a real critical mass. In
my view, those are the only universities where PhDs
should be educated, because you need a critical
mass of people from different disciplines to give the
best and brightest people in this country the right
education for them." Higgins, Durham, 1994 Group
The way forward
• How can we maintain and increase the
modest achievements in WP?
• How and should we implement
consistency in the sector in relation to
flexible provision of WP?
• Should a vocational or liberal conception
of education be the focus, or should
elements of both be considered as
important in programme design?