European higher education, the inclusion of students from under-represented groups and the Bologna Process

This report examines the progress made by the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS), the Higher Education Funding Council for England, the Office for Fair Access and higher education institutions in England in widening participation in higher education. The UK Government’s 2003 White Paper, ‘The future of higher education’, included a commitment to widen participation in higher education by helping more people from under-represented groups, particularly lower socioeconomic backgrounds, to participate successfully in higher education. Progress was assessed against the following criteria: whether participation of under-represented groups in higher education is increasing; whether initiatives taken by the Department, the Funding Council, the Office for Fair Access and higher education institutions to widen participation are effective; and whether higher education provision is delivered in a way that addresses the barriers to widening participation. To assess progress in increasing participation of under-represented groups, a detailed analysis was undertaken of data held by the Higher Education Statistics Agency. To determine the effectiveness of the widening participation initiatives and explore what barriers remain to participation, surveys were undertaken of 2,900 unsuccessful applicants for higher education places and of 1,000 teachers in primary and secondary schools, along with visits to seven institutions and meetings with representatives of key organisations. This report focuses on what higher education institutions can do through outreach and other widening participation activities to raise the aspirations and attainment of people.

The Association of American Geographers Catalyzing Research on the Geographies of Broadening Participation Creative Scholarly Retreat explored ways in which geographers can advance approaches to broadening participation of underrepresented groups in higher education and the scientific workforce. Conversations during the retreat revealed the need for theoretical models to guide research and policy development. In this article, I ask how the geographic concept of scale can inform the problem of broadening participation of underrepresented groups in higher education. First, I explain how the concept of scale can drive future research using the literature within geography. Next, I propose the situational matrix as an analytical schema using the concept of scale. I then analyze various scales first as ordering devices and then as politically produced entities in conversations about underrepresentation in higher education. I conclude by arguing that identifying the scales that are in operation and then figuring out ways in which they function simultaneously and even in mutually contradictory ways will push the project of broadening participation forward.

Chapter 4 - Higher Education in Europe: Widening Participation

This paper will explore and examine the notion and practice of using alternative assessments as a means to overcoming barriers to learning and success for under-represented groups, such as mature students returning to learning. Since widening participation initiatives began, many universities have begun to engage in practices that are conducive to their learners successfully accessing and achieving in higher education. The pedagogical practice of using alternative assessments for students who are considered to be at a disadvantage, not because of disability, but because of their background and affiliation with under-represented groups in higher education, may go some way to levelling the playing field.

Approaches of Quality Assurance Models on Adult Education Provisions

Purpose – This chapter highlights the general direction that Australian Universities are headed in Broadening Participation, including the impact of The Bradley Review of Higher Education (2008). More specifically, the chapter explains how La Trobe University has interpreted the review and set about a whole of university approach to delivering equality of opportunity. Approach – Social justice and equity have always been core values of La Trobe University. The University aims to increase the diversity of the student cohort by engaging with communities through outreach and promoting collaboration which facilitates the increased participation of under-represented groups in higher education. The University also supports successful academic outcomes through the effective provision of services and a broad student experience. La Trobe University promotes and maintains a learning environment which provides opportunities for engagement, is inclusive, healthy, socially vibrant, accessible and free from discrimination. Practical implications – This chapter demonstrates how policy, training and small programmes and projects in various departments throughout the University add to the emerging larger picture of success in creating an environment that embraces diversity and the successful participation of students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Value of paper – Australian universities are cognisant of the global issues faced by the higher education sector and believe that some of our experiences in addressing the issues may be of value to the wider international community of tertiary education.

The reform of higher education in Albania has been on the agenda of universities cooperation for a long time. It emphasized that:"universities are key players in Europe's future and for the successful transition to a knowledge-based economy and society. In the political debate on the future of higher education, the social dimension has become increasingly important. The universities are required to establish incentives so that higher education institutions accept more non-traditional learners and improve the learning environment. This approach links the modernization of higher education to the achievement of economic and social goals in a knowledge-based economy. Social dimension in the Albania Higher Education is significant changed, but the challenges remain. This paper has on its focus the analysis in particular:1)How ˜the social dimension of higher education is understood in Albania Higher Education.2) How are the policy of education linked on the social dimension to the Bologna commitment.3) What are the specific targets to improve the participation of under-represented groups in higher education, where only about half of the Bologna countries systematically monitor their participation? The analysis showed that, at European level, significant attention is devoted to making European Higher Education more equitable and inclusive. In particular, what has been done at national level to make higher education systems more inclusive? DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2013.v4n3p299

Higher education and research in Albania during these 24 years of democracy seems to be not in the international standards, progress seems to have been somewhat disappointing in the last 14 years of reforms in higher education. Although the number of universities and students enrolled in higher education has grown rapidly, the quality assurance remains an issue. For this reason the government is undertaking a reform that involves higher education which is expected to bring a dramatic change in the structure of the higher education and soon in the outputs. This new approach to higher education brought many debates among the stakeholders of higher education and especially among student’s organizations. In this context this paper focus the analysis in particular of 1. 1) How the social dimension of higher education is perceived in the higher education reform and the new higher education law 2. What are the specific actions undertaken by the government to improve the participation of under-represented groups in higher education. This paper and the study of the higher education reform and law is part of my PhD thesis (which is in progress) which tends to open a discussion on the role that universities , as one of the main stakeholders of higher education, has in the Albanian society. DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2015.v4n2s2p284

Social networks, social capital, social support and academic success in higher education: A systematic review with a special focus on ‘underrepresented’ students

In numerous countries, the widening participation of underrepresented groups in higher education has become an official part of education policies. However, inequalities continue in some areas, including refugees’ participation. Norway hosts many refugees, but little is known about the social inclusion of refugees into higher education in the country. In this paper, three documents representing Norwegian higher education and integration policies are analysed using an integrated analytical framework constructed from social inclusion and its three main dimensions (access, participation and empowerment) and from a critical discourse analysis. The analysis is conducted to address how social inclusion into higher education is conceptualized, which major discourses underpin the conceptualization and what implications these have for the social inclusion of refugees into higher education in Norway. The article argues that social inclusion is conceptualized from an access dimension signifying the dominance of neoliberal principles in the policy documents. On the contrary, social justice discourses are marginalized and human potential principles are absent from the documents signalling the disempowerment of refugees in relation to higher education. Future policies should incorporate conscious and clear strategies informed by social justice and empowerment principles to ensure the social inclusion of refugees into higher education.

Making higher education more inclusive is one of the main targets of the Bologna Process. During the last years, national governments set up strategies to widen the access; higher education institutions and stakeholders developed measures to ensure inclusion of learners from diverse backgrounds. Higher education institutions and stakeholders, such as students’ unions, play a crucial role in the development and implementation of strategies. One of the main measures to enable better access to higher education is student counselling. Counselling activities are undertaken by diverse actors with several purposes. It can be provided by universities, stakeholders (as professional associations), psychologists or students’ unions. Counselling activities can be provided to a general audience or to specific target groups, which can be an advantage for those who benefit from specific counselling (e.g. for disabled students) but can also be a barrier for those who do not want to out themselves as “disadvantaged”. The paper provides an overview of counselling activities in nine European countries (Austria, Germany, Spain, Italy, Liechtenstein, United Kingdom, Romania, Denmark, Slovenia) from a student’s perspective. It will focus on counselling activities provided by students’ unions, their cooperation with other counselling providers (e.g. university counselling, financial support, psychologists) and their approach to supporting disadvantaged learners. This includes the use of modern technology (online counselling, Facebook, Skype) to reach out to a wider audience, mentoring and tutoring activities as well as counselling activities for specific groups (e.g. first-generation students). The paper will conclude with an analysis of provided measures, their role in widening access to higher education as well as identified gaps.

Equity in higher education is mostly related to the context in which it is discussed. Most commonly, equity is sought for enhancing access to higher education for under-represented groups such as minorities, low income groups, or any other type of disadvantaged group of people. The plethora of research in this area mostly focuses on different types of affirmative action aiming to enroll more under-represented groups in higher education, whereas in the research on equity, within the context of educational outcomes and quality, the interaction between equity and quality in higher education is scarce. This paper discusses the entangled issues of equity and quality in higher education and explores the possible solutions to promoting both. It concludes that admission models aiming to achieve equity in higher education should be more outcomes-based (e.g., increase success) rather than process-based (e.g., increase participation).

In this paper, the relationship between relative and absolute participation in undergraduate higher education in Slovenia is investigated. That relationship results from the interrelationship between factors contributing to relative participation in higher education and the size of youth populations. The development patterns of the relative and absolute participation in undergraduate higher education in Slovenia are presented. In order to empirically test the authors' hypotheses, two separate multiple regression analyses were conducted. The first analyzes factors of the demographic base, and the second analyzes factors of the relative participation in undergraduate higher education. The results reveal the factors contributing to both the demographic base and relative participation in undergraduate higher education and identifies the significant factor linking them to each other. This factor works in one direction in the case of the demographic base and in the opposite direction in the case of the relative participation in undergraduate higher education, causing the relationship between changes in relative and absolute participation in higher education. At the end of the paper, findings confirming the hypotheses are presented with an explanation of the background of the empirical findings.

Research about the experiences of underrepresented groups in higher education (HE) demonstrates the persistence of challenges, despite policies and institutional strategies to promote inclusion. Diversity and inclusion policies have been part of the HE agenda for several decades, yet most policies and interventions focus on (a) a given, isolated identity experience (e.g., based solely on gender, social class, or ethnicity) rather than more intersectional approaches to identity; and (b) top-down interventions that do not include participants insights in their design. In this paper, we report a case study of a workshop with students at an elite university that drew on an intersectional approach to social identities (IASI), specifically, looking at gender and social class. We explore three key themes: (a) the importance of group processes, (b) the use of visual techniques, and (c) the institutional tensions and the (de)politicisation of social psychology research. Reflecting on this case study we argue that approaches to identity and inclusion in HE can benefit from intersectionality beyond the use of multi and overlapping identity and social group categories. We argue that research in this space is not neutral and needs to acknowledge researchers’ position about (a) inclusion and diversity, (b) perceptions of participants in research, and (c) the motivation and aims of institutions where the research is conducted. Finally, we discuss the theoretical and practical implications of integrating an intersectional approach within social identity research in HE when focusing on underrepresented groups.

Implementing Bologna in Southern European countries: Comparative analysis of some research findings