Universities In England Research Articles

The Open University Movement: A Comparative Case Study of Mega Universities

The increase in open and distance education and the rise of open university movement in the field of higher education have resulted in the establishment of open mega universities in different parts of the world with populations of more than 100,000 students each. Despite the benefits of access and low costs, the main criticism of this type of institution has been about quality assurance. The aim of this paper is 1) to compare and contrast three open mega universities namely Anadolu University in Turkey, Indira Gandhi National Open University in India, and Open University in Britain, in terms of their missions, visions, mottos, learning environments, entrance requirements, and quality assurance policies as they appeared on their official websites; and 2) to highlight their alignment with the open university movement. This qualitative study employs a comparative case study approach, and analyses data with the constant comparative method. Major findings suggested that these universities seemed to establish their access strategies and lower their costs through massification. They appeared to be concerned about quality assurance policies on their websites mainly to attract student masses around the world. The question we raise is the extent to which the balance between quality and quantity is reached in actual educational settings.

Organisational and student characteristics, fidelity, funding models, and unit costs of recovery colleges in 28 countries: a cross-sectional survey

Recovery colleges were developed in England to support the recovery of individuals who have mental health symptoms or mental illness. They have been founded in many countries but there has been little international research on recovery colleges and no studies investigating their staffing, fidelity, or costs. We aimed to characterise recovery colleges internationally, to understand organisational and student characteristics, fidelity, and budget. In this cross-sectional study, we identified all countries in which recovery colleges exist. We repeated a cross-sectional survey done in England for recovery colleges in 28 countries. In both surveys, recovery colleges were defined as services that supported personal recovery, that were coproduced with students and staff, and where students learned collaboratively with trainers. Recovery college managers completed the survey. The survey included questions about organisational and student characteristics, fidelity to the RECOLLECT Fidelity Measure, funding models, and unit costs. Recovery colleges were grouped by country and continent and presented descriptively. We used regression models to explore continental differences in fidelity, using England as the reference group. We identified 221 recovery colleges operating across 28 countries, in five continents. Overall, 174 (79%) of 221 recovery colleges participated. Most recovery colleges scored highly on fidelity. Overall scores for fidelity (β=-2·88, 95% CI 4·44 to -1·32; p=0·0001), coproduction (odds ratio [OR] 0·10, 95% CI 0·03 to 0·33; p<0·0001), and being tailored to the student (OR 0·10, 0·02 to 0·39; p=0·0010), were lower for recovery colleges in Asia than in England. No other significant differences were identified between recovery colleges in England, and those in other continents where recovery colleges were present. 133 recovery colleges provided data on annual budgets, which ranged from €0 to €2 550 000, varying extensively within and between continents. From included data, all annual budgets reported by the college added up to €30 million, providing 19 864 courses for 55 161 students. Recovery colleges exist in many countries. There is an international consensus on key operating principles, especially equality and a commitment to recovery, and most recovery colleges achieve moderate to high fidelity to the original model, irrespective of the income band of their country. Cultural differences need to be considered in assessing coproduction and approaches to individualising support. National Institute for Health and Care Research.

Who uses recovery colleges? Casemix analysis of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and representativeness of recovery college students.

Recovery Colleges support recovery for adults with mental health problems, through coproduction and education principles. This study aimed to determine whether students at three Recovery Colleges in England were representative of mental health service users. Gender, age, ethnicity, diagnosis, involuntary detention, and inpatient admission were extracted from clinical records. Data for all service user students enrolled, and those who had attended 70% of a Recovery College course were compared to mental health services caseloads, using chi-square goodness-of-fit tests. Clinical records were identified for 1,788 students. Significant differences were identified for gender, age, and diagnosis (p < .001). In some Colleges, more students had recent inpatient admissions or involuntary detentions. Service user students were largely representative of mental health service users, although some groups were underrepresented. Further research is needed to understand why, so that Recovery Colleges can continue to address inequalities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

“Weird duality”: learning from the experiences of students in university peer support roles during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objectives: To explore university student peer supporter experiences in the pandemic context and with a specific focus on student mental health. Participants: The sample comprised 13 students from various peer support programs, providing academic, social and/or emotional support at a South-East England university. Methods: A two-phase qualitative design involved individual interviews and focus groups, followed by participant validation with a subset of participants. Results: Peer supporters identified an increased need peri-pandemic for mental health support. The accessibility was aided by students perceiving peer supporters to be approachable, but was undermined by concerns about peers’ credibility. Supporter-supportee relationships were characterized by intimacy and mutuality, which were seen as conducive to authenticity, but caused challenges with respect to boundaries. Conclusions: Peer support is a complex activity, characterized by a sense of multiplicity and mutuality. Responsive supervision and dedicated training are necessary to manage these complexities amidst elevated student mental health needs.

The interplay between social and food environments on UK adolescents' food choices: implications for policy.

Factors from social and food environments can influence the food choices of adolescents in ways not experienced during childhood. Evidence suggests these two environments influence adolescents' food choices independently, but there is limited knowledge of how the interplay between these environments influence adolescents' diets. An enhanced understanding of this interplay surrounding adolescent food choice could aid the development of more nuanced interventions and policies. This qualitative study involved 13 online focus groups with adolescents (n = 45) aged 11-18 years, attending secondary school or college in England, UK. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Social experiences which accompanied eating were perceived as more important than the food itself, and fast-food outlets were described as uniquely suited to facilitating these interactions. Young people wanted to spend their money on foods they considered worthwhile, but this did not always relate to the most affordable foods. Adolescents wanted to put little effort into making food decisions and appreciated factors that helped them make quick decisions such as prominent placement and eye-catching promotions on foods they wanted to buy. Chain food outlets were valued as they offered familiar and frequently advertised foods, which minimized the effort needed for food decisions. Adolescents' sense of autonomy underpinned all themes. Participants described having limited opportunities to make their own food choices and they did not want to waste these buying unappealing 'healthy' foods. Interventions and government policies should align with adolescents' experiences and values relating to food choice to ensure that they are effective with this important age group.

‘Early childhood studies is more than a degree; it is an experience’: undergraduate students’ motivations, professional aspirations and attributes

ABSTRACT This mixed methods study sought the views of early childhood studies students from three universities in England. The research explored motivations, professional aspirations and the attributes they believed were required to work in early childhood. Findings highlighted that the holistic study of early childhood is valued by students and placements offered a space where they grew and flourished, as they made sense of where their personal intersected with wider theoretical, practice and political systems embedded in early childhood. Students follow a range of career trajectories, either by choice or because there is no specific practitioner role underpinned by the holistic study of early childhood. This study also revealed factors that led to their choice and place of study, as well as the ways that students’ personal circumstances affected their studies, reinforcing the importance of academic and pastoral support. Very significantly, this research led to discussions about the core purpose of the early childhood studies degree and helped to inform the development of the Graduate Competencies as an addition to ECS degrees that included placements.

A Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Obesity, Body Image, and Mental Health of British-Born Afro-Caribbean Male Students at a West Yorkshire University in England

Obesity, body image, and depression are all biopsychosocial phenomena that are frequently misunderstood across cultures. Body dissatisfaction is a psychological aspect of obesity that has been associated with disordered eating, low self-esteem, and depression. Nevertheless, body image dissatisfaction may affect non-obese individuals too. Those with a positive body image are more likely to participate in physical activity than those with a negative body image. Individuals who are satisfied with their body image are more likely to possess high self-esteem, confidence, and healthy eating habits. Obesity prevention among the black population is increasingly important. This study sought to examine the perceptions and experiences of British-born Afro-Caribbean male students at a West Yorkshire University in England regarding obesity, body image, and mental health. Twelve participants took part in 45-minute semi-structured interviews. The data was transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic analysis. Results revealed four major themes: "healthy lifestyle monitoring," "body image attitude," "experiences of attempting to maintain weight," and "reasons for weight change." Clinically obese individuals exhibited dissatisfaction with their body image. Depression was found to be strongly related to dissatisfaction with one's body image. Obesity is stigmatized and associated with low self-esteem in many societies in the United Kingdom, which impacts mental health. Future health promotion programs should teach obese individuals who are dissatisfied with their body image to deal with emotions like shame, guilt, and pride. Furthermore, individuals should adopt healthier eating habits and increase their physical activity, which is a broad strategy to reduce the incidence of obesity.

A visual ethnographic study on nurse lecturers' enactment of compassionate care within the adult pre-registration nursing curriculum

BackgroundNurse lecturers make a valuable contribution to developing the future nursing workforce. However, how this is nurtured within nurse education requires further exploration. There is limited research exploring the experiences of nurse lecturers providing compassionate care within the adult pre-registration nursing curriculum. ObjectivesThis study explores how nurse lecturers enact compassionate care within the adult pre-registration nursing curriculum. To elicit shared patterns of behaviours and use creative methods to promote a critical dialogue. MethodA visual ethnographic approach was used to explore nurse lecturers' experiences at a University in England. Using purposive sampling, nine auto-driven photo-elicitation interviews took place, and five participants attended a focus group to develop individual and collaborative concept maps. A thematic approach to data analysis was employed. FindingsFive themes were identified, illustrating compassionate care as the human condition involving appropriate behaviours and competent action. Compassionate care is threaded through the curriculum using different teaching and learning approaches, requiring a culture of shared human relationships. The combination of photographs, maps and descriptions provide a unique perspective of how nurse lecturers nurture and role model compassionate care to their students. ConclusionThere are many ways compassionate care is experienced, enacted and enhanced by nurse lecturers within the adult pre-registration nurse curriculum. The five main themes act as a framework to guide nursing education and nursing practice. Future research should aim to understand better how compassionate care can be nurtured within different fields of nursing.

Financial sustainability in a marketised and partially autonomous environment: the case of small new public universities in England

ABSTRACT In the context of threats to their financial sustainability, this paper uses Resource Dependency Theory to explore the challenges being faced by a sample of 10 small new public universities in England. It discusses the responses being taken and prospects for the future in this segment of the sector. It concludes that some of the most important elements of income and expenditure are also areas where institutions have amongst the lowest levels of autonomy, including tuition fees, staff salaries and pension costs. It suggests that institutions are proactively seeking ways to both adapt their strategy and influence the environment in which they operate, including the introduction of new organisational forms, models for employing staff, the diversification into new programmes and markets, and greater use of domestic and international partnerships.

‘They think it’s trendy to have a disability/mental-illness’: disability, capital and desire in elite education

Research has long demonstrated the exclusion and Othering experienced by young people with disabilities in education. This paper presents findings from an ethnographic study conducted in an ‘elite’ sixth-form college in England, set against the backdrop of a shifting social, political, and cultural landscape, where neo-liberal discourses of dis/ability and healthism—centring on mental health and wellbeing—are becoming further embedded in educational policy. Drawing on theoretical work by Bourdieu and Foucault, we demonstrate how the students in this study appeared able to re-make disability as a liberal intellectual identity marker and use it as a form of capital within the bounded college sub-field. However, we argue that these empowered disabled subjectivities were strongly middle-classed and precarious. The findings have implications through advancing current understandings of young people’s complexifying relationships with disability in education, of enduring inequalities around disability, and how social class is implicated in this.

The Gambia’s Higher Education Reform Requirements: Sub-Systemic Interrogation

The study extracted data from experts, one from each of the higher education systems in The Gambia, Nigeria and Kenya, and two from two universities in England. The data was analysed qualitatively through coding and the identification of themes. These themes are the requirements for higher education reform, extracted through an empirical literature review. Besides other activities and structures, the expert interviews identified the need to establish specialised offices in the identified Gambian institutions to ensure the system's readiness for the reform process. These offices will include research and consultancy, shared financing through loan schemes, alumni engagement, internship and placements, quality assurance and enhancement of staff capacity, among other initiatives.

Utilization of Summative Assessment in Physical Therapy Education to Establish Foundations of Clinical Science Knowledge

Purpose: Doctor of Physical Therapy [DPT] students’ ability to apply, integrate, and synthesize foundations of clinical science knowledge is vital to success in clinical practice. The aim of this case study was to explore summative examination quantification of foundational clinical science knowledge as a benchmark toward competence-based education in the first year of a DPT program. Methods: First year DPT students from a private New England University took the Physical Therapy Foundations of Clinical Science [PT-FCS] exam at the end of the second semester following completion of foundational clinical sciences coursework. The PT-FCS exam is a multiple-choice exam comprised of three clinical science categories: human anatomy, kinesiology, and neuroanatomy. Retrospective analysis of PT-FCS exam scores for 223 students over three cohort years was performed to investigate test reliability by cohort and relationships with first year cumulative GPA and progression in the program. Results: PT-FCS scores were reliable across 3 cohorts: 2019, 2020, 2021 (KR20 = 0.74-0.82). Exam scores showed significant (p = 0.01 two-tailed) moderate correlations with current core course GPA with Pearson Correlation coefficients by individual cohorts (r = .70, .73, and .80) and all cohorts combined (r = .73). Conclusion: A retrospective analysis of three years of data informs validation of the PT-FCS for use as an assessment touchpoint to quantify foundational clinical science knowledge in first-year doctoral physical therapy students. Findings of this first-year learner performance outcome may contribute to development of longitudinal benchmarks for assessing disciplinary specific knowledge of foundational clinical science and to inform educational frameworks necessary for clinical competency in physical therapy education. Ultimate predictive ability, and educational value, of summative testing of foundational clinical science will be explored in future categorical and item level analysis in order move toward more competency-based teaching and learning in physical therapy.

Time to play, time to think: meaningful moments in the forest

ABSTRACT This paper reports on a study carried out by tutors and students on Early Childhood Studies degree courses at a University in England. The research explored perspectives of three to six-year-old children’s outdoor play in Danish forest kindergartens with the aim of troubling and informing approaches to outdoor pedagogy. Inspired by Somerville and Powell’s ‘deep hanging out’ ([Somerville, M., and J. Powell. 2018. “Thinking Posthuman with Mud: And Children of the Anthropocene.” Educational Philosophy and Theory 51 (8): 829–840. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131857.2018.1516138, 1) with data, researchers visited the kindergartens for a full day at a time during annual week-long field visits. This provided opportunities to notice the children’s journeys and possibilities over time. Findings showed that, given time and space to play in the forest, children were able to pursue their interests, engage in extended periods of concentration and thinking while working together as they played and explored with each other, with the educators and with the materiality of their surroundings. Implications for practitioners highlight the need to provide uninterrupted time for children to develop their curiosities and enjoyment of the outdoor environment.

Histopathologic Validation of Stress T1 Mapping in Myocardial Ischemia: Another Step toward Clinical Translation?

Histopathologic Validation of Stress T1 Mapping in Myocardial Ischemia: Another Step toward Clinical Translation?

Improving but not equalising opportunity: the objective and effect of regulating fair access to higher education in England, and their implications for understanding higher education policy

ABSTRACT Since 2006, universities in England that want to charge higher fees to their domestic undergraduates have been required to agree a plan with an access regulator appointed by the government. This article identifies the objective for the regulation as equalising opportunity, then considers its effect, drawing on policy literature, ministerial statements, legislative and regulatory texts, and national data. In doing so, it exposes how the policy objective has been implemented through legislation, regulatory guidance and university practice, and how this has yielded improving but not equalising opportunity. This is due to the limited influence of the powers available to, and guidance issued by, the regulators in a system of competing autonomous universities, which yields stratification based on the entry grades of young people and their social background. The lesson for higher education policy is the imperative for closer alignment between policy objectives, legislation to empower their implementation, approaches taken by regulators and university practice. In competitive systems within which universities have autonomy in relation to their admissions, policies to equalise opportunity require legislation and regulation that is influential enough for universities to prioritise more equitable outcomes ahead of other imperatives.

Midlands Industrialists, Liberal Education and the Founding of the University of Warwick

ABSTRACT The University of Warwick has been subjected to two apparently contradictory critiques. The first, associated with social historian EP Thompson, is that the university had been captured by a cabal of industrialists intending to use its faculties to reproduce capitalistic managers. A second, more general critique of universities in Britain since 1945 is that their elite liberal education in the arts and abstract sciences had little contribution to make to meeting the national economic and social needs for technological ‘manpower’. Neither of these accounts satisfactorily explains the early development at Warwick. An alliance between educators and local Midlands’ industrialists at Warwick developed an education in the virtues of liberal capitalism, reinventing the traditional university education in moral character to face the challenges of the mid-twentieth century. In the midst of the Cold War, only with such an education could students help meet the needs of local and national industry.

‘Basically He’s a Pet, Not a Working Dog’: Theorising What Therapy Dogs Do in the Workplace

This article takes the case of therapy dogs who visit hospitals, care homes, schools and universities in Britain and asks whether we should conceptualise what they are doing as work. Marx defined the capacity to work as what sets humankind apart from other animals, but more recent analysts see similarities between animals and humans in their capacity to work. Animal work is often defined through training and the acquisition of skills; for therapy dogs, however, training is not required, and their skills go unrecognised. Drawing on a study of therapy dog visits to a British university and using a methodology that attends to the experiences of the dogs as well as the human actors, we argue that therapy dogs engage in emotional work and body work and that the concepts of ‘encounter value’ and ‘feeling power’ need to be deployed to theorise the work they are doing.

“Not just go into a field to turn the soil over, they’ve got to understand the science behind it.” using pedagogic content knowledge to uncover teaching practice in agriculture

ABSTRACT This study explores the approach taken to teaching agriculture in further education colleges in England. There is almost no literature that focuses specifically on this group and therefore little is known about the teaching of this specialist subject area. The article begins by providing background both to the FE sector and agriculture. It then considers pedagogic content knowledge and its use as a tool for investigating and understanding practice. The findings from interviews with 17 practitioners involved in teaching agriculture are presented. These focus on beliefs on preparing learners for a career in the sector, the decision-making process when planning sessions and accounts of teaching practice. The findings suggest that there are a number of features that make teaching agriculture distinct from a more general pedagogical approach. These include the impact of context on pedagogical decisions, the value placed on theoretical and practical aspects and proximity to industry through resourcing. It is hoped that making these visible will enable the transfer of knowledge within the teaching community and promote a greater understanding of this area of provision within the further education sector.

Creating Feminist Futures by Imagining Lessons Differently: Using Speculative Fabulation and Poetic Inquiry as Methods to Trouble Classroom Expectations

ABSTRACT This article employs speculative fabulation and poetic inquiry as methods to explore the role of the body and embodied experiences in the classroom. We read ethnographic material from secondary schools in Finland and Further Education colleges in England with Donna Haraway, Karen Barad, Rosi Braidotti and Jane Bennett to trouble the practices and expectations in mainstream classrooms. By fabulating stories we demonstrate how seeing classrooms as sites of intra-action allows us as educators to see the relationships between humans and non-humans differently. By turning ethnographic data into poems we create shared experiences of lessons, perhaps invoking shared feelings and memories from our past. Above all, we strive towards a feminist future that challenges the prevailing mind/body dualism in the classroom and calls for better understanding of the diverse needs of our students by asking what if things were done differently in our mainstream classrooms?

The Prevalence of Depression and its Predictors among International Postgraduate Students Studying Public Health at a UK University

Objective: This study examined the prevalence and existing predictors of depression in international postgraduate public health students at a university in England. Material and Methods: It was carried out as a descriptive cross-sectional survey. A total of 153 students enrolled in MSc in public health and community well-being and MPH in global public health courses were recruited using a convenience sampling technique. The Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression 10-Item Scale (CES-D-10) and Chi-squared tests were utilized to assess the prevalence of depression and the association of encountered challenges with depressive symptoms, respectively. Outcomes: The prevalence of depression was 34.6% in this study. A link was found between depressive symptoms and several socio-demographic factors such as ethnicity, source of funding, and accommodation status in the United Kingdom. There was also a significant association between depression and all general problems faced by international students except housing. Finally, of all the challenges faced at the university, communicating with lecturers was the only one associated with this disorder. Conclusion: This study highlighted the important predictors of depression among international public health students, which reflect the need for a more collaborative strategy pursued by all teams within the university to compact this crisis.