Post-compulsory Education Research Articles

Post-compulsory education of children and household asset allocation

We investigate the impact of Post-compulsory Education (PCE) on household asset allocation in this paper. As an investment in children's development, families face a trade-off between PCE and other assets. Based on the data from six representative rounds of the China Household Finance Survey (CHFS), we conduct extensive empirical analyses and find that households with children in the PCE stage, such as senior high schools or universities, exhibit lower proportions of illiquid assets and high-risk assets. We further show that liquidity constraints and expectations of future income are two basic mechanisms through which PCE affects household asset allocation, and the former is relatively stronger. In the heterogeneity analyses, we find that the impact of PCE on family asset allocation is more pronounced in families where parents have educational attainment below the university degree, in families with male children, in rural households, and in families that value education.

Blending belonging

The disruption caused by the Covid pandemic to expectations of and assumptions surrounding already disputed concepts such as engagement and participation within the student journey throughout tertiary education remains wicked in its unruliness. As such, our ability as practitioners to anticipate and manage students’ (and our own) expectations in both physical and virtual learning spaces is dynamic and fragile. However, the in-between space created by the tension of the desire to nurture a new normal and avoid The Snapback (Bryant, 2021), gives rise not only to uncertainty, but scope to innovate for enhancement. This case study will share reflections on using an e-portfolio assessment to address and consolidate the mooted four foundations of belonging in HE (Wonkhe and Pearson, 2022); connection, inclusion, support, and autonomy. The paper will consider the implications of facilitating and promoting these dimensions in the context of supporting an ever-more heterogeneous student population within tertiary education, for whom recent experiences of formal, post-compulsory education may have been disjointed or interrupted. The e-portfolio (using Pebblepad) supports engagement within the case study university’s embedded Academic, Professional and Personal Development curriculum framework, which has been designed to support learners with diverse and rich prior experiences of learning and, using an academic literacies (Lea & Street, 2006) based ethos, facilitate the extrapolation of existing competences and confidence to the academic domain.

Consciousness education: Why an enquiry into consciousness is an educational and spiritual imperative

ABSTRACT In this paper, we present a case for including consciousness studies within the educational curriculum from early years through to postcompulsory education. We contend that its current exclusion is due to the deep embeddedness in society of the materialist assumption that the brain produces consciousness. Hence, as a subject of study, consciousness is considered only of relevance to neuroscientists. Informed by this same assumption, notions of spirituality are also seen to be the product of neuronal interactions, and are ultimately illusory, rather than indicating the existence of a different kind of reality. However, there is no incontrovertible evidence to support this assumption, which is increasingly being questioned by leading-edge scientists, spiritual thinkers, and philosophers. Supported by findings from quantum physics, and from the wisdom of indigenous knowledges, there is a growing interest in alternative theories, such as the idea that consciousness may be primary, and matter may be an emergent property of consciousness. We examine arguments for these radically different perspectives, and how they inform, and are informed by, different worldviews. We argue that young people need to be made aware of those alternative worldviews so that they can make informed choices about who they are as spiritual beings.

Educational and employment for adults with a history of migration and foster care in Finland

Abstract Several studies document the adverse educational prospects for both immigrant-origin as well as out of home placed children and youth. Few studies have examined the educational and employment outcomes of migrant-origin young adults with a history of out-of-home care (OHC), which is the aim of our study. Methods. We studied all subjects born in 1976 to 1995 abroad and immigrated to Finland as underage persons prior to 2010 (N = 20 037), comparing them to children born in Finland to foreign born parents (N = 3198) and a matched random sample of host population (N = 23 187) according to register data 1991 to 2015. We formed OHC alumni and non-OHC alumni groups among refugee-origin born abroad and in Finland, non-refugee-origin born abroad and in Finland as well as native Finns group. Logistic regression analysis was used in which age of the child in the first placement, number of placements and the type of the first place were adjusted. Results.Minors both with refugee and non-refugee background born in Finland were more likely than native Finns to be placed in OHC. A history of OHC predicted less chance of degrees completed and being employed compared to non-OHC peers in all study groups. Refugee background born abroad having history in OHC had lower educational and employment outcomes as young adults compared to other OHC groups. Education made difference since immigrant background having OHC history and post-compulsory degree had two times higher likelihood of being employed. The first OHC during teenage years decreased odds for post-compulsory education but increased odds for employment. Multiple placements in OHC decreased a youth’s chances of completing degrees and employment Key messages • Education made difference since persons with OHC history and degrees done had two times higher likelihood of being employed. • Refugee origin OHC alumni were in the most vulnerable position with less degrees and less employment, and thus they need any support in their studies.

From Learning Ecologies to a Social Ecosystem Model for Learning and Skills

The growing relevance of socio-ecological systems (SESs) thinking reflects both the challenges of an anthropogenic poly crisis and attempts to understand the complexities of societal development in an era of globalisation. The article begins by suggesting there are two related variants of SES thinking—relationships between the natural and human worlds (Variant 1) and whole social and human system analysis using metaphorical transfer and theorisation of natural ecological principles (Variant 2). This article elaborates Variant 2 through the development a social ecosystem model (SEM) applied to post-compulsory education and skills development. An exploration of the SEM is conducted through a review of the literatures on ‘Learning Ecologies’ to assess the strengths and limitations of this human ecological approach. Perceived limitations are addressed by the development of the SEM that adds a political economy dimension to the learning ecological model, which is then applied to the field of learning and skills in the English context in support of an inclusive and place-based approach to vocational education and training (VET). The article concludes by suggesting that the SEM can be further expanded by its application to transitioning to more sustainable futures, being developed by scholars of indigenous communities and populations of the Global South, that arguably brings Variant 2 of SESs thinking closer to Variant 1.

Cracking the code: exploring student attitudes towards coding in secondary education

ABSTRACT Digital skills are beneficial for young people and society, but some individuals, particularly girls, are less likely to choose computing post-compulsory education. Coding is a crucial skill in the school computing curriculum. The authors collected survey data from 4983 secondary-school students (ages 11–16) as well as conducted exploratory factor analysis and created multivariable logistic regression models. Their findings revealed that high coding attitudes were associated with various factors, including student experience in computing lessons, teacher and parent support, perceptions of computer scientists, computing at home and gender. These findings have implications for classroom practice and curriculum design, highlighting the importance of addressing barriers and fostering positive coding attitudes among all students. The authors’ findings highlight the need to reconsider the coding content within the computing curriculum in England, as certain groups of young people, including girls, will continue to be less well represented in this subject.

What is meant by the term tertiary education? Past developments and recent activity

ABSTRACT The term tertiary education has gained prominence in recent policy debates in the UK [Morgan (2023). “Labour ‘would review whole landscape’ of tertiary education.” Times Higher Education, 28 November. https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/labour-would-review-whole-landscape-tertiary-education]. This paper presents findings from a review of the use of the term in academic and policy papers in the UK over the last 80 years. The analysis reveals the role of international organisations in defining this term initially as a synonym for post-compulsory education before using it as a statistical measure which became a normative guide for many member states. More recently, the term tertiary education has been used as a descriptor of systems of educational governance and by the World Bank for specific systems of organisation. Using these definitions as a guide, the review demonstrates differences in government policy in the four nations of the United Kingdom: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Here there is evidence of periodic and partial policy change, but little sustained full engagement with this agenda. The review suggests that if future tertiary education policy initiatives are introduced they should cover all potential learners once they have left the compulsory phase of education and should be advanced by regional bodies with involvement from learners, employers and community representatives allocating funds from a single tertiary education budget.

Rethinking student engagement for ‘hyflex’ teaching and learning in post-compulsory settings: acknowledging flexibility and agency needed for unplanned events

ABSTRACT Emergency remote delivery (ERD) employed by post-compulsory education providers during COVID-19 has left an enduring legacy. In particular, hyflex (simultaneous online and in-person delivery) teaching and learning (HTL) has the potential to offer a choice of mode and flexibility, and open new ways of thinking about adult student engagement. To explore whether existing ideas about student engagement are ‘fit for purpose’ for HTL, we conducted a mixed-methods study, using post-course online surveys (n = 110) and semi-structured interviews with students (n = 10) engaged in undergraduate and postgraduate courses in seven disciplinary areas in a large metropolitan university in Australia. Kahu and Nelson’s student engagement framework, and the educational interface in particular, guided our analysis. Our findings illustrate the ways that hyflex accommodates unplanned crises and personal challenges to provide flexible and equitable access to learning, as well as fostering aspects of the educational interface: self-efficacy, emotions, wellbeing, and belonging. Tertiary and adult education providers should build on such experiential learnings gained since the pandemic by continuing to invest in resources to support hyflex teaching as an essential feature of students and staff being able to balance the competing demands of life and study/work, especially in the context of unplanned events.

Teacher identity and pedagogy: strategies and responses of teacher educators during the covid-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT This small-scale qualitative research project is located within post-compulsory education in England and explores some of the strategies and responses employed by three initial teacher educators to carry out their professional role while responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. The central argument is that teacher identity was significant as a pedagogical tool to respond to the pandemic. Therefore, more consideration should be given to the interconnectedness of who I am, what I do and why I do it, when pedagogical responses are needed to address emergent issues. The first part of the paper paints a picture of the available literature related to learning during covid-19, followed by an articulation of the research design. The second part discusses the relationship between identity and pedagogy, which is the central theme constructed from the data gathered from the research participants. It closes with a reflection about how educators as a collective have shown resilience and creative ways to deal with challenges, thus adding new layers of their identity, and this can be pedagogically powerful.

Education, work and social mobility in Britain’s former coalfield communities: reflections from an oral history project

ABSTRACT This paper draws on an oral history project which focuses on former coalminers’ experiences of education and training. It presents the stories of five participants, all of whom undertook significant programmes of post-compulsory education during or immediately after leaving the coal industry and achieved a degree of social mobility over the course of their working lives. The paper compares and contrasts their experiences with those which now exist in Britain’s former coalmining communities which, it is argued, have been substantively attenuated over time, especially for young men. Whilst it is evident that individual choice and motivation can play an important role in helping (or hindering) young people’s journeys through education and employment, the central argument of the paper is that individual labour market success lies at the intersection of structure and agency – although the data presented also demonstrate the extent to which opportunities available to young men in the former coalfields have been diminished by de-industrialisation.

Do organisation career support programs draw on career guidance practices? A reading of career support programs for students and families of refugee and new migrant backgrounds

Accessing high-quality career development to support successful transitions into post-compulsory education and employment can be a challenge for newly arrived students of refugee and migrant backgrounds. In Australia, not-for-profit organisations provide career guidance to students within schools that enrol refugee and migrant families. Through programs, not-for-profit organisations can provide mentoring, support and other career services. This research explores the marketing materials of organisation-provided career guidance programs based in Australian secondary schools. A close textual reading of how the programs engage with the discipline and practices of career guidance reveal a deficit framing of students and their families, with limited focus on promoting agency across programs. In light of the increasing resettlement of refugees and migrants in Australia, these findings highlight a need to balance social justice principles with greater engagement with the discipline of career education when enacting career interventions with vulnerable groups.

Disrupting binary thinking about sanctuary initiatives in the UK and Australia: insights from a Derridean analysis of hostipitality

ABSTRACT Despite their geographical distance, the UK and Australia share proximity with their hostile immigration policies and managed migration practices, characterised by inhumanity under the guise of deterrence. People Seeking Asylum (PSA) who seek sanctuary typically endure protracted temporariness, which denies them access to state resources and imposes limitations on access to post-compulsory education. Despite state-endorsed exclusion, universities in both countries have developed approaches to circumventing immigration barriers by offering access via scholarships. The case of PSA, therefore, offers insights into the ways that Derrida’s notion of ‘hostipitality’ – a conceptualisation of the tangled binary of hospitality and hostility – operates in higher education. In this article, we explore the types of hospitality that universities across the UK and Australia have invited PSA to cross the threshold into university study and transcend barriers imposed at the national level, and question how these modes of ‘welcome’ work to counter sector and state-level apparatus of rejection or reinforce existing barriers. We construct our argument around the disruption of three key binaries: host/stranger; settled/unsettled immigration status; and deserving/undeserving migrant. In doing so, we navigate the complexity of the conditions shaping access and welcome as forms of sanctuary within universities.

Characterizing the schooling cycle

This paper examines the cyclical dynamics of school participation decision, using data for 16-24-year-olds attending full-time post-compulsory education in the UK in the period from 1995Q1 to 2019Q4. We find evidence of a highly persistent education cycle, largely explained by the business cycle. Importantly, the response of school participation to the business cycle is time-dependent – counter-cyclical in the period around the Great Financial Crisis and pro-cyclical in other years. We propose two channels as predictors of the cyclicality of schooling – the ability-to-pay for further education and the opportunity-cost of spending time in education rather than at work. We also show that the results are heterogeneous by gender, with female choices being more responsive to changes in aggregate macroeconomic conditions than male choices. Timely policy interventions using regular education as a counter-cyclical tool can help prevent persistent or permanent unemployment in the aftermath of a crisis.

An Institutional Analysis of Local Lifelong Learning Approaches to Early School Leaving in Italy and Spain

In this paper, we will analyze how a few initial vocational education and training (VET) schools have elaborated wide-ranging responses to early leaving from education and training in Liguria (Italy) and Catalonia (Spain). In contrast with many members of the EU and the OECD, the prevailing institutional arrangements in these two countries hardly support disadvantaged youths to catch up with basic academic performance and find an appealing pathway between compulsory and post-compulsory education. Despite this bias of official policies, we argue that some initial VET schools manage to navigate the interface between social structure and agency and accommodate the aspirations of disadvantaged students by involving local stakeholders and shaping school time organization in a particular way.

Roma students’ experiences: practices contributing to participation in post-compulsory education

ABSTRACT Background It is widely recognised internationally that participation in higher education is likely to lead to increased opportunities and resources. However, only a minority of learners from Roma backgrounds continue into post-compulsory education. As important research into inclusion continues, more attention must be paid to the identification of practices that can help break down barriers and support the participation of Roma students in post-compulsory education. Purpose The research sought to gain insight into particular factors influencing the decision-making processes of three students from Roma backgrounds who chose to pursue an academic pathway. Method The setting for this qualitative study was a school in Spain located in a socioeconomically disadvantaged and predominantly Roma neighbourhood whose students had never previously participated in pre-university studies (courses preparing students for university entrance). In-depth interviews were conducted with three Roma students in their last year of compulsory education who were about to move on to pre-university studies, as well as with three significant adults: a Roma mother, a Roma role model working at the school, and the school principal. Findings The analysis of participants’ narratives suggested that, according to their views, the implementation of a set of successful educational actions involving high expectations, the involvement of Roma families, the influence of positive Roma role models and engagement with dialogic interactions contributed to the continuation of these three Roma students on a trajectory towards post-compulsory education. Conclusions The study highlights some noteworthy factors that can be involved in transforming a context from one where access to university is not considered to be an option and towards a new one in which university becomes a real choice.

Educational and occupational outcomes in Swedish children treated for sarcomas: A nationwide registry-based study.

Many children treated for cancer experience a negative impact on their academic performance; however, most studies of children treated for sarcomas have not investigated academic performance. Our aim was to explore how Swedish children treated for sarcomas perform academically, as well as how they adjust to life afterwards. We compared 167 pediatric sarcoma survivors with 776 matched, non-sibling controls without a history of cancer, in a retrospective cohort study using data from nationwide registries. Primary outcomes were grades at the end of compulsory education, high school eligibility, post-compulsory education (i.e., education after school Year 9), employment, and sickness or activity compensation. Pediatric sarcoma survivors were more likely to be ineligible for high school (odds ratio [OR] 1.76; p=.045) and more likely to fail Swedish (OR 2.12; p=.046), mathematics (OR 2.27; p=.011), and/or physical education (OR 2.24; p=.004), compared with controls. Survivors were less likely to have been employed (OR 0.58; p=.027) and received sickness or activity compensation more often (OR 2.49; p=.008) compared with controls. Pediatric sarcoma survivors have poorer academic performance compared to peers without cancer in multiple school subjects. Survivors seem to catch up during post-compulsory education, but might struggle to find employment.

Diversity and inclusion in UK Higher Education: staff perspectives on institutional representations and their reality

ABSTRACT This paper examines staff perspectives on institutional representations of a range of areas of diversity and inclusion in a key post-compulsory education sector: that of UK Higher Education (HE). The paper focuses on comparing representational statements made by institutions with the reality of their lived experiences as perceived by staff. The paper first reviews literature around key issues of promoting and progressing in these areas, and how these areas are represented by institutions and the sector as a whole. It presents and discusses data from a survey (n = 300) to show strong agreement with representational statements as mirroring those of institutions, yet statistically significant differences between representations and the reality of lived experiences, particularly in relation to the lived experiences of staff. These data are discussed in the light of progress made by institutions, and the challenges faced in translating representations into real lived experience. Suggestions for institutions and policy makers are made to help better align reality with these representations in the UK Higher Education sector and, theoretically, for post-compulsory education sectors elsewhere.

Post-16 education and labour market activities, pathways and outcomes (LEO)

ObjectivesThis is descriptive analysis of post-16 education and labour market activities, pathways and outcomes based on different socioeconomic, demographic and education factors. This research uses powerful administrative data from England to carry out analysis of over 3.6 million individuals doing their General Certificate of Secondary Education exams (GCSEs) between 2002 and 2007.
 MethodEducation records and combined with tax and social security records (from the National Pupil Database). Longitudinal Education Outcomes (LEO) data allowing these individuals to be tracked in their post compulsory education over a 10-15 year period. The analysis makes comparisons using of a range of background characteristics including socioeconomic status, special educational needs (SEN) status, gender, ethnicity, first language and location (region). It also observes how these differ for different education levels, doing comparisons of: 1) graduates and non-graduates and 2) non-graduates achieving level 3 or above and level 2 or below.
 ResultsIt finds that Post 16 (i.e. compulsory in England) Education and labour market pathways are incredibly diverse and they differ significantly based on individual characteristics. Higher levels of education lead to better labour market outcomes and most sub-groups achieving a higher education level leads to better labour market outcomes than their comparators (with different characteristics). For example, there are higher proportions of graduates that were Free School Meals eligible (a proxy for lower socioeconomic status) in employment and lower proportions claiming benefits than non-Free School Meals (FSM) eligible non-graduates, 15 years after their GCSEs (63 percent versus 58 percent and five versus nine percent respectively). Of those in employment, the FSM eligible graduates earn around £5,000 more per year than non-FSM eligible non-graduates and their earnings potential seem to have different trajectories.
 ConclusionThere are some interesting and insightful findings, but it should be noted that findings are descriptive. It is recommended that in depth, technical analysis is undertaken to explored further.

Walking the line: Does crossing a high stakes exam threshold matter for labour market outcomes?

ObjectivesThis paper offers new insight into the link between success in high stakes exams and subsequent education and labour market outcomes. It is the first study to look holistically at the impact of crossing an important high stakes threshold on both academic and vocational education choices and ultimately labour market outcomes.
 MethodIt does so by comparing those either side of a formerly important threshold in the English education system at the end of compulsory schooling (achieving five general certificate of secondary education A* to C passes) which was commonly regarded as the minimum benchmark for continuing into post-compulsory education.
 ResultsI find that crossing this threshold led to an 6.3-6.7 percentage point increase in the proportion of men and women (respectively) going on to take academic qualifications, with little change in the proportion taking vocational qualifications, leading to a net increase in those staying on after compulsory schooling. Women's daily earnings in 2017-18 (11-13 years after leaving compulsory schooling) were 3.1 percentage points higher for those just crossing the threshold, but men's early labour market outcomes were unchanged.
 ConclusionThe results for men can be explained by low returns to academic qualifications for marginal learners. The findings for women do not disappear after accounting for subsequent education choices, suggesting that crossing the threshold may play a signalling role for employers as well as education institutions.

The Heterogeneous Effect of Post-Compulsory Education on Subjective Well-Being: Evidence Based on Marginal Treatment Effect

The Heterogeneous Effect of Post-Compulsory Education on Subjective Well-Being: Evidence Based on Marginal Treatment Effect