Widening Participation In Education Research Articles

Lessons for career guidance from return-on-investment analyses in complex education-related fields

ABSTRACT Return on investment (ROI) has become part of the policymaking toolkit, particularly pertinent for activities like school-based career guidance deemed optional by some policymakers. There are institutions supporting ideal ROI methods alongside an academic critique, but little research on how ROI has been applied in practice in a guidance setting. In this systematic review, we document 32 ROI studies across nine countries that address either school-based guidance or one of three congruent fields: widening participation in education, behaviour in schools and adult career guidance. We find the corpus highly heterogenous in methods and quality, leading to problems in comparability. We argue for a pragmatic approach to improving consistency and the importance of policymakers’ capacity for critically reading ROI studies.

The Impact of School Operational Assistance Program Implementation at School Level on Senior Secondary Education Enrollment by Households: Evidence from Indonesia in 2007 and 2014

Education is recognized worldwide as one of the key elements in developing the human capital of a nation for a prosperous future. Given an almost universal enrollment in primary education, many governments have shifted their focus on students’ motivation to continue to and finish their secondary education. The government of Indonesia has made extensive efforts in widening participation in education. With a growing budget for educational expenditure, various government programs have been implemented to assist students in their learning. One such program is the School Operational Assistance Program (BOS), which has been running for two decades. This paper reports on a study aimed to investigate the impact of the implementation of BOS at a school level on senior secondary school enrollment by households using data obtained from the Indonesia Family Life Survey (IFLS) recorded in 2007 and 2014. By using Propensity Score Matching (PSM), it was found that students whose schools received BOS during their primary education years were more likely to continue their education to senior secondary education than those whose schools did not receive BOS. This shows that a school subsidy could encourage students to continue their education, particularly for students coming from poorer households.

Children in Out of Home Care: Should we give them a Fair Go?

This paper identifies a sizeable group of vulnerable children who suffer discrimination and under-achievement on a daily basis in Australia, with particular attention to NSW out-of-home care (OOHC) practices. The purpose of the paper is to highlight the gaps in services specifically relating to the education of children in OOHC, care leavers and young carers. The paper identifies the extent of the issue, the ways that OOHC children suffer discrimination and possible solutions. As OOHC children are not a specific equity group targeted for support by governments, their identity, numbers, problems and issues are not recorded or singled out for specialist support. The paper recognises that further research is required, but offers some ways forward giving examples of widening participation in education. However, it comes to the conclusion that OOHC children are not given a “Fair go”.

‘Working-Class' Education: Notions of Widening Participation in the Nineteenth and Twenty-First Centuries

This paper argues that working-class widening participation in education is not necessarily new. While it can be argued that it was established in the late twentieth century as a concept and government strategy, aspects of its origins can be traced back to movements such as the mechanics' institute movement, first established by the 1850s. Such developments provide some evidence of working-class individuals accessing general, vocational, elementary, and even higher education which would otherwise have been denied to them. However, what this paper argues is that, whilst there were some comparable features between the two centuries, others reveal a policy environment and discourse in the twenty-first century that serves to maintain the position of working-class individuals, rather than supporting social mobility. Adult, informal and vocational courses at various levels can provide alternative routes to that of higher education. It also provides an example of how awareness of historical developments can be illuminating of today's policy discourse.

The mental health of university students in the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT There are increasing concerns globally about the mental health of students. In the UK, the actual incidence of mental disturbance is unknown, although university counselling services report increased referrals. This study assesses the levels of mental illness in undergraduate students to examine whether widening participation in education has resulted in increases as hypothesised by the UK Royal College of Psychiatrists. Patterns of disturbance across years are compared to identify where problems arise. Students (N=1197) completed the General Health Questionnaire-28 either on the first day at university or midway through the academic year for first, second and third year students. Rates of mental illness in students equalled those of the general population but only 5.1% were currently receiving treatment. Second year students reported the most significant increases in psychiatric symptoms. Factors contributing to the problem are discussed.

Room for improvement? The impact of compulsory professional development for teachers in England’s further education sector

After years of neglect, the New Labour government has identified the further education (FE) sector in England as being the crucial means to achieve two policies at the centre of their project: social justice through widening participation in education and enhancing the skills of the nation’s workforce to compete in a globalised economy. This has led to FE and the staff who work there being more and more closely scrutinised and directed by the government, and from September 2007 teachers in FE colleges in England are required to participate annually in at least 30 hours of continuing professional development (CPD) in order to maintain their qualified status. This and many of the other government initiatives are associated with restrictive and impoverished notions of professionalism, but the sanctioning of CPD chosen and recorded by the staff themselves, rather than their employers, may allow room for a more meaningful and autonomous professionalism to evolve.

E-Learning and the Digital Divide: Perpetuating Cultural and Socio-Economic Elitism in Higher Education

Education is often seen as a route to full participation in society, and widening participation in education and lifelong learning as a way of including those who are currently excluded from many of the benefits of society. The use of learning technology (e-learning) is perceived by national governments, the European Union (EU), and academic institutions as a means of widening participation in higher education by enabling participation by nontraditional students. E-learning is perceived as lowering barriers of time and place to enable nontraditional students to attend campus-based education while accessing resources at a time and place of their choosing. Yet, there is dissonance between the espoused belief of governments the EU and academic institutions, in e-learning as a means of widening participation, and the reality of e-learning implementation. The digital divide refers to the gap between those who have access to the information technology, and those who do not. This research finds that the digital divide is not adequately addressed by higher education institutions, with some students financially unable to afford technology and broadband access, others lack the skills to engage with learning technology, and some are culturally less able to benefit from technological enrichment. It also finds gender and generational differences disenfranchising some students. In order to address this situation it will be necessary to first acknowledge that the problem exists.

Access Courses and Students from Minority Ethnic Backgrounds

This article describes a study of the uptake of places on ‘access’ to higher education courses in Scottish further education (FE) colleges by students from minority ethnic backgrounds. Colleges surveyed recruited access students from minority ethnic backgrounds in close approximation to the proportions attracted to FE in general, despite the commitment to prioritise under‐represented groups, including students from minority ethnic communities. The study found a general acceptance of the principle of positive action by colleges, but little evidence of strategies likely to prove effective. It is suggested that the government's agenda for widening participation in education can only be accomplished when the FE sector recognises ethnicity as an important issue.