A Continuing Role For Academics: The Governance of UK Universities in the Post–Dearing Era

The governance of higher education has become a recognised cause for concern. Many academics lament the demise of an easy collegiality in the face of the rise of a harder managerialism that robs them of control. But outsiders to the system, concerned about the efficiency and effectiveness of higher education management, are critical of the extent to which academics seem all too eager and able to block changes that might lead to universities better addressing the needs of society.
This paper rejects the simple nostrums of both those who hark back to a collegial golden age and those who make the case for a brave managerial future. It argues that universities that are capable of real strategic change in response to challenge are capable of transcending the dichotomy between collegiality and managerialism as modes of organisation. In these successful universities, academics must be involved and prepared to lead, but they must also work in partnership with administrators, in institutions that will be strong to the extent that there is a shared vision that makes the institution rather more than just the sum of warring departments.     

Young people on the margins: In need of more choices and more chances in twenty‐first century Scotland

The aim of this study was to find out more about the lives of young people in the category ‘not in education, employment or training’ (NEET). We worked intensively with 26 young people in four smaller groups, spending three days with each group. During our time with them we engaged in a variety of creative and artistic activities designed to help them to construct accounts of their lives for us with the purpose of gaining an understanding of what it was like to be NEET. Three significant issues that emerged from these life stories are discussed in this paper. These are the problematic nature of the discourse of NEET sub‐groups; the challenges of school‐exclusion policies and practices; and the myth of low aspirations.     

The Influence of Social Background on Application and Entry to Higher Education in Scotland: a Multi‐Level Analysis

This paper assesses the influence of social background on application and entry to higher education among Scottish school leavers using multi‐level modelling. The context for the study is long‐standing policy interest in widening access to higher education for under‐represented groups. The analysis indicates that those from less advantaged backgrounds are disadvantaged at three stages in the process of entry to higher education: qualification, application and entry. The results support the need for explanations and interventions encompassing both individual and structural levels. Government initiatives aimed at widening access are discussed in light of the findings.     

“We Feel Connected… and Like We Belong”: A Parent-Led,Staff-Supported Model of Family Engagement in Early Childhood

Early Childhood Education Journal - Although researchers and practitioners have acknowledged that family engagement in children’s schooling occurs in many forms, most studies and program...     

学制改革与地方纷争:1920年代安徽实施“新学制”研究

1923年,安徽教育厅长江暐召开实施新学制讨论会,在安徽推行新学制.然而,根深蒂固的地方主义让安徽的新学制改革大打折扣.在安徽的新学制改革中,由于经费短缺,高级中学发展明显滞后,这直接导致三年后初中生升学的困难.而此时,筹办安徽大学,将高中改办预科的动议,又引发了中学“三三制”与“四二制”的争议.新学制改革的困难与阻力,以及自由与弹性,在安徽均得到了淋漓尽致的体现.     

A Training Performance Indicator Model For Monitoring the Effectiveness of High–Risk Training: Report of a Study in Progress

High–risk operations, including the nation's commercial nuclear power industry, are devoting extensive resources and leadership to improve human performance through training. The evaluation of the effectiveness of this training is the focus of on–going research. This report summarizes the methodology of a research study in progress at one nuclear utility and de scribes a training performance indicator model that was developed during the study. The model organizes the types of performance indicators currently thought to be worthwhile in monitoring training effectiveness. The model contains twelve categories of indicators. Each category is described and illustrated in this report.