On the making and taking of professionalism in the further education workplace

This paper examines the changing nature of professional practice in English further education. At a time when neo‐liberal reform has significantly impacted on this under‐researched and over‐market‐tested sector, little is known about who its practitioners are and how they construct meaning in their work. Sociological interest in the field has tended to focus on further education practitioners as either the subjects of market and managerial reform or as creative agents operating within the contradictions of audit and inspection cultures. In challenging such dualism, which is reflective of wider sociological thinking, the paper examines the ways in which agency and structure combine to produce a more transformative conception of the further education professional. The approach contrasts with a prevailing policy discourse that seeks to re‐professionalise and modernise further education practice without interrogating either the terms of its professionalism or the neo‐liberal practices in which it resides.     

A European Context and Framework for Business Education

Higher education in further education colleges has a long history and has expanded in recent years. However, higher education in further education colleges is often treated as being unproblematic. This paper rejects the argument that higher education is simply a level of study, noting that it is a contested concept. As such, the paper seeks to establish a robust definition of just what higher education is. It recognises that the higher education sector is characterised by diversity but argues that, in spite of the differences that exist between higher education institutions, there are certain issues relating to the further education sector that mean that higher education in further education colleges is likely to differ from that in higher education institutions. The paper considers that New Public Management reinforces these differences and, when taken alongside recruitment problems within the further education sector, questions whether or not the development of higher education in further education colleges should be welcomed.     

Primary school leadership in England: performativity and matters of professionalism

This article presents interview data from a study involving nine primary school leaders. Five are leaders of local authority schools while four are leaders of schools within a large academy chain. The article examines their perspectives about the current regimes of performativity in the English education context and, in particular, the accountability demands of Ofsted. Mindful of contemporary concerns about the tensions between performativity and professionalism in education, the analysis highlights the different ways in which each group responds to external accountability demands. The article illustrates how investments in traditional and entrepreneurial professionalism continue to impact on how the current demands of performativity are understood. It highlights the significance of conceptualising educator professionalism beyond dichotomies that idealise the former at the expense of the latter and the importance of an ongoing critical focus on the ways in which professionalism is currently being articulated in schools.     

Liberal studies and critical pedagogy in further education colleges: ‘where their eyes would be opened’ (sometimes)

This paper revisits the liberal studies movement, a significant feature of the English further education (FE) sector from the 1950s until the beginning of the 1980s. Its central argument is that liberal and general studies (LS/GS) and similar provision offered a vehicle where, at least in some circumstances, certain politically-motivated FE teachers were able to engage in forms of mutual, dialogic teaching and learning which can be conceptualised as critical pedagogy—or at least as close to critical pedagogy as can be achieved within the formal education system in a nation such as England. The paper draws on interviews with former FE lecturers who taught various forms of liberal studies to vocational students in FE colleges across England during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. Whilst it is recognised that LS/GS was always contested terrain, data presented in this paper provide evidence to suggest that the spirit of critical pedagogy existed amongst a certain strand within the liberal studies movement, at least for a time—even if not all learners wished to be emancipated by their studies.     

英国继续教育专业化之管窥

英国继续教育的专业精神是一个不断变化的概念。在继续教育学院系统内,逐渐产生了多重专业精神的对立与矛盾,如何从冲突走向融合,是英国继续教育实现其整体目标的必然选择。     

‘Bowing from the heart’: An investigation into discourses of professionalism and the work of caring for students in further education

Since their incorporation in 1993, further education (FE) colleges in England have been responsible for their own staffing and, faced with funding constraints as well as recruitment and retention targets, some have introduced a new category of staff referred to here as ‘learning support workers’ (LSWs). Though their employment conditions and specific duties vary considerably, LSWs' work often includes providing individual care for students. In this small‐scale study, using semi‐structured interviews, the perceptions of some teachers and LSWs about the nature of their relationships with each other and with students are investigated. The study is set broadly in the context of debates about the impact of public sector reform on FE colleges and teachers. A discourse analysis approach is adopted in discussion of the data. The authors conclude that although they are differently positioned in relation to traditional discourses of professionalism, both teachers and LSWs are perceived to be carrying out what Hochschild termed ‘emotional labour’. The contradictory nature of emotional labour is also highlighted. Some of the implications of employing a new group of workers in FE are discussed.     

Managing NVQs in the further and higher education sector ten years after their introduction

This paper examines the management of NVQs by colleges of further and higher education ten years after their initial introduction to colleges in Northern Ireland. In-depth interviews were carried out with middle and senior college management. The interview protocol was developed to obtain contemporary insights into NVQ management in the further and higher education sector. The findings report a positive experience at management level and the benefits of working in collaboration with employers, but frustrations remain at the pace of progress during this period. The study also shows that due to this pace and the limited level of development during the early part of the past decade of NVQ delivery, more work remains to improve the working relationships between colleges and employers at all levels of NVQ delivery. It also provides a foundation upon which to monitor developments periodically as NVQs have now become fully embedded within the further and higher education sector.     

论新闻专业主义教育的现实意义

从社会政治、传媒经济、媒介生态以及新闻学教育的现状等四个维度来看,新闻专业主义教育对于新闻媒体和社会发展都具有很强的现实意义。作为新闻业后备人才的培养基地,今天中国的新闻学教育存在的一大问题便在于新闻专业主义理念的缺失,因此强化新闻专业主义理念、提升新闻专业主义教育在新闻学教育中的地位应当成为中国高校新闻学教育改革的基本方向。     

Gender and management in further education in Scotland: an agenda for research

Research on gender and education is somewhat limited in Scotland, and research that explores the further education sector from a gender perspective is particularly lacking. This paper argues for such work, and underlines its importance given the prominence of FE in the Scottish policy context as a key contributor to the knowledge economy and lifelong learning agendas of the Scottish parliament. The argument is also made that research on gender—including masculinities—may have particular salience in Scotland because of specific cultural assumptions and practices that inhibit the recognition of women in management. The paper reports on a small pilot study of senior women managers in the further education sector in Scotland, and draws on their experiences to advocate further research that is attentive to the gendered nature of organizations and the interrelationship of masculinities and managerialism.     

Further education in England: the new localism,systems theory and governance

The paper explores the changing forms of governance currently being applied to the English further education sector – changes that emphasise the importance of locality. The paper sets the sector within its socio‐economic and policy context, examining current policy changes that intend to alter the way in which the sector is managed. It relates these changes to their contextual location and to a set of conceptual notions that derive from a particular understanding of systems theory and what has been described as the new localism. It concludes that whilst these changing forms of governance are in continuity with earlier policies that had a regional dimension, they remain set on the terrain of performativity and new public sector management. Nevertheless, there remains a residual potential to develop more democratic forms of engagement in these changes.     

从师范课程改革看台湾小学教师培养思想的调整

小学教师专业化已成为世界教师教育的共同发展趋势。从台湾几所师范学院课程改革可以看出台湾小学教师培养思想的调整趋向：(1)构建开放性、发展性的教师教育体系；(2)师范性与学术性相统一，促进小学教师专业发展。     

Leadership and environmental assessment in further education

This paper examines management reaction to strategic change in organizations based on the findings from a study of management responses to environmental change in further education. The paper sets out a number of propositions about the key factors required for successful strategic change in a public sector organization based on a national survey of colleges of further education in England in the six years after incorporation, which was followed up by case studies to investigate the key variables in greater detail. The analysis of strategic change in these public sector institutions highlights the importance of leadership and environmental assessment while the development of a conceptual model to underpin the research illustrates how private sector approaches can be adapted to the public sector.     

试论高校教学管理专业化发展

高等教育的大众化客观上要求高校教学管理走专业化发展的道路,本文从高校教学管理专业化的基本内涵、主要内容、发展思路三个方面对高校教学管理专业化发展进行了积极的探讨。     

Governing the governors: A case study of college governance in English further education

This paper addresses the nature of governors in the governance of further education colleges in an English context. It explores the complex relationship between governors (people/agency), government (policy/structure) and governance (practice), in a college environment. While recent research has focused on the governance of schooling and higher education there has been little attention paid to the role of governors in the lifelong learning sector. The objective of the paper is to contribute to the debate about the purpose of college governance at a time when the Learning and Skills Council commissioning era ends and new government bodies responsible for further education and training, including local authorities, arrive. The paper analyses the nature of FE governance through the perspectives and experiences of governors, as colleges respond to calls from government for greater improvement and accountability in the sector. What constitutes creative governance is complex and controversial in the wider framework of regulation and public policy reform. As with other tricky concepts such as leadership, professionalism and learning, college governance is best defined in the contexts, cultures and situations in which it is located. College governance does not operate in a vacuum. It involves governors, chairs, principals, professionals, senior managers, clerks, community, business and wider agencies, including external audit and inspection regimes. Governance also acts as a prism through which national education and training reforms are mediated, at local level. While governing bodies are traditionally associated with the business of FE—steering, setting the tone and style, dealing with finance, funding, audit and procedural matters—they are increasingly being challenged to be more creative and responsive to the wider society. Drawing on a recent case study of six colleges, involving governors and key policy stakeholders, this paper explores FE governance in a fast changing policy environment.     

Governance,Leadership and Institutional Change in South African Higher Education: Grappling with Instability

This paper explores the emergingapproaches to the governance and management ofinstitutional change at South African higher educationinstitutions. The discussion firstly locates theseapproaches within the broader context of the newgovernance framework that is contained in the newhigher education legislation, and in particular theemerging forms of institutional governance that thishas spawned. The paper then describes and discussesthe challenges facing institutional leaders in shapinghigher education organisational change in the light ofthe transformation challenges that arise from theimplementation of the new legislation.     

Making a difference: an exploration of leadership roles within sixth form colleges in maintaining ethos within a context of change

In 2001–02, the Nuffield Foundation funded research into the impact of government policy upon the management of sixth form colleges since 1992. National and regional questionnaire surveys were carried out among senior managers at sixth form colleges, further education colleges and schools. Case studies were undertaken at five sixth form colleges in the North‐West and South‐East of England, and in the East Midlands. This article reports on the findings in relation to the following factors: the prevailing ethos of sixth form colleges, the changing context within which that ethos is maintained, and the role of leaders at all levels of the colleges in maintaining it.     

基于建构主义学习理论的高职高专英语口语教学设计模式

我国的高职高专英语教学大多是本科压缩型、以阅读为主的教学模式。这种教学模式重笔头轻口头、重讲授轻实践,培养出来的学生不能适应经济和社会的发展的需要。建构主义学习理论作为教育心理学的最新理论对高职高专英语教学和应用型人才的培养具有良好的借鉴作用。本文在分析建构主义学习理论的基础上,结合高职高专英语教学的特点,探讨了建构主义学习理论在高职高专英语口语教学中的应用,旨在探索研究具有高职高专特色的英语口语教学模式。     

Practices of grading: an ethnographic study of educational assessment

The school as an institution assumes that students' grades are constituted by their assessments. This paper examines the background of this presupposition and provides a micro-analytical perspective of the grading practice of teachers in German High Schools (Gymnasium). This paper conceptualises the theoretical framework of the research in educational measurement in discussion. It is shown that the measured assessment of students and the teacher's observations are linked. When grading, teachers construct their own assessments. This process is depicted in this paper by two forms of observations: self-observation within the context of written examinations and third-party observation within the context of final oral exams.     

Becoming a lecturer in further education in England: the construction of professional identity and the role of communities of practice

Further education colleges in England offer a wide range of post‐school education and training provision. Recently they have undergone major transformations that have resulted in considerable changes to the work of those teaching in them. In this paper we examine how cultures of learning and teaching in colleges are affected and how the nature of professional identity has changed. The paper considers the formation of professional identity amongst a group of trainee lecturers completing a one‐year full‐time teacher‐training course at a university in the English Midlands. Lave and Wenger's work on apprenticeship to communities of practice is used to examine the effect of trainees' teaching placement on the development of professional identity. Rather than identifying effective processes of increasing participation in existing communities of practice, a strong sense of marginalisation and alienation amongst trainees was observed. The paper argues that this is detrimental both to trainees and experienced lecturers if they are to actively engage in building new forms of professionalism for the future.     

Legislation, education reform and social transformation: the People's Republic of China's experience

With special reference to the People's Republic of China (PRC), this paper examines relationships between law, education reform and social transformation that have been under-researched. The argument is that, despite national leaders' high expectations, the use of law to effect or consolidate educational reform in the PRC is affected by both legal and extra-legal factors such as politics, economics, and social norms and cultures. The paper first establishes a framework within which the PRC is analyzed. Secondly, the paper looks into the policy context in which the PRC adopts the strategy of using law to govern the nation and education, and examines the contrasting scenarios between promotion of governance of education with the law, and public defiance of education laws in the PRC. Thirdly, the paper analyzes the deep-seated problems behind the scenario in the wider social and political contexts that shape education and law, and examines the role of law in governance and social change.