The Distinctiveness of the EdD within the University Tradition

The aim of this paper is to explore the distinctiveness of the professional doctorate in education (EdD). To deliver on this aim the paper contextualizes the local and particular EdD by locating it within its wider perspective. First the development of Higher Education (HE) in England is considered. Next the historical development of the EdD is examined. Finally the paper argues that the EdD is distinctive and challenges the university tradition. Moreover the paper begins to provide tentative suggestions to the way in which practitioners and researchers doing the EdD might act as knowledge workers, knowledge producers and work for change.     

Young people,social capital and network‐based educational decision‐making

This paper explores whether and in what ways young people's perceptions and experiences of higher education (HE) can facilitate the transmission within their social networks of social capital both upwardly (from child to parent) and horizontally (from sibling to sibling), and thus can potentially provide bridging capital to family members, especially in families with little or no prior experience of HE. It utilises data from a project that explored the embedded nature of decision‐making about HE amongst a group of ‘potentially recruitable’ adults and their wider networks. The study researched 16 networks, and the resultant sample of 107 individuals included six teenagers and 15 young people in their twenties. The paper concludes that, despite the general emphasis within existing theoretical approaches to network capital on the downward transmission of social capital, the educational experiences of younger generations can be critical in shaping the perceptions of other (including older) network members, albeit not always in ways that encourage formal educational participation.     

Changing Research Perspectives on the Management of Higher Education: Can Research Permeate the Activities of Manager‐Academics?

The paper considers whether, and if so how, research evidence can permeate the world of higher education (HE) management in publicly funded institutions. The paper explores the author's experience of two recent research projects (1998–2000 and 2004) on aspects of managing UK HE institutions and issues arising from the preparation of the HE element of a third study of leadership and public service change agendas in education and health during 2004. Despite the topicality in education and other public services of debates about evidence‐based practice, there is little indication that this debate has permeated HE management qua management. The paper utilises Bourdieu's work on academics and social and cultural capital to explore why manager‐academics may resist taking the findings of research seriously in relation to their own work. It is suggested that, where there is reluctance to learn from research, this may reflect the changing nature of HE, the status of HE research as an academic field and form of academic capital and the relative paucity until recently of training in management for most UK manager‐academics.     

Responding to the Field and to the Academy: Ontario's evolving PhD

The knowledge economy has increased the demands on our university systems to create innovative, flexible doctoral programs. Some countries have responded to this challenge by developing professional doctorates. In the province of Ontario (Canada), the trend appears to be to re-invent the traditional PhD rather than to develop professional doctorates. This paper traces historical, political, economic and social reasons for this trend. It focuses, in particular, on the case of the longstanding Doctor of Education (EdD) at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto (OISE/UT). Enrolment in the EdD program has dropped significantly in the past few years. Drawing on a variety of sources including evaluation data from PhD and EdD students, this paper examines reasons for this development. The authors conclude that the same climate that is fostering professional doctorates is also changing the landscape for PhD education, making the degree more responsive to the needs of educational stakeholders.     

Investigating the curriculum through assessment practice in higher education: the value of a ‘learning cultures’ approach

It is widely acknowledged that the curriculum and knowledge in higher education (HE) are especially visible through (and often constructed by) assessment practices. If this is the case, it matters greatly what perspectives and theoretical tools are brought to bear on the task of understanding these practices. Having briefly set out three perspectives on assessment in HE (the technical, humanist and interactionist), this paper introduces a ‘learning cultures’ perspective, drawing upon the work of Bourdieu, developed as part of a recent research project on English Further Education. The application of this perspective in HE is introduced through a vignette outlining a recent assessment episode and notes on how it may be explored. The paper argues that whilst some contemporary work on HE assessment incorporates elements of a cultural perspective, there are potential practical benefits to a more thoroughgoing adoption of a ‘learning cultures’ approach.     

Students’ perception of EdD and PhD programmes in Hong Kong

The aim of this study is to explore the learning experiences of students enrolled on a Doctorate in Education programme in Hong Kong. The main questions are as follows. How do EdD students position themselves as doctoral candidates? How do EdD students experience their education in terms of scholarly expertise and scholarly identity? How do EdD students characterise their relationships with their supervisors? What perceptions do PhD students hold of the field of knowledge of EdD students and the value of an EdD degree? The data obtained from 10 semi-structured interviews in one selected institution are discussed with reference to the four main themes; distinction between EdD and PhD degrees: ‘co-existent’ vs. ‘separate’; positioning of EdD programme: title of doctor as ‘unfair’ vs. ‘deserved’; scholarly value: ‘insightful’ vs. ‘non-academic’; and relationship with supervisor: ‘independent and self-managed’ vs. ‘never equal, unlike the relationship between PhD student and supervisor’.

     

Students’ perception of EdD and PhD programmes in Hong Kong

Abstract

The aim of this study is to explore the learning experiences of students enrolled on a Doctorate in Education programme in Hong Kong. The main questions are as follows. How do EdD students position themselves as doctoral candidates? How do EdD students experience their education in terms of scholarly expertise and scholarly identity? How do EdD students characterise their relationships with their supervisors? What perceptions do PhD students hold of the field of knowledge of EdD students and the value of an EdD degree? The data obtained from 10 semi-structured interviews in one selected institution are discussed with reference to the four main themes; distinction between EdD and PhD degrees: ‘co-existent’ vs. ‘separate’; positioning of EdD programme: title of doctor as ‘unfair’ vs. ‘deserved’; scholarly value: ‘insightful’ vs. ‘non-academic’; and relationship with supervisor: ‘independent and self-managed’ vs. ‘never equal, unlike the relationship between PhD student and supervisor’.     

Student-parents and higher education: a cross-national comparison

During its time in office, the UK’s Labour government gave a strong message that having caring responsibilities for a young child should not be seen as a barrier to engaging in education and training. Its widening participation strategy included a specific commitment to increasing the number of mature students in higher education (HE) – students who are more likely than their younger peers to have caring responsibilities for dependent children. Furthermore, considerable resources were devoted to encouraging teenage mothers to return to education and training soon after the birth of their child. Nevertheless, despite this policy focus, there have been relatively few studies of the experiences of ‘student-parents’ within HE. This paper draws on findings from a cross-national study (funded by the Nuffield Foundation) to explore the support currently offered by UK universities to students who have parental responsibilities for one or more children under the age of 16. It compares this support to that offered by Danish institutions, to assess whether differences in ‘welfare regime’, the structure of the HE system and pervasive assumptions about gender relations have any discernible impact on the way in which student-parents are both constructed within institutional cultures and assisted by institutional practices.     

Uneasy alliances: University,workplace, industry and profession in the education doctorate

The phenomenon of Professional Doctorates in Australia has come at a time of great change in the higher education sector. Such change includes an intensified imperative for universities to establish ‘partnerships’ with industry and the professions. The Professional Doctorate is, in part, a consequence of such changes and is also helping to effect them. However, in its examination of the Education Doctorate, this paper problematises the notion of partnerships and indeed the various policy constructions of the parties involved. Through fictionalised accounts of standpoints of a higher education policy maker, an EdD student, an academic in an EdD program and a member of the education industry, it identifies some of the tensions involved within and between such categories. In so doing it suggests some matters that require research and pedagogical attention.     

Mergers and Linkages in British Higher Education

In its pursuit of the cost-effective expansion of higher education (HE), the British Conservative government has strongly encouraged competition and has opened the HE sector to the influence of market forces. This policy has certainly helped to drive down unit costs but it also has an inherent destructive potential which requires to be mitigated by a whole spectrum of collaborative structures. To study the interplay between competition and co-operation in British higher education, it is useful to focus on the relationships between higher education institutions (HEIs) as manifested in mergers (both actual, proposed and ‘failed’) and the various forms of inter-institutional linkage which are leading to a re-alignment of HEIs in the post-binary era. A number of forms of linkage, stopping short of merger, are defined and illustrated: for example, affiliation, validation, accreditation, franchising and access arrangements, and the important function of consortia is underlined. However, because they exist within a matrix which is basically competitive, such forms of co-operation are subject to stress and disruption. The British higher education system manifests an unusual degree of flexibility which has enabled it to adapt organically to new policies and challenges. It is more permeable than that of most other European countries, but this permeability is gradually being endangered by increasing UK reliance on formal legislation in HE. Experience abroad, notably in Australia, indicates that wholesale dissolution of boundaries, combined with fierce forms of competition, can in the end lead to serious deterioration in educational standards. A balance between competition and co-operation must be sought, but can never be ‘established’ once and for all because external circumstances require it to be constantly re-adjusted. The research on which this paper is based was carried out with funds from the Economic and Social Research Council and from the Faculty of Education Research Committee of the University of Ulster.     

Collaboration and contestation in further and higher education partnerships in England: a Bourdieusian field analysis

Internationally, ‘College for All’ policies are creating new forms of vocational higher education (HE), and shifting relationships between HE and further education (FE) institutions. In this paper, we consider the way in which this is being implemented in England, drawing on a detailed qualitative case study of a regional HE–FE partnership to widen participation. We focus on the complex mix of collaboration and contestation that arose within it, and how these affected socially differentiated groups of students following high- and low-status routes through its provision. We outline Bourdieu’s concept of ‘field’ as a framework for our analysis and interpretation, including its theoretical ambiguities regarding the definition and scale of fields. Through hermeneutic dialogue between data and theory, we tentatively suggest that such partnerships represent bridges between HE and FE. These bridges are strong between higher-status institutions, but highly contested between lower-status institutions competing closely for distinction. We conclude that the trajectories and outcomes for socially disadvantaged students require attention and collective action to address the inequalities they face, and that our theoretical approach may have wider international relevance beyond the English case.     

Access and retention in French higher education: student drop-out as a form of regulation

Drawing on Bourdieu’s theory and using Durkheim’s concepts of ‘social fact’ and ‘regulation’, this article examines the place held by public universities within the French higher education (HE) system, breaking with the purely bureaucratic vision prevailing in France today. By setting aside some of the main received ideas about the effects and meanings of student selection and drop-out, the article suggests that public universities play an essential role in regulating the successive flows of first-generation students through French HE. It is precisely because public universities are non-selective that they are able to play this role. Finally, the distribution of HE choices and students’ dropping out are both considered as products of a structural and institutional process of regulation.     

Higher education and its contribution to a diverse regional supply of human capital: does the binary/unitary divide matters?

Diversity has been an important topic of research for some time in higher education, though the purposes underlying this attention have varied across national and regional contexts. In many parts of the world, the term diversity has been emphasized with regard to variety among the programs or services provided by academic institutions, and differences among the types of institutions themselves. It is particularly important to discuss whether different dimensions of diversity may influence the degree of effectiveness of higher education (HE) in fulfilling its contribution and relevance to economic and social development. We are particularly interested in analyzing whether unitary or binary systems present significant differences in different dimensions of diversity that may be relevant to enhance higher education institutions’ (HEIs) contribution to territorial cohesion, notably by enhancing the local stock of human capital and contributing to the social and cultural development of their regions. Therefore, we propose the following research questions: *Are there relevant patterns regarding different dimensions of diversity between unitary and binary HE systems? *In the case of binary systems, is it possible to find relevant differences in different dimensions of diversity between universities and more vocational HEIs? By looking at these questions, we aim at contributing both to the literature on HE institutional diversity and to the study of the role played by HEIs on regional development.     

Ivory-tower or market-oriented enterprise: the role of higher education institutions in shaping graduate employability in the domain of science

This article researches higher education (HE) managers’ perception of graduate professional success and higher education institutions’ (HEI) activity aimed at enhancing graduate employability. The issue is worth examining not only because of growing relative unemployment rates among HE graduates but also because it is a part of a heated discussion on the contemporary evolution of HEIs. We analysed 36 semi-structured interviews with representatives of HEIs offering studies in the field of science in six countries (Austria, Germany, Italy, Poland, Slovenia and Turkey). Our analysis showed that there are three approaches observed, depending to a large extent on the balance between different HE stakeholders within subdomains (triple-helix theory). Our results support the hypothesis of diversification of HEIs’ models varying from the traditional ivory-tower-type university (with a dominating role of academic oligarchy) to the market-oriented educational enterprise (where the business sector is a key driver of change).     

First- and second-generation design and engineering students: experience,attainment and factors influencing them to attend university

Challenges for students who are ‘first-in-family’ to attend university have been discussed within widening participation discourse. However, in the UK, ‘first-in-family’ or first-generation students have frequently been conflated with those experiencing poverty or from lower socio-economic groups. This research integrated survey data with assessment data from final-year design and engineering students in a UK university to examine students’ attainment, the influences on why students decide to attend university and students’ experiences during their degree programmes. Analysis of the data showed variations in the reasons for first- and second-generation students wanting to go to university, particularly a significant difference in the influence of parents. First-generation students described significantly less parental influence on the decision to attend university than second- or subsequent-generation students. Smaller differences in students’ experiences and attainment in university were also noted. Whilst first-generation students reported differences in study habits, their attainment was, on average, marginally higher than that of their peers. Building on others’ theoretical work, which suggests the importance of social capital within higher education (HE), this research highlights the difference in social influences on both university application and expectations of university for those with and without a family history of tertiary education. Further research is needed to explore, in larger samples, whether the social influences on individuals’ perception of HE are in turn shaped by whether or not their parents attended university, and further, what impact this may have, not only on degree outcomes but also on the broader benefits typically associated with graduate experience.     

学科、课程、学位:美国关于高等教育专业研究生培养的争论及其启示

美国在高等教育研究生培养与研究方面有关学科性、课程设计与学位的争论表明 :(1 )高等教育研究作为一个学科尚不成熟。应用其他相对成熟学科的理论与方法 ,是提高高等教育研究水平与研究生培养学术质量的较好方式。(2 )高等教育研究生培养的一个主要任务是培养高等教育管理方面的实践人员 ,目前还缺少成熟的培养体系。美国大学正在采取各种试验性培养方式 ,使研究生培养更好地联系实际。 (3 )美国大学为高等教育研究生颁发学术性的Ph D和职业性的 Ed D两种学位 ,这种双轨制既有利于学术发展 ,也有利于培养实践者。     

The interrelation of twenty-first-century education and work from a gender perspective

This paper analyses the interrelation of twenty-first-century education and work from a gender perspective. The analysis is carried out theoretically by asking whether human capital theory and Bourdieu’s reproduction theory are adequate instruments for such an endeavour. It is argued that the explanatory power of the human capital concept of the interrelation between education and work is extremely weak, because the human capital concept conceals costs necessary to create human capital. In contrast, reproduction theory comprehends investments in education through reproductive work. But, reproduction theory fails short to explain ongoing gender hierarchies within employment. Therefore, analysis of social and societal structure needs to go beyond the focus on education and work to explain the maintenance of gender hierarchies.     

Learning in a comfort zone: cultural and social capital inside an outcome‐based assessment regime

Despite numerous problems with outcome‐based assessment systems, claims that they enhance learners' motivation and autonomy resonate with research interest in how young people develop cultural and social capital. However, research has not yet explored the ways in which assessment systems affect the forms of capital embedded within them. This paper applies concepts from a growing body of work on social and cultural capital in education to data from a study of assessment policy and practice in the Advanced General National Vocational Qualification (GNVQ) in two further education colleges. It evaluates how norms, practices and dynamics created by the GNVQ assessment regime interacted with other factors in students' lives and the learning programme itself. These interactions shaped cultural and social capital inside a learning ‘comfort zone’ and affected students' motivation and attitudes to learning. The article evaluates the implications of these factors for the types of cultural and social capital that may be on offer in different assessment regimes. In particular, it raises questions about the extent to which social and cultural capital are empowering or constraining, and offers ideas for further research in this area.     

Education Reform in Hong Kong: The “Through-Road” Model and its Societal Consequences

Although Hong Kong’s education system has long been criticized as lacking in creativity and over-emphasising rote learning, on the whole it has served Hong Kong well in the past years, breeding outstanding business, academic and political leaders who continue to maintain Hong Kong’s competitive edge. The traditional elite schools have played a crucial role in the process. The education reform, which is still on-going, aims to overhaul the entire system by introducing the “through-road” model. To accomplish this, some mechanisms need to be changed. J.P. Farrell’s concepts of equality and equity, C.W. Mills’ concept of elitism, and P. Bourdieu and J. Coleman’s concepts of cultural and social capital will be applied to analyse the consequences of the reform. The paper argues that the education reform may be well-intentioned in eliminating some elements of inequality and inequity in education, but that this comes at the expense of Hong Kong’s cultural and social capital and leads to the development of new forms of inequality.     

Revising Amartya Sen’s capability approach to education for ethical development

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether Amartya Sen's capability approach can suggest an appropriate theory of education for ethical development. Many advocates of Sen's capability approach insist that his approach is superior to rival theories of education, including the human capital theory. This is because Sen emphasizes the purpose and various roles of education for achieving substantial freedom while rival theories focus on the instrumental aspects of education. A focus on rival educational theories often results in the negative effects seen occurring in colonial education. In principle, we agree with the advocates of Sen’s capability approach. However, we doubt that Sen’s emphasis is sufficient for guaranteeing that his capability approach is the appropriate theory of education for application in the context of ethical development. It does not have theoretical completion, and it gives no guidance as to conflict resolution concerning the roles, or value, of education. Nor does it give guidance as to how to implement pedagogical strategies. This incompletion allows economically instrumental values to dominate intrinsic values and non-economically instrumental values, as seen with the educational Millennium Development Goals. This prioritization is what has occurred in colonial education through the application of human capital theory. We suggest that in Sen’s capability approach, firstly, the meaning of the intrinsic value of education should be clarified; secondly, the non-economically instrumental roles of education should be explicated in the context of development; and finally, the priority of the intrinsic and the non-economically instrumental roles of education value should be taken over the economically instrumental values. In this revised theory, people’s substantive freedom is achievable through education, people’s aboriginal identities and values remain intact, and developing countries take seriously pedagogical strategies.