Performance Indicators and Widening Participation in UK Higher Education

We investigate the relationship between the widening participation performance indicators adopted in UK higher education (HE) and the government's objective of increasing overall HE participation rates. We critically assess the development of performance monitoring in HE and identify weaknesses in the current performance indicators from the perspective of the main stakeholders. We suggest the development of internal indicators and benchmarks by HE institutions together with extensions to the current national performance indicators that could improve their usefulness.     

From Policy to Practice: Pupils' Responses to Widening Participation Initiatives

Recent widening participation policies have been subject to a number of criticisms; they focus on aspirations rather than differences in performance; they place less value on the aspirations of the ‘disadvantaged’ comparing them to a middle class norm; they subordinate what was a radical agenda to the demands of the economy and so constrain the available options to young people. Using data from young people who have taken part in Aimhigher initiatives in the South West of England and from teachers who have organised Aimhigher events, this paper will examine to what extent these features of policy are evidenced in the attitudes and aspirations of these pupils. It will argue that the data shows little evidence of pupils positioning themselves as inferior, that young people display instrumental attitudes to education, but that these attitudes relate to policy discourse and practice in complex ways.     

高等教育入学机会:扩大之中的阶层差距

本文对部分高校不同家庭背景大学生的调查显示,在高等教育扩招之后,重点高校的农村学生比例明显下降,优势阶层的子女更多集中在热门专业,低阶层家庭子女的高考录取分数普遍高于优势阶层的子女,高等教育入学机会的阶层差距呈现扩大的趋势。它是高中阶段教育分层状况的积累和延续。     

英国扩大高等教育参与政策的实施及其成效

英国扩大高等教育参与政策旨在高等教育规模扩张的同时,着重提高来自弱势群体家庭、团体和社区学生接受高等教育的比例,使他们有机会参与高等教育并从中受益,同时也关注不同族裔、不同性别、残疾学生和贫困家庭学生所学的学科、学习方式和就读高校类型的多样性,其本质是实现社会正义。通过该政策的有效实施,扩大了英国高等教育的参与,增进了社会和谐。     

Disproportionate Sacrifices: Ricoeur's Theories of Justice and the Widening Participation Agenda for Higher Education in the UK

Ricoeur's theories of justice are used here to examine the injustice of the utilitarian drive to widen participation in higher education in the UK and, in particular, the attribution of low aspirations and achievements to those young people who do not participate in higher education. Government policy is considered through Ricoeur's theory of the just state; and his 'new commandment' is used to consider the disproportionate sacrifice required of these young people if they are to enter higher education. Despite its specific focus, the paper's arguments are relevant to all policies that conflate social inclusion and economic development.     

Access to and Participation in Higher Education in Northern Ireland

This paper summarises some of the key characteristics of access to and participation in higher education. In particular, it focuses on the key social characteristics of participation and the interaction with migration to study outside Northern Ireland. Key policy areas relating to student finance and widening access are also considered. The paper also reports on qualitative research conducted with Protestant and Catholic pupils from less well‐off backgrounds about attitudes to further and higher education. The paper concludes by suggesting higher education policy issues for a newly restored devolved administration.     

Widening Participation in Higher Education: The HEFCE Perspective on Policy and Progress

The first half of the 1990s saw a substantial increase in the number of people participating in higher education, though without a substantial alteration in the social profile of the English student population. However, today, with the Government target of 50 per cent of 18–30 year olds having some experience of higher education by 2010, the sector faces a new challenge in broadening as well as expanding its social base. This article traces different phases in the evolution of the HEFCE widening participation policy and strategy, including its response to the recommendations of the Dearing Report and, more recently, to the joint proposal with the Learning and Skills Council for a strengthening of partnerships between higher education, further education and schools.     

European Approaches to Widening Participation in Higher Education: A Commentary in Light of the Role of the Society for Research into Higher Education

This article derives its arguments from case studies reflecting the situations of Estonia, Bulgaria, and the United Kingdom, the access and equity agenda in each country being viewed in the light of its own social concerns and financial priorities. Local institutions, in their turn, reinterpret the agendas of their respective countries in the light of their own missions and objectives. The role of the Society for Research into Higher Education is shown to be of importance, along with that of other NGOs, in ensuring that the cross‐fertilization of ideas and approaches takes place as effectively and as efficiently as possible.     

英国高校改革:学生资助与教育参与

英国工党上台后,奉行第三条道路的政治纲领.在高等教育领域,政府一方面延续了新自由主义的市场化政策,对大学生资助方式进行改革,进一步革除福利社会的弊端;另一方面又通过政府的管制,化解市场化造成的不良后果,扩大社会各界对高等教育的参与.本文从学生资助方式的改革和高等教育参与面的扩大两个方面介绍了英国高等教育改革的最新动向和措施.     

公民教育:从“疏离”走向“参与”

缺乏公民的主体性参与,公民教育极容易产生"疏离"的状态,即公民知识与公民实践、公民个体与公民社会的分裂与脱离。这种"疏离"状态由于违背了公民教育的实践属性和主体参与性,因此并不利于公民品质的培养,反而将阻碍健全的公民品质的成长。基于此,有必要建构一种参与式的公民教育,通过引导受教育者参与到学校公共生活、社区公共生活以及更为广阔的社会公共生活领域之中,来促进他们的公民知识、公民理性、公民价值感和公民行动能力等方面的综合发展。公民教育从"疏离"走向"参与",可以更好地体现公民教育的实践本性,促进公民教育的实践回归。     

从人力资本理论的视角看日本高等教育大众化

在比较教育研究中人力资本理论多被用来解释发达国家和发展中国家为何都不惜成本地向教育事业投资的现象。二战结束后，日本高速增长的经济推动了日本高等教育大众化的进程。与此同时，日本高等教育为日本经济发展提供了充足的人力储备。因此，研究日本高等教育大众化中的“教育与经济双向互动发展”的成功经验对于厘清我国高等教育发展规模问题具有积极的借鉴作用。     

从一流大学到高等教育强国：我国高等教育发展战略的转变

建设高等教育强国标志着我国高等教育发展战略由重点建设到全面发展的转变。建设高等教育强国是我国建设人力资源强国、人才强国和创新型国家的必然要求。建设高等教育强国的目标就是建立一流的现代高等教育体系,重点是促进高等教育的协调发展。     

从高职入口看我国高等职业教育改革

我国现有高职入口模式“门槛高”、“面向窄”，不适应职业教育的发展方向。我们要改革高职入口模式，坚持以考查职业技能为主，面向全民，建立相关改革配套措施，推动全民职业素质的提高。     

从结构到文化——家庭背景与高等教育升学研究述评

家庭背景对教育的影响可以从两个路向进行分析:一是以阶级结构为起点,研究家庭背景对教育机会或教育取得的影响;二是以阶级文化为起点,通过阶级行动和策略研究家庭背景对教育取得的影响过程.国内现有关于家庭背景与高等教育的实证研究多采用第一种研究路向.在对国内外相关领域的理论和实证研究进行文献综述的基础上,本文提出家庭背景与高等教育升学研究的新方向,即采用质的研究方法探究高等教育升学决策过程中家庭背景的影响.     

从职涯指导到职涯教育——英国高校本科教学的新发展

英国高校的职涯教育从职涯指导演变而来,历时百年.随着其重要性在近年来的不断凸显,英国高校的职涯教育不断呈现出新的特点.英国高校的职涯教育的目的是帮助学生获得适切的职涯综合素质,使学生适应未来不断变化的职业需求和终身学习浪潮.英国高校的职涯教育的主要类型有嵌入式课程、一般技能模块课程、经验课程,昭示着英国高校职涯教育走向制度化、规范化,同时也体现了英国高等教育领域职业教育与学术学习互相渗透、互相融合的趋势.当然,英国高校的职涯教育在实施过程中也存在一些问题,如人们对高校是否应该实施职涯教育及其地位、目标仍存在争议等.英国的经验为我国的本科教学改革提供了很好的借鉴.     

英国高等教育独立审查员制度的立法与实施

目前,学生与大学机构之间的纠纷引起了各国的广泛关注,英国独创了高等教育独立审查员制度,首次将学生投诉处理纳入全国统一的程序标准,并以法定形式任命专门的、独立的机构代为执行,采用低成本的方式,达到快速、公正解决大学纠纷问题,既保障了学生权利,同时避免了高等教育领域较多法律途径解决纠纷。     

高等教育大众化：从理想走向现实

章在明确高等教育大众化的概念及现阶段我国高等教育发展状况的前提下，具体分析了我国实现高等教育大众化所面临的巨大国难和具备的有利条件，进而提出在我国实现高等教育大众化的一些构想，以期高等教育大众化从理想走向现实。     

Widening the Circle: Faculty-Student Support Groups as Innovative Practice in Higher Education

Faculty-student support groups have the potential to promote strategies for co-mentorship in places of learning. They can also function to facilitate alternative forms of pedagogical practice in the context of lifelong learning. The purpose of this paper is to describe ideas and practices in the innovative development of faculty-student support groups in higher education. The authors provide a context for introducing the model of a co-mentoring support group, for considering institutional dynamics in forming co-mentoring support groups, for illustrating a case study analysis of a university-based support group, for providing a collegial response to the mentoring literature, for considering the need to formalize mentoring programs and outcomes, for exploring challenges to and benefits of the support group effort, and finally for envisioning co-mentoring support groups more generally. The authors argue that more attention needs to be given to studying alternative pedagogical practices that enable mutualistic relationships to endure. This article accordingly offers an original holistic guide for viewing mentoring as interconnected cycles and phases of lifelong learning.