Does what you study at age 14–16 matter for educational transitions post-16?

Abstract

This paper considers whether subject choice at 14–16 influences post-16 transitions, taking into account prior academic attainment and school characteristics, and if so, whether this accounts for socioeconomic, gender, and ethnic differences in access to post-16 education. We consider post-16 progression to full-time education, A-levels, and studying two or more facilitating subjects at A-level. We use ‘Next Steps’, a study of 16,000 people born in England in 1989–1990, linked to administrative education records (the National Pupil Database). We find that students pursuing an EBacc-eligible curriculum at 14–16 had a greater probability of progression to all post-16 educational outcomes, while the reverse was true for students taking an applied GCSE subject. Curriculum differences did not explain the social class differences in post-16 progression, but an academic curriculum was equally valuable for working-class as for middle-class pupils. Pursuing an EBacc-eligible curriculum particularly strongly increased the chances of girls and white young people staying in the educational pipeline, whereas applied subjects were particularly detrimental for girls. An EBacc-eligible curriculum at age 14–16 increased the chances of studying subjects preferred by Russell Group universities at A-level.     

Latin American Universities: From an Original Revolution to an Uncertain Transition

The aim of this paper is to discuss the prospects of Latin American public universities. Its main assertion is that universities could become important actors of development in Latin America, but prevailing trends point in another direction. The paper focuses on the interactions between, on the one hand, specific traditions and social contexts, and, on the other hand, global trends concerning the role of knowledge and academic changes. The specific traits of the evolution of Higher Education in Latin America are discussed, in order to describe the emergence of an original ‘idea of University’. Changes and continuities during the last decades of the 20th century are summarized. Similarities and differences between developed countries and Latin America concerning current trends in Higher Education are analyzed. Particular attention is given to the interactions between what is happening in Latin American universities and the new insertion of the continent in the global economy. A prospective analysis is attempted, focusing on the social commitment of universities.     

Stability of social support during school transitions: Associations with truancy and not completing upper secondary education in normative time

Not completing upper secondary education is often presignaled by truancy from school. Student-perceived social support from family, peers, and teachers can prevent truancy and the risk of not completing education. However, prior studies have not focused on the stability of social support across school transitions. This longitudinal study of 1901 Finnish students examined the extent to which social support was stable or specific to primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary schools. Moreover, we examined whether support was associated with not completing upper secondary education in normative time and whether truancy mediated the relationship between support and not completing education. The analyses showed that most variance in social support was context-specific; family and peer support was related to truancy and not completing education; and truancy acted as the mediator. The findings underscored the importance of stable social support over school transitions in reducing the likelihood of truancy and not completing education.     

Undergraduate experiences of the research/teaching nexus across the whole student lifecycle

ABSTRACT

There is currently much interest in the interconnections between research and teaching in Higher Education. This relationship is usually termed ‘the research/teaching nexus’ (RTN). However, within this wide body of literature, there has been little attempt to explore the emergent experiences of students across the entire length of their degree programme. Drawing on the results of a three-year qualitative study that followed 40 students through their whole student lifecycle, this paper explores how undergraduates in an English university experienced the RTN, how those experiences developed over time, and how these changes can be variously enabled or constrained. Situating the findings in the context of the ‘post-truth’ society and the uncertainty of employment futures, the paper highlights how the nexus can also often serve to exclude students as much as it includes.     

Patterns of performance development in elite athletes

Abstract

This investigation sought to contrast generalised models of athlete development with the specific pathway trajectories and transitions experienced by 256 elite athletes across 27 different sports. All participants completed the National Athlete Development Survey and within it, the Athlete Development Triangle featuring the differentiation of junior and senior competition experience and progression. Developmental initiation; prevalence, magnitude and direction of pathway trajectory; extent of concurrent junior and senior competitive experience; and variability between sports were examined. Three major trajectories were identified in relation to athlete transition from Nil competition to Elite competition, via junior and senior competition phases. These included Pure ascent (16.4%), Mixed ascent (26.2%) and Mixed descent (57.4%). These were further partitioned into eight sub-trajectories, demonstrating a mix of linear, crossover and concurrent competition profiles. Substantial variability with regard to starting age, pattern of ascent and magnitude of transition was apparent. Non-linear trajectories were experienced by the majority of athletes (83.6%), with pure junior to senior developmental linearity evident in less than 7% of cases. Athletes in cgs sports (those measured in centimetres, grams or seconds) were less likely (43%) to experience a descending trajectory in comparison with non-cgs athletes (70%; p<0.001). The collective findings of this investigation demonstrate that, contrary to the popular pyramidal concept of athlete development, a single linear assault on expertise is rare, and that the common normative junior to senior competition transition is mostly characterised by complex oscillations featuring highly varied transitions. More developmental ‘granularity’ is needed to advance our understanding of sport expertise.     

One foot out the school door? Interpreting the risk for dropout upon the transition to post-secondary vocational education

Many students drop out in the first year after a school transition. Most commonly used indicators of an increased risk for dropout reveal little of the mechanisms that push or pull students out of school. In this study, we look at the association of a set of common risk indicators with students’ supportive resources and school experiences upon the transition to post-secondary vocational education in the Netherlands. Multilevel regression analyses on a diverse sample of 1438 students indicate that most sociodemographic risk indicators relate to less access to supportive resources for school, whereas personal circumstances outside school that are associated with an increased risk for dropout correlate with negative school experiences. Students from lower educated or poor families and students who use drugs, have debts, or are delinquent score negative in both domains, suggesting that those students make the transition with one foot out the school door.     

Gendered divisions on classed routes to vocational education

In this article our focus is on the persistent gendered divisions in educational routes of young people who choose a vocational path after compulsory education in Finland. We analyse how gendered subjectivities are constructed within the practices of educational and vocational guidance and within student cultures in the comprehensive school, as well as the way in which young people process understandings of themselves and their expectations during and after vocational education. In addition, we explore young people's ways to negotiate with disciplinary practices of the educational system. The paper draws on three ethnographic studies, and on feminist post-structural and materialist theories, intertwined with contextualised ethnographic perspectives. Our analysis reveals some patterns that might work as obstacles in the process towards reducing gender segregation in education and the labour market. We suggest that whilst gendered choices are sometimes taken for granted, gender dichotomy is often emphasised even if young people choose ‘differently’.     

Occupational transitions as a relational project

Looking at ‘biographical learning’ as part of a work transition, the aim of this paper is to investigate how social relations enable and constrain such a learning process in outplacement clients. To examine the process, its character and social conditions, the study draws on interviews with workers who had been made redundant and were enrolled at an outplacement agency. The interviews were analysed using a comparative cross-case analysis. A distinction was made between ‘strong’ (long-term and intimate), ‘weak’ (short-term and non-intimate) and ‘formal’ (e.g., professional counsellors) relations. Findings showed that strong and formal relations were rather influential on people's engagement in biographical learning while weak relations were important to the straightforward career. Since transitions in late modern society has become not only a passage but also a learning option, the different sources and functions of social relations should be considered a vital part of outplacement counselling. Future research should examine more closely both parties in strong relationships and the (joint) process of career decision-making inherent in occupational transitions.     

Towards a typology of intermediaries in sustainability transitions: A systematic review and a research agenda

Intermediary actors have been proposed as key catalysts that speed up change towards more sustainable socio-technical systems. Research on this topic has gradually gained traction since 2009, but has been complicated by the inconsistency regarding what intermediaries are in the context of such transitions and which activities they focus on, or should focus on. We briefly elaborate on the conceptual foundations of the studies of intermediaries in transitions, and how intermediaries have been connected to different transition theories. This shows the divergence – and sometimes a lack – of conceptual foundations in this research. In terms of transitions theories, many studies connect to the multi-level perspective and strategic niche management, while intermediaries in technological innovation systems and transition management have been much less explored. We aim to bring more clarity to the topic of intermediaries in transitions by providing a definition of transition intermediaries and a typology of five intermediary types that is sensitive to the emergence, neutrality and goals of intermediary actors as well as their context and level of action. Some intermediaries are specifically set up to facilitate transitions, while others grow into the role during the process of socio-technical change. Based on the study, as an important consideration for future innovation governance, we argue that systemic and niche intermediaries are the most crucial forms of intermediary actors in transitions, but they need to be complemented by a full ecology of intermediaries, including regime-based transition intermediaries, process intermediaries and user intermediaries.