Chris Atkin

Family literacy in Europe: separate agendas?

Family literacy programmes have become increasingly popular with policy‐makers as a means of addressing low levels of adult literacy. It is believed that such initiatives will help to address social exclusion and aid greater economic participation by those in deprived communities or from disadvantaged sectors of society. The growing interest in such initiatives comes at a time of international concern over general levels of literacy, as highlighted by the United Nations literacy decade 2003–2012 and in Europe by the Lisbon Agenda. In this article, which draws on the findings from a cross‐European study of family literacy programmes in England, Ireland and Malta, we argue that disparate agendas characterizse policy and practice. We conclude by considering the implications for the future of family literacy programmes in promoting social inclusion.

Choosing to Learn or Chosen to Learn: The Experience of "Skills for Life" Learners.

It has been estimated that as many as one in five adults in England have difficulties with literacy or numeracy skills. Raising the standards of language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) skills amongst all adults of working age in England has become one of the government’s highest priorities. Following the launch of the Skills for Life strategy in England, adults with poor LLN skills were targeted to attend training provision to upgrade their skills. As a result of the strategy, some identified target groups, i.e. the unemployed and benefit claimants, have found that receipt of benefits has had ‘conditionality’ attached to it; that is, they are required to undertake activities, including training, in order to maintain welfare benefits. Whilst resistance is often associated with motivation, this paper argues that making attendance at training provision a ‘conditionality’ of receipt of welfare benefits is unlikely to result in an increase in an adult’s LLN skills. We argue that whilst attendance at training provision can be increased through the use of such sanctioning interventions, this negative intervention does not result in a learner engaging in the training activities. There is a distinct difference between attending training programmes and engaging with training provision. Using the conceptual framework provided by Pierre Bourdieu’s discussion of reproduction in culture, society and education, we argue that the Skills for Life strategy is being used as an apparatus of symbolic violence; being legitimised through misrecognition.

Student Co-Inquirers: The Challenges and Benefits of Inclusive Research.

This article focuses on the process of conducting a research project which explored the university student experience across three different geopolitical contexts using students studying at an English university as co-inquirers. The project sample included students at different stages of their university experience (undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral) studying across a range of disciplines in India, Ireland and England. Qualitative interview data were collected by the student co-inquirers using Skype technology. The student co-inquirers were equal partners in all aspects of data collection and analysis but were not part of the initial theoretical framework and methodological decisions. The student engagement as co-inquirers provided a particular space for the student voice to be heard in making multiple meanings from the data. The shifting identities of the co-inquirers and the impact of taking part in the project on their ability to enact agency with a particular voice within a democratic, participatory research framework is discussed. The authors conclude that participation of students in research as co-inquirers involve both risks and benefits mainly associated with the inherent difficulties with unequal power relationships, managing student agency and understanding multifaceted complexities that arise from shifting identities.

The rise and fall of the MTL: an example of European policy borrowing

The success of Finland in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) highlights the quality of Finnish teacher education underpinning its consistently high performance in the survey. In 2010 the UK government initiated a masters in teaching and learning (MTL) in order to raise the education level of teachers, following Finland’s teacher education model. Educationists both past and present, however, warn against ‘quick fix’ political solutions and of the consequences of ‘uncritical policy transfer’. For an educational policy to be effectively borrowed, it must travel through different stages. In this article we argue that the MTL has been implemented in the hope of quick solutions to long-term difficulties; we also maintain that the MTL has applied distinctly English factors into the Finnish model and was achieving informed policy transfer. Nevertheless, the rapid introduction and withdrawal of the programme has not allowed for the MTL to reach complete policy borrowing.

Academic boredom, approaches to learning and the final-year degree outcomes of undergraduate students

Abstract Academic boredom is a largely negative and disabling achievement-related emotion. In this mixed-methods exploration of 224 students attending a single university in England, academic boredom was found to arise at the point of course delivery, while studying at other times and during the completion of assignments for assessment. Quantitative data from the recently adapted Boredom Proneness Scale for use across the UK higher education sector (the BPS-UKHE) and the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST), enriched with qualitative data from 10 semi-structured research interviews, indicate that those with a higher propensity towards academic boredom than others displayed the deep, strategic and surface profiles of ‘less effective learners’. This was reflected in their interest in ideas, their ability to organise resources and manage time, what they had to memorise or do to ‘get by’, their achievement motivation and their sense of purpose. As part of a greater evolving network of other contributing factors, this translated into lower final degree marks and fewer ‘good’ degree awards. Recommendations surrounding boredom mitigation and approaches to learning are suggested which warrant serious consideration. The work presented here makes an important contribution to a surprisingly neglected field of UK higher education research and the student engagement agenda.

Family literacy programmes: a comparative study of gender roles in England, Ireland and Malta

There is concern from government in each of the sample sites over the role fathers play in supporting their children through school. Fathers have become a more ‘visible parent’ and a focus for policy‐makers in education. Family literacy programmes are used in this article as an example of an educational programme where fathers are often absent. The article draws on interviews conducted with mothers in England, Ireland and Malta, regularly attending family literacy programmes and a small number of fathers who were not attending regularly, if at all, for a range of cultural and structural reasons. It explores why fathers did not attend and what might encourage them to do so. The authors argue that being absent from formal sessions does not necessarily mean that fathers are disinterested in their child’s education or that they do not contribute to the learning process.

Enterprise placements: factors which support learning and prolonged attainment in students

Abstract This article investigates the learning and academic attainment of undergraduate education students on enterprise placement projects in a longitudinal mixed-methods study. By observing the placement learning and analysing previous and subsequent attainment of a second- and third-year group it adds to the ontology of purpose for enterprise in education and concurs with the growing body of work identifying placements with sustained academic improvement. The qualitative investigation identifies five key learning factors from the placements which support improved academic attainment. These are: pressure to learn, critical personal learning events, seeing the setting as a learning environment, professional attachments, and having space to learn. These factors support the transfer of learning from one context or situation to another and using concepts of transformative learning or transitional learning, contributes to a cycle of increasing self-esteem and motivation and a sustained improvement in academic attainment. It concludes that a praxis curriculum, using self-assessments, continuous short (micro) reflections and taught awareness of the placement as a place to look for and recognise learning, would underpin these five factors and contribute to the academic processes underpinning attainment.