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| Volume 5, Issue 1: Widening Participation | |||
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Editorial Full Circle Widening Participation Developing and Sharing Best Practice The Social Construction of the New Student WP - Who helps the helpers? Aimhigher at MMU Aspiration or Attainment - what are we trying to achieve? Raising Achievement and Aspirations Through Football Introducing 'ALIC' at AUT |
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Rob HalsallWidening Participation UnitEditorial
Action on Access is the national co-ordination team appointed by HEFCE and the LSC to support their widening participation strategies. The team has recently produced an excellent document, ‘ Widening Participation: a rough guide for higher education providers’ . Much of what follows is drawn from this document which includes material on participation in HE and an account of WP initiatives and drivers.
What is Widening Participation?‘Widening Participation in HE is usually taken to refer to activities and interventions aimed at creating an HE system that includes all who can benefit from it – people who might not otherwise view learning as an option, or who may be discouraged by social, cultural, economic or institutional barriers…[it] is often discussed in terms of particular groups that are under-represented within higher education across the board…or within a particular curriculum area…[it] is about far more than simply recruiting a wider range of school-leavers to existing full-time programmes “on campus” and it involves thinking about older, part-time and work-based students. It is often thought about in terms of the different stages of the student lifecycle: pre-entry, transition, curriculum, student support, and employability. ( Widening Participation: a rough guide for higher education providers, Action on Access, 2005, available on www. actiononaccess.org).
Who are the under-represented?First and foremost, whilst the social class V participation rate has more than doubled since 1991-92, increases in participation by all have left poorer classes fi lling the same share of the student population. Young people living in the most advantaged 20% of areas are fi ve to six times more likely to enter higher education than those living in the least advantaged 20% of areas, with this inequality being even more marked for young men ( Young Participation in Higher Education , HEFCE, 2005). The single most significant factor in the social class division in HE participation is differential attainment in schools and colleges. Whilst around 43% of 18 year olds from higher socio-economic backgrounds gain two or more A levels, only 19% of those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds do so – and 90% of people with two or more A-levels go on to HE by the time they are 21. A higher proportion of those from lower socio-economic groups do gain level 3 vocational qualifications but currently only 40-50% of those with these qualifications progress to HE. Second, an 18 year old with a disability or a health problem is 40% as likely to enter higher education as one without a disability or a health problem. Third, whilst ethnic minorities make up 15% of all students, there is a significant variation between different minority ethnic groups. Afro-Caribbeans, Pakistani and Bangladeshi students are under-represented compared to their position in the young population. Moreover, there are pockets of very low representation in certain subjects and in some pre-1992 universities and specialist colleges. People from these groups face similar obstacles to participation, with different emphases between the groups, the main ones being:
So, nationally, what is being done to widen participation?
The 50% target The government wants to see 50% of all 18-30 year olds participating in higher education by 2010. The introduction of variable fees will mean that HE providers will be better funded to attract and support an even more diverse student body. However, the new funding system might have a differential impact on students from different income groups and from groups with different attitudes to debt.
Fair access – OFFA and access Agreements The Office for Fair Access requires all publicly funded providers of higher education in England who decide to charge tuition fees above the standard level to submit an Access Agreement which must set out how they will safeguard and promote fair access, especially for students from low income groups, through bursary and other financial support and outreach work.
HEFCE funding for widening Participation HE providers receive a WP allocation. This is intended to reflect the costs associated with raising aspirations and with supporting student success and retention. HEFCE also makes a mainstream disability funding allocation reflecting the proportion of students in receipt of the Disabled Students Allowance. It has also agreed that a widening participation-type measure for 2006-07 should be developed to ensure that those least able to afford higher fees should not be disadvantaged and can continue to study on a part-time basis.
Fair admissions – the Schwartz Report This focuses on the options which English institutions providing higher education should consider in assessing the merit of applicants for their courses. It contains advice to institutions and the sector on admissions policies, qualifications and applications. It recommends the setting up of a national centre of expertise on admissions issues, including vocational qualifi cations, and the further consideration of issues to do with parttime students. It notes that many institutions are not conversant with vocational and level 3 qualifi cations other than A levels. The report overall recognises the need for changes to be made to existing admissions arrangements to achieve a fair process. Whilst the report recognises that diversity benefi ts staff and students alike, it is clear that many institutions do not make achieving diversity a strategic objective of their admissions procedures.
Curriculum change – 14-19 The Government White Paper, February 2005, proposed that a number of vocational diplomas be developed to simplify and strengthen currently available vocational routes. The hope is that there will be greater scope for young people to apply to, and be admitted by, HE providers with level 3 vocational qualifications or a mix of vocational and academic qualifications. However, it remains to be seen if the parallel routes enshrined in the White Paper will have a reforming effect, or whether those universities that select their students on a competitive basis will focus on the greater differentiation of A level candidates, leaving the recruitment of students with the new vocational diplomas to institutions that already prioritise widening access.
Partnership working A key component in thinking about how to widen participation and reach groups of potential students that have hitherto not considered higher education is partnership working, between higher and further education, schools, employers, advice and guidance networks, parents, community groups and training providers. The key partnership initiatives are: Aimhigher : To promote partnership working between schools, FE colleges, HE institutions, employers and others, to raise aspirations and increase applications to higher education amongst under-represented groups – the national outreach facility to support widening participation. Most activity operate on a subregional basis, with some coordinated at a regional level. Lifelong Learning Networks: To provide a focus on vocational routes into and through higher education. Key themes for LLNs are:
LLNs’ claim to distinctiveness is that they will bring together different HEIs and FE colleges, creating a network that reconnects the sectors for the purposes of progression, at a time of some uncertainty about market pressures stemming from the introduction of variable fees. Collaborative provision, FE and HE : A key element in delivering HE opportunities to those who may wish to study locally, who may progress to higher education via vocational and work-based routes, and who may have returned to learning through the familiar setting of an FE College. The nature of the relationship with the accrediting HEI is critical, given its role in determining fee level, student numbers, progression opportunities, and the levels and style of student support on the transition from an FEC to an HEI. Foundation Degrees : To be developed in partnership between FE colleges, HE institutions and employers. They are required to make provision for those achieving the two-year foundation degree to progress to a full honours degree. The Government envisages them as a key component in achieving the 50% participation target and in assisting with widening participation in HE from students more likely to follow vocational routes.
So what have we been doing at MMU?Widening Participation has always formed an important part of Manchester Metropolitan University ’s mission to develop knowledge, understanding and skills for all with the ability and motivation to benefit. That objective recognises the significance of the agenda set by government in relation to lifelong learning and widening participation, and their importance to the achievement of social inclusion. The University is committed to sustaining and developing further its position as an inclusive institution which both seeks out, and is sought out by, those in under-represented groups who have the potential to become high ability learners, and who will be supported in achieving that potential. The Widening Participation Strategy comprises three key focus areas: We address these areas by: Raising the awareness of those in under-represented groups of the benefits of progressing to higher education; raising their aspirations to progress to higher education; providing pre-entry guidance and support; supporting feeder institutions in disadvantaged areas in their efforts to raise attainment. Engagement in Aimhigher is central to these.
In relation to potential HE students in under-represented groups , key activities include:
Details on many of the outreach activities are now on the Widening Participation website, reached via the Academic Division site. The University’s Fair Access agreement has been approved and this instances the sorts of outreach activities we will commit to from September 2006. In relation to student retention and progression, key initiatives include:
All Faculties are pursuing those parts of their plans which relate to support for, and retention of, students. A major development has been the appointment of Faculty-based learning support Officers
In relation to progression routes in to and through the university, significant initiatives include:
One outcome of all this is that we achieve or exceed the WP benchmarks set for us by HEFCE, for example regarding recruitment of students from poorer socio-economic groups and from low participation neighbourhoods.
I am grateful that the Learning and Teaching Unit has agreed that this edition of Learning and Teaching in Action be given over to the theme of widening participation. It allows us to celebrate the sort of work undertaken in addressing the WP agenda. Unfortunately it is not possible to include everyone’s efforts in just one volume. My thanks, therefore, are not only to the contributors to this edition of the journal but also to all colleagues whose work has enabled the university to be one of the pre-eminent institutions addressing the WP agenda.
Winter 2006 |
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