Other articles by Rob Smith
A New Vision for Further and Higher Education Essay Collection
In this contribution, we provide an overview of the current situation in further education (FE) f... more In this contribution, we provide an overview of the current situation in further education (FE) focusing on the problems arising from a narrow and reductive government view of its purpose and its service users and the market model in which colleges have been forced to operate for the last twenty five years. After drawing on our research in relation to these
key issues, we make key recommendations for some meaningful policies for transition that would fully acknowledge and support the broader important contributions colleges make to social equality and justice within the communities they serve.
Further education is an overarching term that describes teaching and learning taking place mainly outside of school environments involving school leavers (although there is some 14-16 provision) and adults. Further education is largely shaped by historical, industrial and social factors closely related to local socio-economic circumstances in different towns and cities across the UK. While government skills policy over recent decades has become increasingly centralised, locally colleges continue to see their purpose and function in broader terms.
This brief article looks at the vexed issues of quality and quality assurance in FE. Ever since t... more This brief article looks at the vexed issues of quality and quality assurance in FE. Ever since the funding of courses moved away from the per capita model still used by schools following on incorporation in 1993, data management -of registers, student details, student progress, and so called 'success' rates (achievement x retention) -has become a major (and increasingly onerous) feature of FE teachers' work. A key driver behind this emphasis on paperwork is its link to funding. The current FE funding model depends on the production of complex data and this has led to a flowering of managerialist cultures (also called New Public Management -see O'Leary and Smith 2013) across colleges. These cultures alienate many teachers because they seem disconnected from the real work of focusing on teaching and learning. Furthermore, the paperwork that managerialist cultures demand appears to distract from what teachers regard as their core work: teaching. This brief article looks at the impact of quality assurance (QA) systems on teachers' work in FE. The research underpinning the article reveals while these systems are supposed to 'drive up' standards, i) there have been other effects some of which undermine the reliability of the data and impact negatively on teaching and learning and, ii) that managerialist practices, quality processes (and regulatory bodies including Ofsted) are not only incapable of dealing with this crisis but are actually a part of the problem. Finally, the article suggests ways forward through a return to first principles.
On a Euston-bound train to the BERA conference that took place in the first week of September, I ... more On a Euston-bound train to the BERA conference that took place in the first week of September, I fell into conversation with three other passengers. Two were retired, one was close to retirement. The conversation began with stories about them looking after and reading to grandchildren and helping with homework.
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Other articles by Rob Smith
key issues, we make key recommendations for some meaningful policies for transition that would fully acknowledge and support the broader important contributions colleges make to social equality and justice within the communities they serve.
Further education is an overarching term that describes teaching and learning taking place mainly outside of school environments involving school leavers (although there is some 14-16 provision) and adults. Further education is largely shaped by historical, industrial and social factors closely related to local socio-economic circumstances in different towns and cities across the UK. While government skills policy over recent decades has become increasingly centralised, locally colleges continue to see their purpose and function in broader terms.