The earthquakes which struck Nepal's capital in 2015 were humanitarian disasters. Not only did they inflict tragic loss of life and livelihoods, they also destroyed parts of the Kathmandu Valley's unique UNESCO World Heritage site. These monuments were not just ornate structures but living monuments playing central roles in the daily lives of…

Community-based learning and teaching in higher education, and other versions of it, such as service learning, are now part of many curricula worldwide. In the UK, there is a growing community of practitioners interested in student learning in partnership with local communities. With this expansion, however, there is little institution-based…

This paper explores the experiences of 24 Early Career Researchers working in interdisciplinary and precarious employment conditions in which they are managing collaborations with multiple partners beyond the university as part of the AHRC's "Connected Communities" Programme. These conditions emerge from conflicting sources--from…

Public engagement (PE) is habitually recognized and advocated across the higher education (HE) community--especially by regulator and funder constituencies--as an intrinsically good thing. In the UK, a number of initiatives focused on embedding a culture of PE within universities have sought to further this claim, yet have done so without…

This paper argues that working-class widening participation in education is not necessarily new. While it can be argued that it was established in the late twentieth century as a concept and government strategy, aspects of its origins can be traced back to movements such as the mechanics' institute movement, first established by the 1850s. Such…

This paper argues that universities do have responsibilities to their wider communities, and that those responsibilities--or that "engagement"--should be managed in a way that is not solely dictated by the university. The paper, which focuses on UK universities, first explains why the contemporary context makes it important to consider…

Volunteering in English higher education has come under political scrutiny recently, with strong cross-party support for schemes to promote undergraduate volunteering in particular. Recent targeted initiatives and proposals have sought to strengthen both the role of volunteering in higher education and synergies between higher education and…

This article presents empirical research exploring adult students' transition to higher education (HE) through a program designed to enable that transition. Wenger's Communities of Practice theory has been applied to informal adult learning by Merriam, Courtenay, and Baumgartner (2003), who suggested its potential for understanding formal…

Maintaining that there is considerable confusion over the term "community education," this paper begins by offering a number of definitions. It then seeks to unravel some of the complexities of community education as it exists in the United Kingdom; to explain the growth of interest; to examine the underlying principles and different…

This publication discusses the future of university sport development in the United Kingdom in response to a report of the Department for National Heritage calling for revitalization of British sport at all levels. This report integrates findings and recommendations of a special task force, a government working party, and consultation papers of…

This report presents results of a study in the United Kingdom to explore different understandings of outreach, its role in widening participation among people underrepresented in organized education, implications of doing outreach, and practical and ethical considerations involved. Chapter 1 addresses origins and meanings of outreach, including…

This study of black students' access to higher education and their progression into employment is based on two research studies conducted in England between 1989 and 1992 at a group of schools and higher education institutions. The text is illustrated throughout by quotations from students, educational staff, and the two research studies. The…