Professionalism is an important issue for policymakers in post-16 education because of its established links to competence, morale and staff continuity. Arguably, it is the pursuit of professionalism that ensures high quality teaching and learning, satisfied students and stakeholders, and the ongoing esteem of the general public. However, despite…

Previous research has revealed how mature students are more likely to drop out of university education, achieve poorer degree outcomes and have greater family, financial, caring and work commitments to contend with than their younger peers. In response to calls for further empirical work on mature students' university experiences and informed…

Continuing to study mathematics is currently a requirement for low attaining 16- to 18-year olds in Further Education, as part of an ongoing drive to raise basic numeracy skills in England. However, these students, widely regarded as demotivated, often fail to make any progress in mathematics over the two years. This research explores how students…

Expectancy-Value Theory predicts that expectancy of success and subjective task value (STV) underlie differences in motivation and achievement. This study investigated how gender and SES related to achievement mediated by expectancy of success, STV, and their interaction. The sample consisted of 396 participants in their final year of upper…

This study examines the levels of self-directed learning skills for students on the Access to HE course at City College and how these skills relate to their academic achievement. In this study, 101 students participated in a survey and their self-directed learning readiness was measured using the Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale (SRSSDL).…

The paper presents and explores the experience of maths students studying in a context shaped by a core concept maths curriculum. The three vignettes that illuminate experience are drawn from a larger research project that worked with five teachers and 630 learners aged 16-18 in Further Education classrooms in England. Analysis involved…

The educational technology sector is growing fast, with schools, colleges and universities more than ever looking for the best ways to use technology in the classroom. At the same time, there is an increasing appetite for learning and teaching practices to be backed up by evidence. However, there are few resources that bring these two things…

The Parent Academy was a series of classes for pupils' parents, designed to improve the English and mathematics attainment of pupils in Years 3 to 6 in English primary schools. Parents were offered the opportunity to participate in 12 Parent Academy classes, 6 on English and 6 on mathematics, delivered fortnightly by tutors with teaching…

This article explores the impact of a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) Access module on the progression of students to undergraduate Science. Drawing on the Widening Participation (WP) literature, this research investigated the experience of adult learners from disadvantaged backgrounds taking their first steps into higher…

Female students are much less likely than their male counterparts to take A levels in certain STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects. This is problematic for gender equality but also limits the country's capacity to address the growing national STEM skills shortage. This research was commissioned to design and test the…

This paper explores writing pedagogy in the primary classroom and connections between children thinking creatively and their achievement in writing. Initially 'continuing professional development' for teachers, I designed and facilitated a two-day writing workshop with a class of children around the theme of a Victorian murder mystery. This was…

This article concerns further education (FE) as a post-16 destination for deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) young people. It addresses: (1) the size and characteristics of the DHH population within the FE sector; (2) the perceived functions of FE for DHH young people; (3) the trends, progress, and achievements of DHH learners within FE provision. A…

This study examines the rise of excellence in (Further Education) FE and the resulting effects on its construction and measurement in two colleges in the North West of England. The expansion of excellence is being driven by the government's desire to improve economic prosperity through increased educational success. Whilst excellence is portrayed…

Following an investigation of students' views of one further education college's teaching and learning model (McQueen and Webber 2009), a second project, reported here, sought to review students' ideas about what constitutes an effective learner. For this project a set of 36 statements was constructed based on theoretical models and research about…

Case study research suggests that NLP [neuro-linguistic programming] influencing strategies benefit teacher effectiveness. Maths pedagogy involving higher-order questioning, challenge, problem solving and collaborative working may be a way of improving attainment in adult numeracy learning, however, such strategies may be less effective if the…