What it means to be a "professional" in further education (FE) in England has been the subject of ongoing debate over the last two decades. In an attempt to codify professionalism, New Labour developed a package of reforms, crystallised by the introduction of professional standards and qualifications and a new inspection framework under…

Objectives: To investigate whether a new model that delegates some out-of-home care services from the public to the private and not-for-profit sectors in England enhances practitioners' job control and stress levels. Methods: A 3-year longitudinal matched-control evaluation examined changes in Karasek demand-control model and Maslach burnout…

Background: Professional development is widely recognised as crucial to an organisation's success so the time devoted to it needs to be used well. Finding time for training and development is frequently noted by school staff as a barrier preventing them from taking up developmental opportunities. The focus of this paper is on a specific time…

Family policy was a key component of the "New" Labour government's family, social and education policy, and a wide range of family focused initiatives and interventions designed to "support" families and improve individual, family and social outcomes were introduced. The post-May 2010 coalition government's family policy…

The purpose of this study was to explore why highly trained musicians choose to teach in higher education. An international population from nine countries of music instrument teachers was sampled via online survey, to determine their reasons for teaching in higher education. Motivational constructs from the expectancy-value framework were used,…

During 2009-2012, one Sixth Form College (SFC) introduced Building Learning Power (BLP) as a new philosophy and framework for learning and teaching. This short paper sets out to explain why and how BLP was introduced, and discusses how effective this process has been.

This mixed methods study examined the effectiveness of a virtual world curriculum for teaching elementary students complex science concepts and skills. Data were collected using pre- and post-content tests and a student survey of engaged learning, An additional survey collected teacher observations of 21st century competencies conducive to…

The sixth-form college sector is often marginalised in policy and academic discourse, where the much larger school and further education sectors dominate. This paper sets out to describe the sector's key features, assess its position within the wider education system and consider its future in an increasingly competitive education market. The…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the feasibility of a classroom management course as a public health intervention. Improved socio-emotional skills may boost children's developmental and academic trajectory, while the costs of behaviour problems are enormous for schools with considerable impact on others' well-being.…

This article explores a hitherto neglected issue: the significance of nature in the learning lives of marginalised young people. Drawing on both post-human and sociocultural perspectives, it develops a theoretical analysis of this important subject. It uses research with 114 young people in jobs without training in rural South-west England to…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to conduct an in-depth quantitative and qualitative evaluation of a family-based weight loss and healthy life style programme for clinically obese children in England. Design/methodology/approach: The mixed method case study evaluation used included obtaining pre and post measurements of anthropometry and a…

This paper details a case study undertaken in 2011 which examined a small group of female students', and their parents', perceptions of the purpose of a university education. The research is underpinned by a review of the literature examining the views held by academics and politicians as to the benefits of higher education and of research in the…

The study explores what happens to teachers practice and professional identity when they adopt a collaborative action research approach to teaching and involve external creative partners and a university mentor. The teachers aim to nurture and develop the creative potential of their learners through empowering them to make decisions for themselves…

In this article the concept of the Didactic Contract is used to investigate student "transition" from upper secondary into university mathematics education. The findings are anchored in data from the TransMaths project, more particularly the case of an ethnic minority student's journey from his school to a university mathematics course…

In many countries, governments are keen to persuade teachers at all levels to seek to enhance the learning of their students by incorporating information and communication technologies within their classrooms. This paper reports on the development of collaborative approaches to supporting use of the Internet by Post Graduate Certificate of…