Introduction Widening participation in higher education is a concern for educators and policy-mak... more Introduction Widening participation in higher education is a concern for educators and policy-makers in many industrialised nations, including Australia. This paper explores the Australian context within which such participation strategies are implemented and focuses on one group of such students. One nontraditional learner group that receives scant attention in the Australian research literature, and yet is growing rapidly, is made up of those individuals who, for one reason or another, enter higher education at age 35 or older. While current mature-age status in Australia is set at 25 years or over (Krause et al., 2005), the European Commission (2008) has identified that it is in the age group of 34 and over that educational participation decreases. The European Commission's document Learning for All, which urges the setting up of more equitable education programmes for these older learners as the number of older citizens still actively participating in society continues to in...
In this paper I explore how dominant discourses of VET construct access and equity issues for wom... more In this paper I explore how dominant discourses of VET construct access and equity issues for women via the notion of barriers, and in doing so, frame the terms of debate about how women enter, participate in, and benefit from VET. Current VET research takes as its starting point a set of language rules that carries already constructed meanings: barriers to women’s participation are pre sented as a set of conditions to be dismantled or overcome. Rather than obstacles that prevent ‘successful’ participation, I assert that these barriers are structural, systemic and social conditions within which women define their understandings of self. The cen tral problem therefore emerges, not as the presence of barriers, but in the naming of c ertain experiences as such, and the underlying assumption that once entry to the VET sp ace is achieved, barriers cease to exist. I argue that the notion of barriers can be explored as a construct of a particular discursive approach that carries problemati...
Introduction This paper demonstrates the critical application of a theoretical concept and the re... more Introduction This paper demonstrates the critical application of a theoretical concept and the research design it informs to some current issues in lifelong learning: despite the growth and popularity of lifelong learning as a major educational field, there continue to be for some groups of learners issues of educational exclusion or marginalisation. Whilst ongoing issues of exclusion are recognised in some lifelong learning discourses, what of the learners who continue to face exclusion? What can research and researchers do to interrogate the constructions of such learners that create them as excluded?
What do women say about their learning experiences? Women in Australia have always had a strong p... more What do women say about their learning experiences? Women in Australia have always had a strong presence in adult education (Gribble, 1993; Butler and Ferrier, 2000). While adult education is (as with most industrialised countries) increasingly drawn under the umbrella of vocational or employment-related education, the participation rates for women – particularly mature women – remain high. In the public Vocational Education & Training (VET) sector for example, women make up almost 50% of participants (NCVER, 2005). We know this, because we have the research that tells us these facts. What is less known, or researched, is what women think, feel and say about the vocational learning experience itself. This paper presents findings from my recently completed PhD study in which I investigate the learning experiences of mature women returning to study in the Women’s Education Course, an adult vocational preparation course in South Australia.
This paper explains my choice of narrative inquiry as a methodological approach in my recently co... more This paper explains my choice of narrative inquiry as a methodological approach in my recently completed PhD study. My research investigated learning experiences of mature women learners in VET. Notions of learning as negotiated lived experience called for a methodological approach that privileged the learner's perspective and opened space in which alternative notions of learning might emerge. From interviews with twelve mature women, I explain how I use stories of learning to understand how these women, as learners with distinct yet diverse life experiences, contextualise their everyday into their VET learning. Some ethical considerations in using other people's stories in narrative research are also identified. I argue for the use of stories to research women's understandings of their VET learning and to reconceptualise learning as an ongoing and integrated process that must be understood within the everyday contexts of women's lives.
... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie an... more ... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie and Cassie, and using the notion of the virtual handbag, this paper shows how ... In International Perspectives on Lifelong Learning , Edited by: Holford, J., Griffin, C. and Jarvis, P. 6980. ...
... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie an... more ... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie and Cassie, and using the notion of the virtual handbag, this paper shows how ... In International Perspectives on Lifelong Learning , Edited by: Holford, J., Griffin, C. and Jarvis, P. 6980. ...
Universities and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are seen as having a social mission to deli... more Universities and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are seen as having a social mission to deliver common good to society, both locally and globally. These institutions develop different policies due to global changes in Higher Education (HE), such as internationalisation and Sustainable Development (SD). They have an important role in setting sustainable developmental goals (SDGs) and also delivering them through teaching, research and other services. Effective delivery of SD practices relies upon educators who are directly involved in making the links between students and community. However, educators are not everywhere involved in developing policies, which impacts on their ability to deliver. This research, set in Scottish HEIs, investigates educators’ perceptions of internationalisation in HE, how the concept is constructed and delivered in their universities, and what – if any – involvement these educators have in developing policy. This paper argues that educators, especial...
ABSTRACT Background: As universities in many countries engage more directly with industry, the le... more ABSTRACT Background: As universities in many countries engage more directly with industry, the learning emphasis has moved from the student experience to the work-readiness of the graduate. This focus on the student as potential worker is expressed through graduate attributes: particular sets of employability skills developed by institutions and embedded into the curricula.Main argument: Graduate attributes are problematic, however, since they focus firmly on students’ future identity as workers, rather than their current identity as students, and in doing so they offer a simplistic, and – for some – troubling, view of the purpose of universities. In this paper, we advocate a return to consideration of student identity.Conclusion: We suggest that, for students, building an awareness of their student identity as they progress through their higher education experience is not only important for student engagement at university, but is also an integral aspect of shaping their work-readiness as graduates.
Introduction Widening participation in higher education is a concern for educators and policy-mak... more Introduction Widening participation in higher education is a concern for educators and policy-makers in many industrialised nations, including Australia. This paper explores the Australian context within which such participation strategies are implemented and focuses on one group of such students. One nontraditional learner group that receives scant attention in the Australian research literature, and yet is growing rapidly, is made up of those individuals who, for one reason or another, enter higher education at age 35 or older. While current mature-age status in Australia is set at 25 years or over (Krause et al., 2005), the European Commission (2008) has identified that it is in the age group of 34 and over that educational participation decreases. The European Commission's document Learning for All, which urges the setting up of more equitable education programmes for these older learners as the number of older citizens still actively participating in society continues to in...
In this paper I explore how dominant discourses of VET construct access and equity issues for wom... more In this paper I explore how dominant discourses of VET construct access and equity issues for women via the notion of barriers, and in doing so, frame the terms of debate about how women enter, participate in, and benefit from VET. Current VET research takes as its starting point a set of language rules that carries already constructed meanings: barriers to women’s participation are pre sented as a set of conditions to be dismantled or overcome. Rather than obstacles that prevent ‘successful’ participation, I assert that these barriers are structural, systemic and social conditions within which women define their understandings of self. The cen tral problem therefore emerges, not as the presence of barriers, but in the naming of c ertain experiences as such, and the underlying assumption that once entry to the VET sp ace is achieved, barriers cease to exist. I argue that the notion of barriers can be explored as a construct of a particular discursive approach that carries problemati...
Introduction This paper demonstrates the critical application of a theoretical concept and the re... more Introduction This paper demonstrates the critical application of a theoretical concept and the research design it informs to some current issues in lifelong learning: despite the growth and popularity of lifelong learning as a major educational field, there continue to be for some groups of learners issues of educational exclusion or marginalisation. Whilst ongoing issues of exclusion are recognised in some lifelong learning discourses, what of the learners who continue to face exclusion? What can research and researchers do to interrogate the constructions of such learners that create them as excluded?
What do women say about their learning experiences? Women in Australia have always had a strong p... more What do women say about their learning experiences? Women in Australia have always had a strong presence in adult education (Gribble, 1993; Butler and Ferrier, 2000). While adult education is (as with most industrialised countries) increasingly drawn under the umbrella of vocational or employment-related education, the participation rates for women – particularly mature women – remain high. In the public Vocational Education & Training (VET) sector for example, women make up almost 50% of participants (NCVER, 2005). We know this, because we have the research that tells us these facts. What is less known, or researched, is what women think, feel and say about the vocational learning experience itself. This paper presents findings from my recently completed PhD study in which I investigate the learning experiences of mature women returning to study in the Women’s Education Course, an adult vocational preparation course in South Australia.
This paper explains my choice of narrative inquiry as a methodological approach in my recently co... more This paper explains my choice of narrative inquiry as a methodological approach in my recently completed PhD study. My research investigated learning experiences of mature women learners in VET. Notions of learning as negotiated lived experience called for a methodological approach that privileged the learner's perspective and opened space in which alternative notions of learning might emerge. From interviews with twelve mature women, I explain how I use stories of learning to understand how these women, as learners with distinct yet diverse life experiences, contextualise their everyday into their VET learning. Some ethical considerations in using other people's stories in narrative research are also identified. I argue for the use of stories to research women's understandings of their VET learning and to reconceptualise learning as an ongoing and integrated process that must be understood within the everyday contexts of women's lives.
... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie an... more ... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie and Cassie, and using the notion of the virtual handbag, this paper shows how ... In International Perspectives on Lifelong Learning , Edited by: Holford, J., Griffin, C. and Jarvis, P. 6980. ...
... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie an... more ... Using the lived experiences of four participants that I have called Greta, Sylvia, Rosalie and Cassie, and using the notion of the virtual handbag, this paper shows how ... In International Perspectives on Lifelong Learning , Edited by: Holford, J., Griffin, C. and Jarvis, P. 6980. ...
Universities and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are seen as having a social mission to deli... more Universities and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are seen as having a social mission to deliver common good to society, both locally and globally. These institutions develop different policies due to global changes in Higher Education (HE), such as internationalisation and Sustainable Development (SD). They have an important role in setting sustainable developmental goals (SDGs) and also delivering them through teaching, research and other services. Effective delivery of SD practices relies upon educators who are directly involved in making the links between students and community. However, educators are not everywhere involved in developing policies, which impacts on their ability to deliver. This research, set in Scottish HEIs, investigates educators’ perceptions of internationalisation in HE, how the concept is constructed and delivered in their universities, and what – if any – involvement these educators have in developing policy. This paper argues that educators, especial...
ABSTRACT Background: As universities in many countries engage more directly with industry, the le... more ABSTRACT Background: As universities in many countries engage more directly with industry, the learning emphasis has moved from the student experience to the work-readiness of the graduate. This focus on the student as potential worker is expressed through graduate attributes: particular sets of employability skills developed by institutions and embedded into the curricula.Main argument: Graduate attributes are problematic, however, since they focus firmly on students’ future identity as workers, rather than their current identity as students, and in doing so they offer a simplistic, and – for some – troubling, view of the purpose of universities. In this paper, we advocate a return to consideration of student identity.Conclusion: We suggest that, for students, building an awareness of their student identity as they progress through their higher education experience is not only important for student engagement at university, but is also an integral aspect of shaping their work-readiness as graduates.
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Papers by Jeannie Daniels