Higher Education Equity Literature Database

Context: The study highlights that within health care work, caring can be perceived as a 'threshold concept'. This is because the perceptions that health care students have of health care work change as they begin their careers and encounter experiences that challenge their initial perception, including in ways that can sometimes cause them discomfort.
Aims: The author provides a discussion of some of the moral and ethical dilemmas that students face upon entering employment as a health care worker. The author refers to the accumulation of new experiences as 'troublesome knowledge', which challenges students' preconceived ideas of health care work.
Methodology: Data are drawn from two different research projects:
- A three year study focusing on the professional socialisation of occupational therapy students - interviews were conducted with 12 occupational therapy (OT) students over the duration of their undergraduate degree. Participant observation and documentary analysis of course material was also adopted to develop an awareness of the context in which students undertook their studies.
- An action research project investigating the use of online discussion forums - the capacity of such forums to enable peer support among undergraduate physiotherapy students undertaking clinical placement for the first time was examined.
Findings: Students have a diverse range of challenging experiences, among them the burden of responsibility for making decisions for patients, finding that the 'care' element in institutional policy or other health care professionals is lacking, and balancing worries they have about being responsive to patients with their own wellbeing. Students might also question their own capacity to care if they feel they are detached from the experiences of patients. The study asserts that "going through the caring threshold has something to do with being touched personally by events so that students connect with those for whom they care as a human being" (see p. 512). As such, having an awareness of ones' own feelings can affect the professional identity of students, and help them to better cope with the distress experienced by patients, and demonstrate empathy. In this way, the "threshold refers to the point of entry into or out of a space that is 'transformative' and therefore liminal in nature" (p. 513).
Core argument: The author argues for a revisit of how students are prepared during their studies to undertake work as a health care professional, including in terms of developing emotional capacity and nurturance of a personal framework for caring.

Context: Teachers' well-being (work and private lives) in context of growing concerns about how stressful/ unhealthy teaching is as a career
Aim: "To gain a deeper understanding of how teachers at a compulsory school experience the salutogenic aspects of their lives"; RQ: ""How do teachers experience their everyday lives?" and more precisely, "What are the salutogenic aspects of their everyday lives?" (p.52)
Theoretical frame: Salutogenic perspective (as alternative to pathogenic) - focus on well-health rather than ill-health (originally Antonovsky, 1987): focus on resources that strengthen well-being. Sense of Coherence (SOC) theory underpins this perspective, whereby "a strong sense of coherence enables people to make sense and deal with life's different stressors" (p.52): comprehensibility, manageability, meaningfulness.
Methodology: Qualitative interpretive/ participatory; hermeneutics, using multistage focus groups with teachers in a primary school (n=7; 6f, 1m - details on p.53). Focus groups followed by individual interviews with teachers.
Findings: Two themes: 1) 'doing' as salutogenic aspect of teachers' lives; 2) 'being' as salutogenic aspect of teachers' lives
Doing: creative teaching: planning lessons, solving problems, relationships with colleagues: socialising, listening and discussing, facilitating everyday life.
Two important aspects arise: achieving results and "being in doing", with the latter "interpreted as meaning joy, gratitude, love of learning, and revival of energy" (p.56).
Being: enjoyment of specific moments/ a way of feeling good/ being present/ being there for and being supported by others (with 'care' used by participant 'Madalaine' to describe this)/ freedom
"It is about being present here and now, and not thinking about what has been or what's to come. In one sense, it means letting go of control. The meanings found in "being" are meaningfulness, confidence, appreciation, contentment and savoring. When the teachers feel they are genuinely there for someone else, as they do in relation to the pupils, their colleagues, and significant others, they experience a sense of meaningfulness" (p.56).
Authors interpret these tentative findings as about care: "Our comprehensive interpretation suggests that salutogenic aspects in the lives of the teachers are about caring e for others but also for oneselves. Caring is to allow yourself to be and act in such a manner that you feel good about yourself. By caring and by being cared for, human needs such as feeling meaningfulness are met" (p.57). Care = understood as relational but "At the same time, caring means having the courage to listen to one's own needs" (p.57): requires courage and encouragement. Authors cite Mauss' work on the gift, but question whether "teachers are giving care as a way of getting something in return, as in a trade" ... "Furthermore, we argue that to receive a gift e be it time, knowledge, patience or support e is also a sign of being generous. By receiving something back is to give others the possibility to be generous. It is a complex system of givers and recipients, of symmetry and asymmetry, and of reciprocity" (p.57)
Being in doing: interpreted through Aristotle's distinction between poieses (achieving) and praxis (being in doing), with poieses privileged and rewarded systematically, and is thus possibly more influential on teachers' behaviours/ perceptions.
Reciprocal care between teachers and students (in non-linear ways) gives meaning (but see international statistics on teacher attrition for how this care/ meaning is not evident for many teachers)
Core argument: "Existential needs are met through caring"

Context: Teacher-student caring-relations in the Primary School context
Aim: To compare and contrast the constructs of care made by six female elementary teachers. To explore how teacher constructs of care evolve and how discursive contexts legitimise caring relations where students as subjects with their own needs as unacknowledged.
Methodology: Narrative enquiry of n=6 through life-story interviews. Participants were interviewed another 3-5 times in a semi-structured format. Observation of classrooms. Analysis of school material culture (vision, mission statement).
Findings: Teacher perceptions of student needs emerged from the teachers own experiences of the student and the teacher's own life.
Female teachers bring their mother-selves into their work lives, and their own ideals of mothering.
Core argument: The teachers constructs of care was fixed to the extent that student needs were shaped to reflect the carer's narrative of themselves as caring. The teachers sought to mould students in their own image, blurring spaces of mothering and teaching. Good practices of care in teaching should recognise how the "self" constructs this care and how it can prevent teachers from seeing student needs clearly.

Context: Author argues that care is at heart of university teaching, but diversification of student body, new media and new educational priorities, as well as increased calls for professionalization of teaching = challenge the capacity to care. Author explores two movements that broaden the conceptualisation of pedagogy and re-engage conversation about caring: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SOTL) and explorations of the teacher's 'inner life'.
Methodology: Essay, but draws from ethnographic study of teachers and changing cultures of teaching in higher education
Discussion: Context: increasing focus on marketization and competitive logics erode possibilities for professionals to care: "increased emphasis by employers on market priorities can exacerbate demands to focus on the business-side of practice, and put in doubt professionals' own sense of their capacity to serve clients and the larger public in the way their standards of professional care demand" (p.72). Author frames this discussion around 'academics' anxieties' resulting from encroaching deprofessionalisation of academic work, particularly teaching, which "has not been a highly professionalized part of academic life" (p.73). This lack of coordination, scholarship and sharing of practice has opened up a market for 3rd party evaluators and state intervention in assessment and student [graduate] outcomes.
Teachers' inner landscapes: opens with discussion of Parker Palmer's book 'The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life' and his opening paragraphs which point to the highs and lows of teaching, and the emotional connections and barriers/ distance between teachers and students. Author interprets by arguing that teachers need to understand their inner landscapes in order to understand their students. A significant part of Palmer's argument is about risks of 'unexpressed emotions'.
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning: defined as academics "looking at their own classrooms as sites for
inquiry, finding and framing questions about student learning, gathering and exploring evidence to explore and shed light on those questions, trying out and refining new insights in their own practice, and in the process - by making their work public and accessible to colleagues - advancing teaching and learning in their institutions and fields" (p.76). However, not yet mainstream and mostly linked to individual advancement
Core argument: Ends with this question: "Are professionals (read, professors) out for their own interests (read,
academic prestige) or those of their clients (read, students and the public)? And, if they can't make good on their claims to public service, do they really deserve the privileges of collegial organization and autonomy they still enjoy?" (p.78).
Answer: teachers need to know themselves (practising reflexive inquiry of self) = key concern.

Context: Author sets out article by contesting the claim that school teachers are often considered 'uncaring' (reference to Noddings's work), pointing to the underpinning questions of "who is going to be doing the caring, within what context, based on what assumptions about why it is that students are in need of caring" (p.26). Author observed that where caring happened in his study, it did not always elicit a reciprocal affection between student-teacher. Author puts forward idea of 'institutional caring' as "a concern by middle-class professionals for lower-class clients that takes place within an institutional context in which the 'care-giver' looks out for the 'best interests' of the lower-class client...[that] largely takes place within a formal institutional context in which one of the parties to the relationship is paid by a state agency to 'relate to' or 'care for' the other, who is defined in one or more critical ways as being 'in need', 'deficient', or 'lesser than'" (p.26), which means that the caring often takes place within the constraints of the working day, within an institutional space, are likely to be 'one-sided'. These conditions prevent the open dialogic rhythm of a caring relationship: "Only one party to the relationship has the perceived legitimate authority to enter the private domain of the other" (p.26). Author argues that educational researchers tend to place blame for lack of care on structures of system while parents and students tend to place blame on individuals/ personalise their concerns about non-caring
Methodology: Essay based on observations from year-long 'compensatory program' with at risk high school students.
Findings: Offers a detailed case study of 'Jen' from her mum and teacher's perspectives, and outlines misunderstandings that result from different understandings and modalities of care (caring as excusing bad behaviour, caring as intrusion, caring as pseudo-parenting) which are taken up in often-unhelpful ways, and which are linked to the differential status (social class, power) of the teachers and the students/ their families. Author notes Noddings' note that middle-class teachers "act as though they wish their students could become 'just like me'" (p.36), without an adequate understanding of the culture/ practices of those they are trying to help.
Core argument: Institutional caring relationships are structural rather than personal (p.37) resulting from 3 factors: 1) differences in social class between teachers and students (resulting in feelings of super/inferiority); 2) the existence therefore of class/cultural differences (imposition down of middle-class norms and values); 3) failure to distinguish between public and private domains (p. 38). Institutional caring is "necessarily limited in its longevity, in sensitivity of perception, and in two-way communication" which are understood by participants and lead to "being actively resisted" by the subordinated (students).

Context: US higher education; teaching viewed as craft
Aim: To offer an example of how caring can be operationalized; to respond to these framing questions:
- "Can we do as she suggests in full-to-bursting classrooms of students-as-consumers?
- Is it possible to construct college classrooms that are nurturing, thoughtful, and just in the face of curricular mandates, limited hours, never-ending committee work, and institutional demands to publish and write grants? Do our classrooms address -dialogically or otherwise - what it means to be human?
- Are our students engaged, passionate, and articulate? How do we stir our students to wide-awakeness, imaginative action, and a passion for possibility?" (p.109)
Theoretical frame: Thayer-Bacon & Bacon's (1996) contention that caring is central to any model of teaching; Noddings' relational framework for thinking about caring
Methodology: Reflection on practice
Discussion: Author wanted to get to know her students better so she could support them better. One strategy she employed was to write to her students at the start of class and invite them to spend 15 minutes with her at the beginning of term, which 24 of the 29 students did. She argues that "the investment appears to pay great dividends" (p.112), in terms of student feedback and her responsive teaching.
Challenges: time/ volume of students. Author makes case that caring is part of emotional labour (gendered). Author also points to challenges of intensified workload of academics, casualization, personal life and own caring needs, especially when the caring is often one-sided (teachers caring for, rarely the one cared for): "Teachers might feel more cared for if institutions were more caring; if they were seen as more than interchangeable workers in the academy's market economy" (p.114).
Core argument: "if we are to make a difference, we must make sure that students know we care about them. Practices that encourage acceptance, trust, inclusion, and openness are central to all caring relationships and to a positive classroom climate" (114).

Context: Data drawn from author's PhD project: cross-cultural narrative study of students' English reading in HKG university. This article responds to one theme from PhD: "the teacher- student relationship with the presence/
absence of care contextualised students' English reading practices as a means of gender performance". Author argues that there has a been a lack of attention to gender in discussions of care in higher education. Author compares literature on care in early childhood, where gender does feature prominently, to literature on caring in higher education by virtue of the distinction between pastoral and pedagogical care, which leaves space for academic teachers to distance themselves from care. Author points to literature that makes claims about teachers and caring, but notes that literature on students' perceptions differs - in particular, author notes that in Bandura & Lyons' (2012) study, some students reported studying harder as a result of not receiving needed care from teachers, which the author argues "actually runs counter to a correlation between care and commitment" (p.77).
Aim: To examine conceptualisations of care from student and teacher perspectives from a gender perspective
Theoretical frame: Gilligan (1982): ethic of care v. justice; Noddings (1984): interpersonal relationships between care-giver/receiver (reciprocity over rationalism); Tronto (1993): political ethic of care (accounting for emotionality and rationality). Adopts Mariskind's (2014) framing of pastoral v. pedagogical care.
Methodology: Narrative inquiry: author presents narrative accounts of English language studies students' (n=8) experiences (from universities in China and Sweden) read through a multifaceted understanding of care. Article focuses on two 'telling cases' of female students and uses thematic analysis of pastoral and pedagogical care, and then discourse analysis to explore care in the students' narratives.
Findings:
Student 1 (woman, China): described care (in context of English language reading) in terms of attention to emotions and encouragement from a kind teacher. Her efforts and reading/ study practices corresponded with a perception of whether the teacher liked her or not. For this student, "a caring teacher means a teacher who provides pastoral care - giving personal attention and emotional support" (p.81).
Caring/ kind teacher (female): consciously tried to protect her students from being embarrassed; never used harsh words; adapted her teaching/ content to help students get a better grade
Not-so-caring/ direct teacher (male): enthusiastic, demanded extra time from students, gave extra tutoring. Used gender-insensitive jokes to 'motivate' class, used direct/ harsh language in class. Analysis = his focused on pedagogical care over pastoral care
Student 2 (woman, Sweden): student complained about men speaking more in classes by misogynistic treatment of male Philosophy teacher (who called her 'darling') and a female teacher who critiqued her work and who finally offered a one line positive review. Analysis: "she preferred teacher- student relationships in which teachers see her as a de-gendered learner, paying attention to her academic performance and offering pedagogical support when needed" (p.84).
Male Philosophy teacher (not the teacher described by student 2): perceived that boys tend to speak more as result of broader social patterns.
Female teacher: described by student as 'so caring' she failed to give critique. She was upset by the student's story [ethics?!?!] and said it was a form of encouragement.
All four teachers were aware of pastoral care but did not necessarily enact it; all four did enact pedagogical care. None expressed concern about their competence in giving care. De-gendered care more possible in caring about/ pedagogical care

Context: Gendered experiences/ constructions of care in teaching/ primary school workplace cultures
Theoretical frame: Feminist views of caring: relational/ cultural feminist/ ethic of care, connectedness = more characteristic of women than men (but see arguments about essentialism); other (UK) literature has explored the unpaid invisible labour of caring. In context of teaching, some literature has challenged gendered notions of care, with Nias (1989) arguing that men are as likely as women to get attached to their students; however, maternal connotations of care in teaching = deep roots. The model of teaching in primary (one teacher per class) = mimics "mother-like intense attachments and dedication... in their kitchen-like classrooms" (p.23). Literature argues that similar to 'good mothers', 'good teachers' "find their work is never done" (p.24); this mothering discourse disguises the fact that classrooms are workplaces, which creates the conditions for caring to be felt as a burden: "Teachers' caring activities, then, have from one perspective been seen as derived from their teacher identities; from another, as part of 'women's ways'; and from a third, as a consequence of the social expectations that women's caring work should blur the distinction between labour and love" (p.24).
Methodology: Ethnographic study of 'Hillview' school (inner city, not super deprived, primary, mostly white staff, led by a woman, children = mixed social class and ethnicities). Fieldwork over several years (totally 880 hours)
Findings: Teachers in Hillview demonstrated "evidence of dedication beyond the call of duty" (p.25) - leading to the teachers feeling/ being very tired. Teachers identified with their class, using terms like 'my/ your children'. Relaxed and informal communication observed, with teachers 'forgetting their dignity' [and acting like parents].
Many sources of stress for teachers too. School was not well-resourced (limited space, outdoor toilets, cold). Teachers lamented the lack of materials (compared with other better-equipped schools) and swapped tips on where to find cheap materials/ conserve those that they had. Discipline = "perennial problem" (p.27), especially at beginning/ end of school year. Teachers described feeling like their efforts to care were not recognised by children and/or parents, and felt guilty about how they felt when things/ people were challenging.
Discussion of teacher culture (literature argues both that primary teachers are isolated in their classrooms, but also that there are examples of collaborative cultures). The atmosphere in Hillview is described as "familial" and collegial (p.30) and teachers contributed to the running in domestic ways (such as baking for the school fair). Teachers supported each other emotionally (and practically) and socialise together.
Core argument: Acker's research illuminates two forms of caring: teachers caring for the children and caring for each other.
"Teachers cared deeply about the children and often had close relationships with their classes. Their behaviour is characteristic of 'women's caring', but it is caring in a context" (p.32). Teacher-student relationships = in flux and constantly negotiated
"My view is that there are certain cultural scripts seen as suitable for women in a given place and time, the caring script among them. It is not always possible for cultures to be organized around support and caring, even when they have women in them. A competitive work environment, or a manager with other ideas, would work against the emergence of such a culture" (p.33).

Context: Three regions in Aus: Greater Western Sydney; Albury and Wagga Wagga; Canberra.
Aim: Explore what barriers and challenges are faced by RBS who are transitioning from Australian secondary schools to university. Examine the disconnect between the intercultural vision that universities have for working with a diverse student cohort, and the teaching and learning practices within the curriculum which may not reflect the same vision.
Conclusions: 1) refugees should not be treated as a homogenous group; 2) Yet there are specific barriers faced by refugees that prove barriers to successfully transitioning from secondary school to university; 3) These students have high aspirations for educational attainment and strong desire to succeed academically; 4) Yet, there is a lack of directed support for these students to transition from school to university. Differences in teaching pedagogy and support strategies are problematic. Mixed messages along with a lack of support and guidance are barriers to achievement. Seems to imply that the lack of support can set students up to fail. English proficiency can be problematic. Development of interpersonal relationships and social support networks is crucial to academic success for these students. Specific academic support mechanisms are identified; more time to complete tasks, in order to account for language and literacy barriers. Flexibility is key. Many staff still treat the learning styles of refugees from a deficit model. External factors such as finances, lack of accommodation are identified as major issues that impact on a student's ability to attend and focus on study. RBS require pastoral and financial care, to ensure they can concentrate on their studies. Students and staff recognised that mentoring was significant to success: but how far can this be drawn on as a responsibility of staff?
Core argument: Identifies that there is an invisibility of RBS as a distinct cohort, meaning they have little targeted support programs. Suggests that in order to measure this as a longitudinal process means universities need to collect data on RBS retention, goal attainment, and degree completion. Outlines recommendations for how to achieve greater equity for refugee students, including: staff require recognising the specific cultural dimensions of RBS; these prior experiences should be viewed as assets, rather than problems; staff should embed cultural understandings and support into teaching and within their disciplines in order maximise retention; require specific types of language support; support is best delivered face to face and tailored, rather than embedded in generic academic skills programs; the multilingual skills of RBS should be acknowledged and used; use of strengths based approaches; encourage academic lecturers to see academic literacy and language learning as core business, not peripheral; move beyond discourse of 'vulnerability' to consider refugee backgrounds as asserts and resources, RBS are skilled and capable; offer targeted supports, including scholarships, financial assistance, assistance to find part-time employment, and access to safe and secure accommodation; provision of systematic academic and mentoring programs specifically targeting RBS; awareness raising and sharing of successful strategies between staff who work with RBS; on enrolment at university, students to be given the option to identify as refugee background in order to be offered the option of targeted support; institutions should develop equity and access policies and practices that provide a supportive an caring environment for RBS

Context: 'Tertiary bridging program' at a regional university in QLD
Aim: To ascertain factors in students' lives that contributed to low levels of school exam success; to trace demographic info and past educational experience of a group of 18-22-year-old students taking the enabling program.
Methodology: Psychologically-oriented questionnaires
Conclusions: Data suggest that low-SES/ FinF/ type of school attended did not influence academic achievement. Only aspect of students' social context that impacted on ac. Achievement was student-teacher relationship/ biggest influence on students' emotional engagement = quality of student-teacher relationships/ family relationships also appear to be influential on emotional and scholarly engagement (p. 9)
Core Argument: "The major implications that this study has on educational practice in secondary school and the tertiary bridging program is that educators must be aware of the hegemony that the student-teacher relationship has in respect of the academic experience of students, particularly those who are poorly engaged." (p.15)

Context: Examines transition from school to university in context of enabling program (Murdoch: TLC) in Australian higher education. TLC = for low SES school students (Year 12) who did not get ATAR needed - identifies students " - achieved through 'dynamic assessment' based on progressive cognitive development (Vygotsky's ZPD) = unique compared to other alternative entry pathways/ enabling programs due to use of ZPD and early recognition of Year 12 students: "the program is focused on catching students before they fall out of the educational system" (p.699). Scopes literature on study and career aspirations/ expectations for low SES communities. TLC = provides a 'seamless transition' (see p.701)- students study TLC alongside HSC subjects on local campus. TLC = tracks cognitive development: "In keeping with the concept of ZPD, the unit focuses on the identification of the transitional readiness of students and the facilitation of their capacity to move from borderline patterns of critical and academic thought towards established cognitive formations" (p.702).
Aim: To describe TLC
Theoretical frame: Vygotsky's theorization of the zone of proximal development (ZPD)
Methodology: Description of program and links to theory of ZPD
Findings:
Describes TLC/ ZPD in detail (p.702-6). Success of students' transitions measured by:
(i) enrolment at MU following successful completion of TLC, (ii) first-year retention at university and (iii) GPA for all units studied during their first year at MU [SB: very linear notion of transition]
89% of students who finished TLC demonstrated 'critical and academic skills'
75% of students enrol at Murdoch [no note about whether students enrol in HE elsewhere]
TLC students record similar GPA to other students
"The successful transition measured by high retention and GPA is likely to be associated with positive attrition within TLC" (p.707).
Core argument: TLC helps to 'catch low SES students before they fall out of the system'

Context: Set in a context where several academic programs placing emphasis on social justice have emerged in US and Canada, although HE has only recently been viewed as a 'major social institution worthy of study' (p. 327) (Altbach, 2006) in regards to the role of education in social justice. Institutional context: A small group of faculty & students at Iowa State Education created a Social Justice Concentration in their Ph.D. program in HE. Course context: Course reflects a wide range of expertise in the faculty; most critical course - introductory course, which provides students with 'multidisciplinary theories & concepts grounded in social justice, from individual to structural perspectives'.
Aim: To 'illustrate and grapple with the challenges of doing social justice work in a neoliberal academic environment' (abstract) in HE at this point of time.
Theoretical frame: Not specified in study.
Methodology: Essay on challenges & possibilities of developing a social justice concentration.
Discussion: 1) Challenges & possibilities of resources - challenges: insufficient resources (largest struggle for concentration); limited human resources; possibilities: diverse range of expertise in faculty; support from department chair; students interested in the concentration (great resource).; 2)Challenges & possibilities of organisational structure - challenges: institutional structures & constraints which fragment collectivistic & shared leadership; possibilities - informal networks & alliances across the university to build support among colleagues; 3)Challenges & possibilities of centering subjugated knowledges - challenges: questioning the fundamental "organizational forms of the university," by including perspectives that go beyond the focus on "rational, impersonal, non-emotive, and non- experiential learning" (Arthur, 2009, p. 82); possibilities: introducing elements (eg: arts-based inquiry & contemplative practices) which aid in valuing & centering a wide range of perspectives to 'challenge the status quo and nurture a dialogue' (p. 335) about what valid knowledge is in HE; 4)Challenges & possibilities of impact - challenges: ensuring that the way social justice is engaged 'values diverse perspectives' (p. 335); 5)Implications: a)The social concentration development process suggests that change strategies employed are impacted by the "logics of the institution" (Armstrong & Bernstein, 2008, p.76) - there is therefore a mutual interdependence among the structure, the logic of the institution and the critical agency of HE practitioners (Armstrong & Bernstein, 2008; Canaan & Shumar, 2008); b)Despite the need to contextualise each situation in terms of challenges, it should be recognised that these challenges are not in isolation, but interconnected, where efforts of HE practitioners in addressing on challenge may ultimately affect other approaches or outcomes to other challenges.
Core argument: Although the challenges in developing a social justice concentration in the selected HE institution match and in some cases far outweigh the opportunities, there is no acceptable alternative for not advocating social justice in HE. HEIs should 'continue to strive to center subjugated knowledges in the academy, to honour different ways of knowing, and to work for progressive social change by engaging in projects that create an academy that is truly inclusive' (abstract).

Context: Explores experiences of mature-age students within Australian sub-degree cohort/ alternative entry pathway program. Mature age students = contribute to diversified student cohort. At time of writing, author claims there were 13/44 universities that offered Alternative Entry Programs (AEPs) which provide admission for mature students who did not meet 'traditional' entry requirements. AEPs = introduce academic culture, including practices and expectations. Alternative access schemes: STAT/ Special Entry Provision/ admissions test/ pre-admissions exam/ 'other basis' = enabling programs. Few universities published data (in 2006) on numbers of mature age students. Data presented on p.180 (from DEST) suggests that mature age students prefer enabling courses (in terms of numbers entering via). 20-30 years olds most likely to enter via 'other basis'/ AEP. AEPs could include enabling courses (Open Foundation mentioned on p.185) but this is not made explicit.
Aim: To illustrate how mature students' decisions to attend an AEP are influenced by a complex mix of adult circumstances (p.177) - taken from case study of nature and outcomes of AEPs for mature age students (not including NESB or indigenous students).
Methodology: Literature review/discussion paper
Key points: More women than men enrol in AEPs; women who were early school leavers or had been prohibited from further study = most keen to enrol in AEPs = 'catch up education' (p.182). Limited data on equity groupings. People from low SES background/rural or regional background = most likely to enter AEP. Generally = Australian, non-indigenous, English speaking students access AEPs - generally universities offer specialist courses for indigenous students and 'international students' [author seems to be conflating NESB and international students].
Interviews with staff reflect perception that demographic is shifting from women in middle-income households to broader mix of people: "They are a younger, fragile, less skilled, less confident student ... The traditional upper-middle-class mum has changed to a broader demographic: people with mental illness, more people with issues (Cullity 2005: 182). Notes increase in numbers of unemployed people on benefits
Pedagogical implications: draws on New Literacy Studies work that points to gaps in expectations and realities in terms of students' knowledges, practices and expectations (regarding literacies). Also draws on 'approaches to learning' literature
Challenges: lack of understanding of mature age learners' backgrounds/ characteristics of mature age learners = limitation

Context: Introduction to Special Issue on ESRC/ TLRP-funded projects (see David, 2008)

"All 10 papers consider how cultural, economic and social questions, such as class, diversity, ethnicity or gender, impinge upon teaching and learning and influence learning outcomes, questions which are currently addressed by UK government and policy-makers"
"Together [the papers] reveal the complexities of concepts and contexts that influence the processes, pedagogies and practices within compulsory and post-compulsory education, and how diverse people's lives are, over a lifetime of learning. Perhaps one of the most important lessons from these studies is the serendipity in learning and learning outcomes in post-compulsory and higher education, across the lifecourse".
(p.111).

Context: The disenfranchisement of students from 'non-traditional' backgrounds by institutional cultures that place them as 'other'. The "dominant discourses of knowledge, communication and practice in higher education" that comprise "an academic 'culture' that influences (and is influenced by) the ways in which students and lecturers think, speak and write in the academy (Bartholomae, 1985; Grant, 1997; Lea & Street, 1998)" and its juxtaposition against the fact that "Academic culture is not uniformly accessed or experienced"(261). However, these discourses are not passively received and in fact, individuals engage with/challenge them.
Aim: To explore students' conceptions of 'belonging' and 'isolation' within higher education, particularly among 'non-traditional' students with regards to class, maturity, and ethnicity, specifically, "the extent to which such students can challenge their positioning as 'other' by choosing a university where they feel they can 'belong'; the extent to which institutional academic cultures work to constrain and disrupt such feelings of 'belonging'; the adoption of alternative discourses of the student-lecturer/student-institution relation, and the extent to which such discourses can challenge feelings of isolation and marginalisation in the academy" (261).
Theoretical frame: Theories of belonging and otherness which are constrained by "socially prevalent and culturally distinct discourses about academia (articulated, for example, through the media, through their educational system, through their families and friends) [and] particular sources of information for 'outsiders' constructed and presented by higher education institutions themselves, in the form of prospectuses, open days, etc." (262) and influence common conceptions or stereotypes about 'good' and/or 'normal' students.
Methodology: Article is based on material from "33 focus groups, with a total of 175 students from a wide variety of subject disciplines, in one urban 'new' university ('Capital University')" (264), however only uses material from 17 (85 students total) of the 33 focus groups.
Findings: Feelings of inauthenticity and fear of social/academic inadequacy amongst mature-aged students and choosing the Capital University in order to feel like they "belong." Similar expressions surrounding class and elitism from other students. Based on the findings, the authors "suggest that for a number of so-called 'non-traditional' students, the diversity of the student population at Capital University offers the possibility of a higher education environment where the 'other' can move from the periphery to centre stage: where students from a range of ethnic backgrounds, ages or classes can feel they 'belong'" (267-8). However, while access to higher education has increased and diversified, elitism amongst institutional perception persists.
Core argument: Policy developments that address the experiences of students whilst they are at university as well as in initial recruitment and initiatives that "focus on 'cultural' aspects of the academy such as methods and styles of teaching and learning" (275). Finally, "provision of more funding for institutions to provide effective long-term support that caters for the differential needs of diverse 'non-traditional' students" (275).

Context: Despite nearly 20 years of concerted policy attention and significant funding streams, stark differences remain in the proportions of young people from different SES groups who progress to HE in the UK. Often this has been conceptualised as a problem with their 'aspirations', with the solution being seen as the provision of 'aspiration-raising' activities. The policy aim to widen participation has thus been inexorably linked to the discourse of aspirations for nearly 20 years.
Theoretical frame: Markus and Nurius (1986) notion of 'possible selves' provides a theoretical lens for examining the interplay between future selves a young person might desire and ones they think are likely. The pool of possible selves a young person can imagine derives from the categories made salient by their particular sociocultural and historical context and from the models, images and symbols provided by the media and by the individual's immediate social experiences. For disadvantaged young people, fewer options may seem (or objectively are) possible. However, possible selves are working concepts which are constantly in flux, responding reflexively to accumulated personal experiences, social encounters and the wider sociocultural context.
Method: A review of the literature on aspirations and expectations, following by a mixed method empirical study exploring the construction of 'success' among two generations of practitioner-managers working to widen participation in HE in England.
Findings:
Literature Review:
Aspirations and SES: Disadvantaged young peoples' aspirations for both HE and future careers are high. Indeed, they are often higher than the realistic opportunities available to them within the labour market and/or at their likely level of attainment.
Aspirations and attainment: There is insufficient evidence of a causal link between aspirations and attainment to justify trying to raise aspirations in order to raise attainment.
Attainment and participation: The direct impact of socioeconomic status is reduced to nearly zero once age 11 and age 16 attainment are taken into account, but the majority of this effect is age 16. This isn't to say that SES factors have no impact on decisions to enter HE, but rather that their effect is mediated through earlier attainment.
Aspirations vs. expectations: There is little relationship between aspirations and expectations based on large national datasets, but this is particularly the case for disadvantaged groups. Whereas the relationship between SES and aspirations is weak, the relationship is much stronger for expectations. Further, expectations are a better predictor of outcomes such as HE participation. This is because a desired future that is not also considered probable is unlikely to increase motivation or spur action.
Empirical data: The language of aspiration-raising continues to permeate the field-it is where practitioner-managers appear comfortable and where they feel their institutions are successful. There is little confidence that institutional efforts to raise attainment are successful, with a common reliance on raising aspirations to improve school results. Further, around a third of institutions felt that attainment-raising was entirely outside their remit. Finally, there has been a falling away of activities with more potential for social transformation, in favour of those which have tangible short-term measures of 'success' and a presumed causal relationship with recruitment outcomes.
Core argument: Authors call for rejecting the discourse of aspiration-raising and argue that young people's expectations and attainment are more appropriate targets for policy intervention. Three key recommendations: 1) work with younger groups of children while their expectations are still forming and when a more expansive pool of possible selves can be developed, 2) engage more directly with parents and other community influencers to challenge the expectations they hold for young people and 3) focus more attention on teachers, including assisting in terms of developing theory-grounded attainment-raising interventions across the primary and early secondary phases.

Context: In 2015, in an effort to improve the educational outcomes of care leavers, the first two authors collaborated to initiate the Raising Expectations project at two Australian universities, Federation University Australia (FUA) and La Trobe University (LTU) with an 'industry partner', the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare (the Centre). The project was supported by a Myer Foundation large triennial grant, and subsequent support was received through the Victorian Department of Education. LTU is located across five Victorian campuses, with its base in a major city (Melbourne), and FUA is based in a large regional centre (the city of Ballarat), 100 km from Melbourne, with a number of other rural and urban campuses. This project aimed to develop university outreach and recruitment strategies to raise the number of care leavers accessing HE; and to identify and support those care leavers already enrolled within both universities. Raising Expectations was itself informed by previous research conducted by the first two authors of this paper, funded by the Australian Government Department of Education. Recruiting and Supporting Care Leavers was a collaborative project involving LTU, FUA, Western Sydney University (WSU), and the Queensland University of Technology (QUT).
Aim: To 'examine the processes, outcomes and key findings of the Raising Expectations project, a collaborative university and industry approach to promote higher education among care leavers' at FUA and LTU (abstract).
Theoretical Framework: Not specified in study.
Methodology: Phase 1: Conducted within the Recruiting and Supporting Care Leavers project: Semi-structured, in-depth interviews with care leavers across four universities (FUA, LTU, WSU, UQ), particularly within FUA & LTU (n=25). Issues covered: application and enrolment processes; transitions into HE; support services at university. Data analysis: Interpretative phenomenological approach (Smith, Flowers, & Larkin, 2016). Phase 2: To identify and recruit care leavers, the two universities (FUA & LTU) followed different but complementary methodologies, reflecting differences in the respective backgrounds and areas of expertise of the project leaders, and disparate student demographics associated with the institutions' widely different geographical locations. FUA Project: led by a care-leaver research academic who gathered data directly by arranging for the university's admissions department to include a specific tick-box question on enrolment forms encouraging prospective students to identify as care leavers. To facilitate this approach, FUA employed a social-work graduate with strong personal insight into the care-leaver experience to act as care-leaver coordinator and liaise directly with care-leaver students. LTU Project: LTU partners were unable to secure modification of the university enrolment form, but were instead able to secure funding from the university's allocation of HE participation and partnerships programme (HEPPP) funding to provide bursaries for enrolled care- leaver students, which then enabled their subsequent identification within the student system. Responsibility to support the care-leaver students was allocated across a range of student development advisers, while the central university outreach programme was also expanded to include new schools in which students in OOHC were known to be studying.
Findings: 1)Significant challenges that needed to be addressed by the Raising Expectations Project: 'oppressive level of judgmental scrutiny' (p. 578); culture of low expectations towards care-leavers; financial need. 2) Impact of the implementation of the project: a very substantial increase in care-leaver enrolments at FUA over the project's (so far) three-year run, from 20 to 160 under- graduates, plus 20 postgraduates; policy advocacy has resulted in the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC)2 taking the major step of formally recognising care leavers as an equity group and including a question on VTAC application forms inviting care leavers to identify as such for special consideration.
Discussion: The success of the project, specifically in raising enrolment rates, reflects the importance of developing a strong evidence base and including the voices of care leavers in project design and implementation. The project findings could be used to guide further universities to develop formal policies for enrolling and supporting students from an OOHC background, including a specific student services officer who has a specialist knowledge of the impact of state care experience.
Recommendations: Steps to improve access to HE for care leavers: 1) extend state care obligations beyond 18 years and ensure that every care leaver had a post-18 educational support plan based on a partnership between child protection and education (McDowall, 2010). 2) establish a post-18 national database similar to that maintained by the British government's Department of Education, to monitor the progress of care leavers in a range of areas, and specifically determine the number of care-leavers who had entered and/or completed HE. 3) provision of a generous and reliable financial support (eg: offer a major bursary for each care leaver undertaking HE, like the British government) 4)Governments could ensure that the voices and views of care leavers are highlighted in policy design 5)Empowerment of care-experience leaders to redress culture of low-expectations towards care leavers
Core argument: The importance of policy and practice reforms informed by rigorous research, particularly involving the voices and agency of care leavers.

Context: Examines evolution of WP as policy discourse in UK HE - moving from expanded access to HE for women in mid 20th century. Post-WWII = 'equality of educational opportunity' principle - initially for secondary education and later extended to post-compulsory education. Initially about disadvantage, later about economy (in Thatcher years = neoliberal agenda - but notes how despite proliferation of market, participation continued to widen and the gender gap closed in school, but not for all social classes). New Labour did not challenge privatisation/ marketisation of education. WP = reached a peak during New Labour = legislated for equality duties (but = 'on individualistic grounds', p.24) - focus on access rather than participation. WP = major policy discourse for 13 years but still linked to neoliberal policy discourse + economic agenda. Under Con/ Lib Dem coalition = more individualistic about social mobility (see changing unit names/ locations of HE responsibility).
Theoretical frame:
Methodology: Discussion; reports on TLRP research = brief overview of each section of the project.
Findings: Vignoles' project = shows that socioeconomic gap in HE = due to secondary school participation/ achievement. Young low SES students = more likely to drop out; mature age women = less likely to drop out. To reap benefits of HR = students need "to secure a good class of first degree"; therefore, need to raise expectations, especially of low SES boys (p.29). Hayward's project shows gendered rates of participation (more males via FE college pathway) - transition from VET - HE = difficult
Core argument: Policy discourse = moved away from equity/equality and towards social mobility, with selective evidence based used to make argument and instrumental focus on jobs. David Willetts (launching White Paper) blamed lack of progress of males on progress of women, meaning that some households had two graduates earning, while others had none