FACE e-Bulletin | November 2019

News

This is the monthly e-Bulletin from FACE (the Forum for Access and Continuing Education)(link is external), offered to practitioners, policy-makers, researchers and others with an interest in access, widening participation and lifelong learning. In this month's issue PASCAL Director and FACE Executive Member Michael Osborne provides an update on the highly impactful work he and others are doing on Learning Cities(link is external).
 

NEWS  |  SECTOR NEWS  |  EVENTS  |  CALL FOR PAPERS
 

A major event, a major report and a new face at FACE!

This month we are very excited to promote what has fast become one of the premier widening participation events in UK higher education: the joint Universities UK and Action on Access Student Success Summit(link is external). Read below on why you should attend from Andrew Rawson (Director of Action on Access and FACE Executive Member).

We also have a fantastic op-ed blog(link is external) by FACE Executive Member Robin Webber-Jones on the recent EHRC report and its implications on our sector. Additionally, our own FACE Executive Member Michael Osborne, provides an update on the highly impactful work he and others are doing on Learning Cities(link is external).


Lastly, it's with a tinge of sadness that I announce this is my last e-bulletin as FACE's Webmaster. It's been a great few years at the digital helm but time to take on new challenges--not to worry I will stick around on the FACE Executive! I am very excited to reveal that the very talented Jessica Benson-Egglenton(link is external) is taking over from me. Jess has spent her career working in higher education, with a focus on widening participation evaluation and research, and has recently taken up a PhD studentship at Sheffield Hallam University. FACE is in very good hands!

As usual, we've done our best to collate interesting sector news and key sector events for you so you can prioritise what to attend in the coming months.

Do get in touch at webmaster@face.ac.uk(link sends e-mail) if you'd like to contribute a blog post to a future e-bulletin.

Happy reading,

Stephane and the FACE team
 

Student Success Summit: Joining the dots

The 9th annual Access to HE and Student Success Summit -  Joining the Dots - organised by Action on Access together with Universities UK, will take place on 13th November in London. 
 
Be there or miss out on a chance to take part in this year's rounded and informed view of widening participation issues across the student journey, together with opportunities for delegate contribution to the summit and for networking with delegates from a wide range of institutions and roles. 
 
Three respected and experienced keynote speakers: Chris Millward, Director Fair Access and Participation, OfS; Helen Thorne, MBE, Director of External Relations at UCAS; Stephen Isherwood, Chief Executive of the Institute of Employers.
 
Choices of workshop: parallel sessions on the support and advice to widening participation students by advisers in Sixth Forms, the work of professional academic advisers, and the work of Student Unions. What advice and support goes on inside institutions, by your colleagues outside the formal WP roles?
 
Additionally sessions on care leavers, beyond-institutional and collaborative work, embedding accessibility and compliance in online and digital content.
 
And a discussion facilitated by John Storan with experts on the wider and economic benefits of widening participation and improved student success and employability, i.e. examining the cost-effectiveness of WP interventions.

I hope to see you there.

Andrew Rawson, Director Action on Access

13 November 2019 | Central London | Register now! (link is external)
 

EHRC Report: a wake up call

By Robin Webber-Jones

The recent Equality and Human Right’s Commission (EHRC) Report into harassment in higher education presents some serious challenges that the sector has to tackle.  The EHRC have evidently worked well with the sector (including through UUK) in compiling the report.  The sector acknowledges incidents are likely to be under reported, partly because of lack of confidence in complaints processes and reporting is less likely where staff and student populations come from less diverse backgrounds.

In many ways the Report has been described as a ‘wake-up call’...

Read the whole blog(link is external)
 

Inclusive learning cities

By Michael Osbourne, University of Glasgow

I write in the week following the 4th UNESCO Learning Cities conference in Medellin, Colombia to which my colleagues and I have made some contributions as evident in this recent posting(link is external) on the website of the PASCAL Observatory.

However, despite UNESCO’s Learning Cities agenda, which argues for the mobilisation of resources to promote education across all sectors and environments, there is little evaluative research on learning city engagement which is both naturalistic and rigorous (see Lido, Reid and Osborne 2019).

Read the whole blog(link is external)

News from the sector

Adult learners drop to 20 year low (link is external)(TES)

Carers need more visibility in higher education(link is external) (Wonkhe)

Students who have unconditional offers more likely to quit (link is external)(Guardian)

Upcoming events 
 

100 years of radical Adult Education in Scotland: Building hope for the future | 16 November 2019 | Glasgow, Scotland More details(link is external) (link is external)

Care-Experienced Learners in HE: Facilitating Completion of Degree Programmes | 20 November 2019 | Central London More details (link is external)

What if... education policy was shaped by a commitment to social justice? | 5 December 2019 | Central London More details(link is external)

Why Evaluate 2: From Evidence to Action | 2-3 December 2019 | Sheffield More details(link is external)

Lifelong Learning: Preparing For Our Future World | 11 December 2019 | Waterford (Ireland) More details (link is external)

NCOP: What’s next? | 29 January 2020 | Birmingham More details (link is external)


Know about any events addressing access to HE, continuing education or lifelong learning? Email: webmaster@face.ac.uk(link sends e-mail)

Calls for contributions
 

Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning Journal | Deadline: ongoing More details (link is external)

UALL Annual Conference 2020 | Deadline: 16 December 2019 | More details(link is external) (link is external)


Know about any calls for papers, abstracts, presentations, workshops, posters? Email: webmaster@face.ac.uk(link sends e-mail)

 

Discussion topics: 

CR&DALL Themes: 

Author: 

Stephane Farenga

Post date: 

Tuesday, 5 November, 2019