Flexibility at work: a study of further education

Edwards, Richard; Clarke, Julia; Harrison, Roger; Reeve, Fiona

doi:10.1080/13636820100200167

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…In one vignette a successful and improving college had lost a third of its staff team after restructuring. Teachers were placed on flexible contracts (Edwards & Clarke, 2001, Jameson & Hillier, 2008) that specified no fixed number of teaching hours with the justification that this allowed the college to benefit from a 'model [that] enabled managers to deploy staff resources according to developmental or quality needs.' It is not entirely clear why deploying staff according to developmental or quality needs requires contracts that offer no staff protection by limiting the number of teaching hours required in any given academic year.…”

Section: Relational and Networked Positioningmentioning

confidence: 99%

Positioning further education and community colleges: Text, teachers and students as global discourse

Dennis

2014

Studies in the Education of Adults

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This paper explores ideas about quality in further education and community colleges as articulated by two policy texts. Published in 2012 'How Colleges improve' examines the factors that have contributed towards sustained high performance or improvement in Further Education (FE) colleges in the UK. 'The Heart of Student Success: teaching, learning and college completion' published in 2010, focuses on similar set of concerns for Community College (CC) students in the US. Both documents are analysed as enactments within an extended policy process through which the use of language separates the pedagogic encounter into two distinct activities, teaching and learning, strips it of its grounding in social, political and material relations and through the demands of quality ensures that a disaggregated pedagogy loses its emancipatory potential. I make use of a qualitative comparative methodology to explore how this is accomplished through three textual positionings: the positioning assumed by the documents themselves; the positioning ascribed to teachers and the positioning that defines students.

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Section: Relational and Networked Positioningmentioning

confidence: 99%

Positioning further education and community colleges: Text, teachers and students as global discourse

Dennis

2014

Studies in the Education of Adults

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“…Some work has been also been done in the education sector around flexibility (Cloonan, 2004; Edwards et al , 2001). Educational institutions need to become flexible both to serve the flexible economy and to make educational programmes more flexible.…”

Section: Insight Into Flexibility From Other Sectorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Theory, research and practice in library management 1: Flexibility

Walton

2007

Library Management

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Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to discuss the concept of flexibility as it applies to libraries. Design/methodology/approach -Specific cases are from the literature introduced where libraries have introduced aspects of flexibility. Lessons that can be learned from other sectors regarding flexibility are also presented. Findings -There are three central themes for libraries to address when considering the various theories and research around flexibility: importance of management, human resources issues and the need to know the user. Flexibility has to be managed proactively as a concept in libraries.Originality/value -The paper provides food for thought for library practitioners in the use of flexibility in an increasingly uncertain world.

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“…There is a policy logic to such ideas. However, flexibility and articulation are not as straightforward as they are often presented as being (Edwards et al, 2001).…”

Section: Flexibility and Effectiveness Of Routesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inquiring into Lifelong Learning

Osborne

Edward

2003

Journal of Adult and Continuing Education

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The Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Committee of the Scottish Parliament has conducted an inquiry into lifelong learning and produced both an interim and final report (Scottish Parliament, 2002a, b). The inquiry had a number of strands to it, including a wide-ranging consultation on a number of questions. In this article, the findings of the inquiry itself are not discussed – rather the authors discuss the feasibility of, and constraints intrinsic to, inquiring into lifelong learning. The authors suggest that the evidence base for policy is relatively under-developed and that the research that does exist points to the multi-faceted complexity of lifelong learning as both a means and end of policy. Drawing policy conclusions from the current research evidence base may therefore be premature. This discussion is situated within some of the wider debates about evidence-informed policy and practice.

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Flexibility at work: a study of further education

Cited by 7 publications

References 5 publications

Positioning further education and community colleges: Text, teachers and students as global discourse

Positioning further education and community colleges: Text, teachers and students as global discourse

Theory, research and practice in library management 1: Flexibility

Inquiring into Lifelong Learning

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