Counteracting Social Exclusion A Role for Higher Education? Michael Cooper European Access Network

1. Counteracting Social Exclusion A Role for Higher Education? Michael Cooper European Access Network Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

2. Structure: • Points of departure • Defining access and quality • The importance of access • Potential incompatibility with quality • Counteracting social exclusion • Conclusions Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

3. Access has a positive effect on quality Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

4. Access has a positive effect on quality Access has a negative effect on quality Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

5. What do we mean by access and why are we interested in it? What do we mean by access and why are we interested in it? Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

6. What do we mean by access and why are we interested in it? What do we mean by access and why are we interested in it? - Providing an opportunity for all groups, in particular those that are under-represented, to complete appropriate and relevant higher education. Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

7. Who are underrepresented in higher education and why? Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

8. There are many reasons: Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

9. There are many reasons: - Gender Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

10. There are many reasons: - Gender - Ethnic Origin Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

11. There are many reasons: There are many reasons: - Gender - Ethnic Origin - Nationality Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

12. There are many reasons: - Gender - Ethnic Origin - Nationality - Age Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

13. There are many reasons: - Gender - Ethnic Origin - Nationality - Age - Disability Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

14. There are many reasons: - Gender - Ethnic Origin - Nationality - Age - Disability - Employment Status Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

15. There are many reasons: - Income Level Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

16. There are many reasons: - Income Level - Family Background Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

17. There are many reasons: - Income Level - Family Background - Geographical Location Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

18. There are many reasons: - Income Level - Family Background - Geographical Location - Earlier Education Disadvantage Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

19. Why access? • There are three arguments: • Intellectual – diversity of ideas • Moral – the idea of an egalitarian society • Pragmatic – good for business Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

20. What do we mean by quality? Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

21. What do we mean by quality? - Quality is always relative to something. Students, staff, curricula, institutions are always measured against a norm. Thus quality involves standards, either perceived or imagined. Sometimes it is simply in the eye of the beholder. Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

22. Access v quality Why do some claim that the two are incompatible? Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

23. Access v quality Why do some claim that the two are incompatible? - Access means alternative admission requirements, lower standards, more academic support, longer study periods Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

24. Result: • - Perception of an erosion of quality • - Reputation suffers • Ranking level drops • Institution attracts fewer students • Institution loses income Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

25. Is this true? Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

26. Is this true? • - Quality becomes ranking Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

27. Is this true? • Quality becomes ranking • Reputation becomes a stand-in for excellence Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

28. Is this true? • Quality becomes ranking • Reputation becomes a stand-in for excellence • The ranking system becomes the standard Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

29. Two false assumptions: Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

30. Two false assumptions: • - There is no distinction between entry quality and exit quality Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

31. Two false assumptions: • There is no distinction between entry quality and exit quality • - One ranking system fits all. Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

32. U-Multirank: Multi-dimensional Global ranking of Universities;a feasibility project http://www.u-multirank.eu/ Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

33. Access In, through and out Counteracting social exclusion Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

34. In – Outreach activities (1) A question of attitude – also of language Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

35. In – Outreach activities (2) Primary School Children: - University of Liverpool, UK – Professor Fluffy (www.liv.ac.uk/educational-opportunities) - European Children’s University Network (http://eucu.net) Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

36. In – Outreach activities (3) Primary School Children: - Student mentoring – Nightingale Project at Malmö University, Sweden (www.mah.se/naktergalen) Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

37. In – Outreach activities (4) Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) One example of many – Open University of the Netherlands Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

38. In – Outreach activities (5) Targeting specific groups - Providing Educational Opportunities for New Communities – Glyndŵr University, Wales (www.glyndwr.ac.uk) Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

39. Through – Retention (1) It is not enough merely to admit the students into the institution Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

40. Through – Retention (2) Curriculum – Content and Structure - Bridging and foundation programmes - Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (www.vu.nl) Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

41. Through – Retention (3) • Curriculum – Content and Structure • - Example: Work-integrated learning • - WACE – World Association for Cooperative Education (www.waceinc.org) Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

42. Through – Retention (4) Support Services - Language and communication training – Oslo University College (www.hio.no) Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

43. Through – Retention (5) Staff training - Preparing academics to meet different types of students – Technische Universität Berlin (www.tu-berlin.de/zek) Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

44. Out - Employability (1) Employability depends on what you know Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

45. Out - Employability (2) Employability depends on what you know but also on who you are Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

46. Out - Employability (3) Partnerships and work placements as a pathway to employment Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

47. What does this really mean? Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

48. It means working in various ways to: - Develop and maintain a proactive approach to the community Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

49. It means working in various ways to: • Develop and maintain a proactive approach to the community • - Change the culture of the campus and university Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia

50. It means working in various ways to: • Develop and maintain a proactive approach to the community • - Change the culture of the campus and university • - Provide academic and social services adapted the needs of the students Michael Cooper - HER Nicosia