Older adults in further education: re-defining careers in a recession, a narrative inquiry.

The focus of this research is an exploration of the impact of the current recession on the older adults’ decision to re-define their career path through further education (FE). I perceived a need for this research as I am concerned that the guidance needs of older professionally qualified, unemployed adults may be overlooked. I began with the assumption that ‘second recession’ adults in FE are pursuing a new career identity because of unemployment caused by the current economic recession. The methodological framework of the investigation involved narrative inquiry based around interviews of four older adults who were participating in FE. A basic grounded theory approach and thematic analysis of the data led to the emergence of key themes for discussion which were, life stage; power; opportunity and emigration; meaning making and resolution; and the relevance of the recession in the lives of the respondents. Through the narratives, it was demonstrated that the recession in isolation has not impacted on the career decisions of the participants but it has facilitated an opportunity for them to engage in FE, rather than any conscious decision by them to re-train or up-skill because of unemployment. In addition to the general conclusion, I have advocated for the use of narrative inquiry in guidance as a lens to identify the vocational needs of the older adults, to assist their transition to a new career. This is an issue which is of relevance to all adult guidance counsellors and policy makers in an era when the emphasis of employment re-activation policy is on the national skills shortages

Older adults in further education: re-defining careers in a recession, a narrative inquiry.

The focus of this research is an exploration of the impact of the current recession on the older adults’ decision to re-define their career path through further education (FE). I perceived a need for this research as I am concerned that the guidance needs of older professionally qualified, unemployed adults may be overlooked. I began with the assumption that ‘second recession’ adults in FE are pursuing a new career identity because of unemployment caused by the current economic recession. The methodological framework of the investigation involved narrative inquiry based around interviews of four older adults who were participating in FE. A basic grounded theory approach and thematic analysis of the data led to the emergence of key themes for discussion which were, life stage; power; opportunity and emigration; meaning making and resolution; and the relevance of the recession in the lives of the respondents. Through the narratives, it was demonstrated that the recession in isolation has not impacted on the career decisions of the participants but it has facilitated an opportunity for them to engage in FE, rather than any conscious decision by them to re-train or up-skill because of unemployment. In addition to the general conclusion, I have advocated for the use of narrative inquiry in guidance as a lens to identify the vocational needs of the older adults, to assist their transition to a new career. This is an issue which is of relevance to all adult guidance counsellors and policy makers in an era when the emphasis of employment re-activation policy is on the national skills shortages

The Usefulness of Digital Badges in Higher Education: Exploring the Students’ Perspectives

Many students entering higher education (HE) today have never known life without the internet. By the time students enter HE, many have been exposed to playing digital games and consider them a very useful learning tool. However, utilising gamification for student engagement and student learning in HE has not been investigated thoroughly, and this paper attempts to contribute to this emerging field of study as suggested by Gibson et al. (2015) and Reid et al. (2015). A survey investigating the usefulness of digital badges for student learning and engagement was distributed to two hundred and fifty-seven (275) undergraduate students at the College of Business, University College Dublin. The results suggest that the incorporation of digital badges into a module is beneficial as they can help students organise their study, maintain and track their progress, and motivate them to engage with module content throughout the semester. The survey results also provide some evidence that digital badges can make a positive contribution to student engagement within a module, particularly where they are directly linked with the module assessment requirements. Overall, digital badges have the potential to be a highly effective pedagogical tool that can also positively impact on the learning experience more generally

Change in Higher Education and its Impact on Academic Staff: The Case of the School of Business at University College Dublin.

Change has become a much more prevalent feature of Higher Education (HE) with many trends apparent, including the focus on institutional management and leadership; changes in decision-making approaches; institutional re-structuring; and increased bureaucratisation. Yet, while the literature provides some understanding of how HE change is impacting upon institutions, the consequences of such change for the traditional values of academic life and work represents an under-researched aspect of HE in Ireland. To address this gap in understanding, a case study of the School of Business at University College Dublin (UCD), involving semi-structured interviews with academics and manager-academics, was undertaken. The aim of the research was to determine how, and to what extent, change in HE is impacting upon academic staff. The research explored the changing involvement of academics in decision-making and the impact of such change on traditional notions of collegiality; and examined the changes taking place in the role of the academic, including their academic freedom. The research provides evidence of a period of sustained institutional change at UCD and draws attention to the considerable tension surrounding the top-down manner in which change was implemented and the lack of involvement of academics throughout the change process. The research has contributed to our understanding of the changing HE landscape in Ireland and highlights the increasing tension between the traditional values of academics and the changing shape of university life. While the research evidence acknowledges that the level of academic freedom has somewhat contracted, it draws attention to the substantial loss of involvement of academics in School decision-making; the decline in collegiality; the increase in routine administrative duties and greater work intensification; and the increased emphasis on research productivity.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Democratic Leadership - A local story

Leadership is traditionally viewed as an individual property and researched from the perspective of behaviours, traits or characteristics that these individuals possess. Notions of democratic leadership can offer early childhood centres a more expansive conception of leadership to include children, teachers and families. This study explores the possibility of positioning all stakeholders in an early childhood centre as leaders by repositioning leadership as a jointly constructed, emergent process. Drawing on an existing feature of the kindergarten programme, that of regular excursions within the local community, connections are interwoven between children’s inquires, democratic principles and elements of place based education. Using narratives from five excursions in the local community the study experiments with Leadership-as-practice to analyse how these excursions fostered democratic and inclusive participation of children and adults. Inquiry as a form of participatory democracy is a key feature of decision-making and provides a common purpose for community excursions while encouraging leadership opportunities. The study reveals the potential of leadership-as-practice, underpinned by democratic values as an approach to leadership in early childhood organisations, enabling leader/follower roles to be blurred and learning to be co constructed during dialogue. The local community holds enormous capacity as a system to facilitate democratic leadership and promote place based learning and citizenship education. This study recognises that democratic leadership exists in tension with current neo liberal beliefs and therefore positions itself as a counter to the current market driven early childhood environment. The underlying belief of this study is that leadership can occur as a collaborative practice, emerging through day to day experiences and seeks to contribute to the slowly emerging body of research concerned with early childhood leadership.