Practical heutagogy: Promoting personalised learning in management education

The purpose of this article is to highlight the benefits to both organizations and individuals in adopting heutagogy within management education to develop individual capability. This conceptual paper is based on a systematic review of the literature relating to heutagogy and learning theory. This article calls for the adoption of heutagogic learning within management education alongside traditional pedagogy and andragogy. It provides a number of practical examples of how heutagogy may be implemented in a variety of contexts, ranging from undergraduate study to senior leadership positions within organizations. This article contributes to the growing interest and literature related to new forms of student-centered learning and, in particular, heutagogy. This article is an original contribution to the discourse on student-centered learning and the contribution that heutagogy may make to the professional development of individuals

Employability: a contested concept in higher education

Employability is a concept that has attracted greater interest in the past two decades as Higher Education (HE) looks to ensure that its output is valued by a range of stakeholders, not least Central Government. The graduate labour market has changed remarkably during the past two decades with global employment becoming an option for some and a threat for others. In addition, the nature of work has changed with a range of technological and employment practices altering the way we work. It is this dynamic and uncertain context that has led many within the Higher Education sector to reevaluate its purpose and value. A number of universities have drawn‐up typologies of behaviours and attributes that characterise their graduates. This paper aims to look beyond the apparent ascendancy of employability and ask why is employability a contested concept within HE? This paper draws from post‐structuralism, Positional Conflict Theory as well as liberal‐humanist thought. The paper is structured at three levels of decision‐making: the macro‐ that of public policy, the meso‐ that of the Higher Education sector, and the micro‐ that of the student

The learning approaches of A level history and geography students analysed: a report from a sixth form college

This paper sought to explore how students in History and Geography approach learning. The research involved GCE A Level students in the Sixth Form College sector, in which they responded to a structured questionnaire that was drawn from the literature on self-regulated learning. The key areas for investigation revolved around motivation, self-efficacy, fear of failure and reflection. The data was analysed according to ability range with analysis undertaken between the A*-B range and those students below in the DE range. The conclusion suggests students adopt a range of approaches, some determined by their innate ability but others by more practical concerns such as the chances of success or the value of the activity. Importantly, the research also identified some common approaches adopted by students of History and Geography that challenge Kolb's views of subject disciplines divides

How do doctoral students interpret the idea of being part of a doctoral community at an English Business School?

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to elicit the views of students on their experiences of being part of a doctoral community. In doing so, this paper will shed light on the success of doctoral schools and the degree to which students identify with the wider community of postgraduate researchers. Design/methodology/approach: This research adopted an in-depth interview method based on interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Findings: The findings indicate that Higher Education still has some way to go before all students identify as being part of a doctoral school. The data suggest that significant differences exist between PhD and Doctor of Business Administration students on their perceptions of being part of a doctoral community. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the growing corpus of work produced through IPA, and also provides insights into the development of a doctoral school

Promoting Self‐Regulated Learning: the potential of PebblePad+ as a holistic tool for education

The focus for this article is on the use of Information and Communications Technology to facilitate Self‐ Regulated Learning and reflection on professional practice through an e‐portfolio diary/journal system. PP+ is a third generation e‐portfolio development of software initially developed at the University of Wolverhampton in England. PebblePad+ is a transferable e‐portfolio system that enables students to track their own professional competences and development over the length of their academic and professional career, as well as supporting their wider learning. It has been adopted in a variety of educational and industrial contexts both in the United Kingdom and Australia. This article will be of particular interest to those educationalists that recognise the importance of reflection in building powerful cognitive structures through Self‐Regulated Learning, as well as the potential benefits of using Information and Communication Technology to create an e‐portfolio of a student’s academic and professional achievements

Using PebblePad+ to Promote Teaching, Learning, and Assessment in a Business School: A Curriculum Delivery System in Evolution

The focus for this article is on the use of information and communications technology to facilitate the teaching of business and management through an e-portfolio diary/journal system. PebblePad+ is a transferable e-portfolio system that enables students to track their own professional competences and development over the length of their academic and professional career, as well as supporting their wider learning. This article will be of particular interest to those educationalists that recognize the importance of reflection in building powerful cognitive structures, as well as the potential benefits of using information and communication technology to create an e-portfolio of a student’s academic and professional achievements

Differentiated evolution not a common revolution: Analysing MBA education in Britain using New Institutionalism as a conceptual framework

Purpose: This paper aimed to explore the reform and development of the MBA within pre-1992 and post-1992 universities in the United Kingdom with reference to New Institutionalism and field theory. Design / Methodology / Approach: The methodology adopted the approaches of Navarro (2008) and Kars-Unluoglu (2016) that involved a web-based review of those pre-1992 universities listed in the Financial Times 'top-100' MBAs, as well as a review of a regional grouping of four post-1992 universities. Findings: The findings echo the work of Wilkins and Huisman (2012) who argued that British business schools were stratified into distinct organisational fields, each catering for their own market. Whereas the pre-1992 universities are able to offer a wide array of electives and pathways to enable personalization and specialization of the curriculum, post-1992 universities appear to offer a more constrained curriculum offer. Research limitations / Implications: This review would have benefited from closer interrogation of curriculum content through interviews with Program Leaders/Directors. Future research should involve a larger sample from the post-1992 sector. Originality / Value: This paper provides an up to date analysis of the direction taken by British universities. It shows that the MBA market is differentiated with an elite focussed more catering for an international market than the post-1992 universities who still exhibit a commitment to their local market

Positioning or positioned: Teachers' perspectives on the leadership of sixth form colleges

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The aim of this research was to explore the issue of leadership of Sixth Form Colleges (SFCs) from a Critical Theory perspective. SFCs have experienced rapid and wide ranging change since their removal from the aegis of Local Education Authorities (LEAs) in the early 1990s. SFCs exist as nominally autonomous institutions, funded by Government agencies competing in a marketised environment. It is within this context that Government has sought to propagate a view of leadership as being crucial to organisational effectiveness and responsiveness to local needs. Much of the literature published worldwide relates to leadership in schools. Although there has been a significant amount of research undertaken into the general Further Education (FE) and university sectors in the United Kingdom (UK), relatively little work has been undertaken in regard to the experiences of teachers in SFCs. The goal of this research was not only to gain a greater insight into the social reality of leadership, but also to arrive at a closer definition of what leadership means for SFCs as organisations. The research methodology chosen was a social-constructionist multi-site case study. The primary research method involved interviewing 20 teachers from four SFCs, three of which were close neighbours. Interviews were later supplemented by a brief survey of 40 teachers in 8 SFCs. In addition, documentary material produced by SFCs, Government and its executive agencies was analysed. The principal finding of the research was to challenge the term `leadership' as has been promoted by Central Government. The data obtained generated discussion on the role of the local Learning and Skills Councils (LSCs), the changing nature of educational provision and the position of teachers as professionals. The conclusions drawn from the research suggest that there is a need to reconsider what constitutes `leadership'. These findings also lead into a wider discussion about the impact of Postmodernism and whether we are witnessing new forms of organisation in the provision of education in the UK. Given the scope and rapidity of change, this work calls for institutional leaders to ensure that they engage in values-based leadership

‘In the real world….’ listening to ‘practitioner‐lecturer’ perspectives of the relevance in the business school curriculum

This paper is concerned with eliciting the perspectives of ‘practitioner‐lecturers’ on the delivery of the employability curriculum within a Business School. The term ‘practitioner‐lecturer’ is taken to mean those who have entered academia following an earlier career in industry, the public services or a commercial environment. Given their past experiences and organisational socialisation, it may be that these academics hold different views on the nature of the employability debate. Hitherto, much of the discourse on employability has revolved around an instrumentalist debate concerning how to implement an idealised skill‐set that is meant to encapsulate the learning of students enrolled on a course. In this sense, students are re‐defined in terms of the set of skills they accrue and develop. This reductionist approach has led to calls for a more holistic conception of employability education‐ a viewpoint that may echo with practitioner‐lecturers with their wider experience of work beyond the ivory tower. This paper sought to address central research question: How do practitioner‐lecturers view the relevance of the Business School curriculum, given their professional insights? The findings suggest that the views of practitioner‐lecturers could be incorporated into the design of the future curriculum