Suchergebnisse

The recent debate on active citizenship and adult education has been strongly underpinned by the discussion on how active citizenship could be exercised in a way that would promote inclusion and participation (Evans, 2009; Milana, 2008). The paper focuses on the role of adult educators in encouraging young adults in vulnerable life situations to become active citizens specifically through two empirical cases, from Finland and England (UK). The central questions the paper seeks to answer are: how do adult educators conceptualise vulnerability, and how do they see their role as facilitating vulnerable young people's active citizenship through their teaching? The consideration of socio-cultural, socio-economic and political dimensions of active participatory citizenship (APC) provides the conceptual lens to explore young adults' participation in different social contexts. The analysis of the case studies supports the argument that APC is indirectly rather than directly included in the education and training of vulnerable young adults. This leads the article to highlight the adult educators' mediation work in facilitating the socio-economic and political dimensions of APC in interaction with the students. Their mediator role is broadly invisible and in contrast with the ideal of adult education as the straightforward path to socio-economic citizenship and employability.

This paper reports on recent research aimed at assessing how the management of the undergraduate student experience in English higher education is changing in the light of the new tuition fee regime introduced in 2012, as well as other government policies aimed at creating market-type pressures within the higher education sector. A distinction was observed between the research-intensive universities studied – defined here as institutions where research income comprised 20 per cent or more of total turnover, with correspondingly strong positions in published research-based rankings – and universities largely dependent on income from teaching, with weaker market positions. Broadly speaking, the latter group were responding to market pressures by centralizing services, standardizing procedures, and strengthening management controls over teaching processes. The research-intensive universities tended to work within existing institutional cultures to respond to students' needs. Organizational change here usually took the form of creating more coherent functional groupings of student services, rather than comprehensive reorganizations. It appears to us that these different responses to a changed environment point to the creation of two distinct English university types, one strongly managerial with 'student as customer' orientations, and a smaller group with less centralized, more collegial cultures.

This open access book sheds light on a range of complex interdependencies between adult education, young adults in vulnerable situations and active citizenship. Adult education has been increasingly recognized as a means to engage and re-engage young adults and facilitate their life chances and social inclusion thus contributing to an active citizenship within their societal contexts. This collection of chapters dealing with issues of social inclusion of young people represents the first book to explicitly approach the complex interdependencies between adult education, young adults in vulnerable situations and active citizenship from the European perspective. Social exclusion, disengagement and disaffection of young adults have been among the most significant concerns faced by EU member states over the last decade. It has been increasingly recognised by a range of stakeholders that there is a growing number of young people suffering from the various effects of the unstable social, economic and political situations affecting Europe and its neighbouring countries. Young adults who experience different degrees of vulnerability are especially at risk of being excluded and marginalised. Engaging young adults through adult education has been strongly related to addressing the specific needs and requirements that would facilitate their participation in social, economic and civic/political life in their country contexts. Fostering the active citizenship of young people, both directly and indirectly, is an area where many AE programmes overlap, and this has become a core approach to integration. This book considers social, economic and political dimensions of active citizenship, encompassing the development of social competences and social capital, civic and political participation and the skills related to the economy and labour market. The cross-national consideration of the notions of vulnerability, inclusion and active citizenship underpins the complexity of translating these concepts into the national contexts of adult education programmes.

The symposium focuses on the role played by active citizenship and communication practices in contributing to social inclusion of young adults in vulnerable life situations. Engaging vulnerable young people through adult education has been strongly related to addressing the specific needs and requirements that would facilitate their participation in the social, economic and civic/political life in their country contexts. The paper draws on the key findings and conclusions of the Horizon 2020 project 'Adult Education as a Means to Active Participatory Citizenship' (EduMAP, 2017; 2019) conducted in 2016-2019. The project, which involved the partnership and cooperation of eight academic institutions in six European countries and one non-EU partner, aimed to advance understanding and further develop both the current and future impact of adult education on learning for active participatory citizenship in Europe and beyond. The methodological approach was based on both desk and empirical research, carried out through dedicated work packages. The project also involved undertaking a review of the relevant literature, including research publications, policy papers and statistics, relevant to the inclusion and participation of young adults. The EduMAP study involved researching 40 adult education programmes across 19 EU countries and Turkey. Fieldwork was carried out through individual and focus group interviews with 814 participants, including educational practitioners, policy-makers and young adults.