MA Presentation - Subject Value and Employment

Final MA Unit – ExhibitionSubject Value and Preparing

Undergraduates for Employment

Richard Sanders

Final Unit of MA Programme at Bournemouth University – ‘Exhibition’ of selected aspects of work.

Work selected = value of Media Studies and reconfiguration of expertise within Newman.

Leads to consideration of wider studentship issues – subject equates to ‘short hand’ for describing perceived problems in HE and necessary reform (Berger & McDougall, 2013, p.6)

Presentation will focus on discursive elements of work – seeking feedback at end of presentation via set of questions (at end of presentation.):-

- Value of work? (discursive interpretations)- Does this connect with your own interpretations of HE reform?- Alternative Interpretations?- Inform further curating / representation of work (suitable frames for taking forwards - internally and externally?)

Overall Context and Aims

November 2013 = presentation to SMT on practical outcomes (work placement module specifications generated with Harriet) – how can discursive elements be usefully communicated (if at all)?

Jan 2014 = Education and Employers conference (abstract submission = 25th October 2013)

Ongoing = Online resources at http://www.richard-pascale.co.uk (film, aspects of discursive analysis, blog to comment on reform events as they manifest)

Further Representation of Work

Overall aim = extending opportunities for feedback on representation of learning to aid my own

understandings / reflection (Moon, 2004, p.129)

Epistemological value of Media Studies and consideration of ways of reconfiguring my expertise within Newman.

Initial inspection highlights that sector reform is discursively legitimised by Knowledge Economy needs, with neoliberal networks normalising strategies on a global scale (Boden & Nedeva, 2010; Ball, 2008; Mulderrrig, 2008)

Analysis of how contemporary reform is framed should reveal barriers to re-configuring expertise.

The Starting Point

Initial focus on my own situation leads to the consideration of the positioning of humanities subjects within contemporary reform and what is discursively

seen as needed for ‘employability’.

4 Stage Critical Discourse Analysis Methodology – Problem Orientated Approach (Fairclough, 2009)

Semiotic Point of Entry framing educational reform = Knowledge Economy

Analysis Framework includes:-corpus-linguistics = quantitative keyword frequency comparison to act as a jumping off point for qualitative analysis (Mulderrig, 2008) – focused on outgoing Labour white paper (Mandelson, 2009) and coalition white paper (Willetts & Cable, 2011)- meaning configurations and vocabulary configurations = qualitative approach based upon Fairclough’s analysis of enterprise (1995). Inspection of situated meanings from 2011 white paper onwards- discourse across domains = how discourse is transferred across semiotic domains UK Political -> Intermediary -> Micro Institutional Level

Methodology (1)

Methodology (2)

To help inform an analysis, common meanings across domains considered (“Analysis 1”):

Knowledge Economy Meanings and Ideological Interpretations

Associated Meanings Implication for HE

Knowledge as a key to economic prosperity

Higher Education has an important role in unlocking this.

Knowledge as a commercial product

Education needs to operate as a business (reform necessary)

Association to Globalisation Education needs to orientate to a global marketplace

Association to technological networks

Education needs to tap into these and adapt to rapid change

Knowledge Worker Requirements

Education needs to provide space for the acquisition of certain skills for ‘employability’ (prioritise over ideals and grand narratives)

To help inform an analysis, common meanings across domains considered (“Analysis 1”):

Knowledge Economy Meanings and Ideological Interpretations

Associated Meanings Implication for HE

Knowledge as a key to economic prosperity

Higher Education has an important role in unlocking this.

Knowledge as a commercial product

Education needs to operate as a business (reform necessary)

Association to Globalisation Education needs to orientate to a global marketplace

Association to technological networks

Education needs to tap into these and adapt to rapid change

Knowledge Worker Requirements

Education needs to provide space for the acquisition of certain skills for ‘employability’ (prioritise over ideals and grand narratives)

Questions to Inform Analysis:

How are meanings and contemporary reform being

ideologically framed by the current coalition

government?

How does this differ from the previous Labour

Government?

Quantitative Keyword Results (“Analysis 2a”)

Decreased Use

Of Top 50

Keywords

(from Nov 2009

to June 2011)

Group 1: dropping out of top

50 to outside of top 200

economy, key, international, important,

wider, knowledge, ambition, invest, world,

economic

Group 2: dropping out of top

50 into top 200

research, skill, develop, UK, programme,

role, level, school, future, council,

innovation, increase, opportunity

Group 3: retained in top 50 university, fund, support, sector, work,

through, govern, public, study, course,

how, ensure, employer

Increased Use

Of Top 50

Keywords

(from Nov 2009

to June 2011)

Group 1: Previously not within

top 200, moving into top 50

cost, consultation, grant, loan, provider,

power, subject, graduate, data, reform

Group 2: Previously within the

top 200, moving into top 50

information, teach, review, number, make,

set, change, national, further, offer,

degree, available, current, people,

experience.

Group 3: retained in top 50 education, higher, student, institution,

new, access, provide, system, quality,

HEFCE, year

Quantitative Keyword Results (“Analysis 2a”)

Decreased Use

Of Top 50

Keywords

(from Nov 2009

to June 2011)

Group 1: dropping out of top

50 to outside of top 200

economy, key, international, important,

wider, knowledge, ambition, invest, world,

economic

Group 2: dropping out of top

50 into top 200

research, skill, develop, UK, programme,

role, level, school, future, council,

innovation, increase, opportunity

Group 3: retained in top 50 university, fund, support, sector, work,

through, govern, public, study, course,

how, ensure, employer

Increased Use

Of Top 50

Keywords

(from Nov 2009

to June 2011)

Group 1: Previously not within

top 200, moving into top 50

cost, consultation, grant, loan, provider,

power, subject, graduate, data, reform

Group 2: Previously within the

top 200, moving into top 50

information, teach, review, number, make,

set, change, national, further, offer,

degree, available, current, people,

experience.

Group 3: retained in top 50 education, higher, student, institution,

new, access, provide, system, quality,

HEFCE, year

Quantitative Keyword Results (“Analysis 2a”)

Decreased Use

Of Top 50

Keywords

(from Nov 2009

to June 2011)

Group 1: dropping out of top

50 to outside of top 200

economy, key, international, important,

wider, knowledge, ambition, invest, world,

economic

Group 2: dropping out of top

50 into top 200

research, skill, develop, UK, programme,

role, level, school, future, council,

innovation, increase, opportunity

Group 3: retained in top 50 university, fund, support, sector, work,

through, govern, public, study, course,

how, ensure, employer

Increased Use

Of Top 50

Keywords

(from Nov 2009

to June 2011)

Group 1: Previously not within

top 200, moving into top 50

cost, consultation, grant, loan, provider,

power, subject, graduate, data, reform

Group 2: Previously within the

top 200, moving into top 50

information, teach, review, number, make,

set, change, national, further, offer,

degree, available, current, people,

experience.

Group 3: retained in top 50 education, higher, student, institution,

new, access, provide, system, quality,

HEFCE, year

Treatment of Subjects – November 2009 White Paper

“It is sometimes suggested that a number of popular subjects are of little value. Stereotypes about what courses offer the best employment prospects are often wrong. Graduates in some subjects, popularly thought to confer poor employment prospects, are actually found to have good rates of employability. For example, six months after graduating 74 per cent of those qualifying in Media Studies in 2007/08 were in employment. And for Marketing and Sociology graduates it was 76 per cent and 70 per cent respectively, compared with an overall average of 70 per cent.”

(Mandeslon, 2009, p.43)

Treatment of Subjects – June 2011 White Paper

Key Points:-

• Refers to kite marking so that students can avoid ‘soft options’ (2011, p.40) – no subjects mentioned

• Prioritisation of subjects seen as worthwhile by ‘elite’ institutions and industry (Science, Engineering, Medicine)

• Subjects are not directly targeted as soft options, but performativity measures (teaching contact time) generated by HEPI are used. Quality associated to greater contact time (2011, p.27).

Treatment of Subjects – June 2011 White Paper

Key Points:-

• Refers to kite marking so that students can avoid ‘soft options’ (2011, p.40) – no subjects mentioned

• Prioritisation of subjects seen as worthwhile by ‘elite’ institutions and industry (Science, Engineering, Medicine)

• Subjects are not directly targeted as soft options, but performativity measures (teaching contact time) generated by HEPI are used. Quality associated to greater contact time (2011, p.27).

‘Hard’ ‘Soft’

Report by Sastry & Bekhradnia (2007)for HEPI

Coalition Interpretation =

Media as ‘Shorthand’ for Perceived Problems in Humanities

Media as ‘Shorthand’ for Perceived Problems in Humanities

Gove (2008)Address to Haberdasher’s Conference

the scientific breakthroughs which will combat global warming, the mathematical models which will reduce financial risk and the medical innovations which will lengthen and enrich our lives are unlikely to be generated by close application to the GCSE media studies syllabus

Media as ‘Shorthand’ for Perceived Problems in Humanities

Gove (2008)Address to Haberdasher’s Conference

the scientific breakthroughs which will combat global warming, the mathematical models which will reduce financial risk and the medical innovations which will lengthen and enrich our lives are unlikely to be generated by close application to the GCSE media studies syllabus

Fox (2009)

While India is producing huge

numbers of mathematics, physics and

chemistry graduates British numbers

are falling, being replaced with soft

subjects such as media studies …

Hardly a great accomplishment for our

educational system.

Media as ‘Shorthand’ for Perceived Problems in Humanities

Gove (2008)Address to Haberdasher’s Conference

the scientific breakthroughs which will combat global warming, the mathematical models which will reduce financial risk and the medical innovations which will lengthen and enrich our lives are unlikely to be generated by close application to the GCSE media studies syllabus

Fox (2009)

While India is producing huge

numbers of mathematics, physics and

chemistry graduates British numbers

are falling, being replaced with soft

subjects such as media studies …

Hardly a great accomplishment for our

educational system.

Gove (2009)Commenting on Sykes Inquiry (Exams)

Cambridge, the London School of Economics and others have warned prospective students that taking "softer" A-levels such as media studies and dance will count against them.

Media as ‘Shorthand’ for Perceived Problems in Humanities

Gove (2008)Address to Haberdasher’s Conference

the scientific breakthroughs which will combat global warming, the mathematical models which will reduce financial risk and the medical innovations which will lengthen and enrich our lives are unlikely to be generated by close application to the GCSE media studies syllabus

Fox (2009)

While India is producing huge

numbers of mathematics, physics and

chemistry graduates British numbers

are falling, being replaced with soft

subjects such as media studies …

Hardly a great accomplishment for our

educational system.

Gove (2009)Commenting on Sykes Inquiry (Exams)

Cambridge, the London School of Economics and others have warned prospective students that taking "softer" A-levels such as media studies and dance will count against them.

Merrick (2009) – “Tories to Tackle

Media Studies Menace”

Exam success in maths and physics

would carry greater weight than that in

"soft" subjects such as media studies

under a proposed shake-up of school

league tables unveiled by the

Conservatives.

Media as ‘Shorthand’ for Perceived Problems in Humanities

Gove (2008)Address to Haberdasher’s Conference

the scientific breakthroughs which will combat global warming, the mathematical models which will reduce financial risk and the medical innovations which will lengthen and enrich our lives are unlikely to be generated by close application to the GCSE media studies syllabus

Fox (2009)

While India is producing huge

numbers of mathematics, physics and

chemistry graduates British numbers

are falling, being replaced with soft

subjects such as media studies …

Hardly a great accomplishment for our

educational system.

Gove (2009)Commenting on Sykes Inquiry (Exams)

Cambridge, the London School of Economics and others have warned prospective students that taking "softer" A-levels such as media studies and dance will count against them.

Merrick (2009) – “Tories to Tackle

Media Studies Menace”

Exam success in maths and physics

would carry greater weight than that in

"soft" subjects such as media studies

under a proposed shake-up of school

league tables unveiled by the

Conservatives.

Clark (2008) – ‘Blacklisted’ Subjects

Devaluing Subjects

Funding reform in Bands C + D (HEFCE, 2011a), subsequent re-instatement to offset public discontent (McGettigan, 2013, p.28). Austerity and removal of association to education as public good discursively used as justification

Willetts (Paton, 2011) and the Conservative Fair Access Group (Curran, 2013, p.2) calling for UCAS to abolish the current system which rates ‘mickey mouse’ qualifications such as media at the same level as English.

The Qualifications Information Review is now recommending the phasing out of the current system (UCAS, 2012a), starting in the 2015 academic year.

Attacks on qualitative research within the humanities...

Contemporary Coalition ReformPolicy and Policy Technologies

Social Science Research Needs ‘Hard’ Quantitative

Social Science Research Needs ‘Hard’ Quantitative

Social Science Research Needs ‘Hard’ Quantitative

Social Science Research Needs ‘Hard’ Quantitative

livingbooksaboutlife.org

Social Science Research Needs ‘Hard’ Quantitative

livingbooksaboutlife.org

Considering whether the social order (Newman) needs the social wrong (marginalisation of subject) in relation to digital literacy drive – Stage 3 of CDA

Body of literature within media studies on the critical and cultural use of digital technology

How do the JISC discursively frame the use of technology? – uncritical decontextualised skills acquisition for Knowledge Economy ‘employability’ or something more?

Initial inspection seems positive – Media Literacy seen as having a role in helping with critical reflection (JISC, 2011m)

HOWEVER….

Use of Technology

Too Many Stakeholders – Not Much Coherency

• Sometimes characterised as skilled participants with

the ability to improve learning design (JISC, 2011h; JISC,

2011i), sometimes characterised uncritical users that

need close attention from the academic community

(White, 2012).

• Technology positioned as meeting both top down

management needs and bottom up free market

reform (JISC 2012d; JISC, 2011j) – tendency to be

deterministic, meeting abstract solutions (JISC, 2011k).

• Oscillating between broadening out education to

include informal spaces and perception that these

spaces can be disruptive – foregrounding of

protectionist discourse (White, 2012) .

Policy Technologies are encouraging an environment of top down autocratic control at the level of institutions (McGettigan, 2013, p.10).

HE becoming increasingly subordinate to the percieved imperatives of the private sector (Ball, 2008, p.9)

Rhetoric surrounding bottom up free market reform puts a (veneer) of emphasis on the student voice – rhetoric established in June 2011 white paper.

Academic voice is being squeezed – potential for unhelpful interpretations to be established.

One of The Most Important Stakeholders is Missing… ?

Consultancy report generated to provide advice on implementation within Newman (JISC, 2013b)

Much of this report focuses on perceived strategic top down need and bottom up involvement of students. Not much focus on academic voice

Programme links technology use to ‘employability’ and advises that appropriate critical use of technology should be engendered

Critical dimension of the programme is framed in a way that provides little questioning of the Knowledge Economy concept (JISC, 2011m).

FOR EXAMPLE:- “responsiveness: how well and quickly provision can respond to changes in the needs of the digital economy?”

Digital Literacy

This critical dimension can be seen as important in directing students’ in the use of professional knowledge, but as the above highlights, who

does this directing is also important (Berger and McDougall, 2013, p.17).

Module Specs attempt to address appropriate critical and cultural engagement with issues associated to Knowledge

Economy

What is happening to media is symptomatic of a wider attack on Humanities subjects in terms of preparing students for ‘employability’. Political and Business spheres struggle to see the point of ‘intellectual enquiry’ (Collini, 2012, p.61)

CONTRIBUTES TO THE SEPERATION OF ‘ACADEMIC’ AND ‘VOCATIONAL’

The social order of HE does not need this narrow focus on ‘hard’ subjects and vocational skills if we are trying to empower students within an employment context.

Education should not solely about students’ making ‘employability’ deposits ‘in a bank of skills’ – rather it should be comprised of ‘synergic combination of personal qualities, skills of various kinds and subject understanding’ (Lees, 2002, p.2).

This perspective on preparation of employment aligns education with students’ ‘deepening their understanding of themselves within the world’ and then acquiring knowledge and skills within this context - which may prove useful for their potential employment (Collini, 2012, p.91).

Separation is not useful when preparing students for future employment

Problems with ‘Employability’ Discourse

Targeted as being not vocational enough. Policy technologies and discourse encourage universities to drop these subjects for alternative vocational provision. Perceived need in universities to move away from subjects that do not relate to ‘employability’. Targeting of other humanities subjects to follow?

Willetts – quoted as wanting ‘alternative providers’ in liberal arts education (McGettigan, 2013, p.97) – provides alternative reading to austerity. Can be read as a method for creating a market for new private providers in subjects that are discursively situated as needing a vocational focus? Provides a space for a reconfiguration of the distinction between ‘pre-92’ and ‘post-92’ institutions.

Existing high fee / high entry requirement universities are entering into a race to the top under the coalition vision for HE provision. Is this a race that Newman can have success in?

Wider threat to Humanities and Newman?

Are we now at a point where humanities academics need to be considering more explicit ways of pushing back on this

discourse?

Further ‘exhibition’ elements mentioned at the start have this in mind.

Questions to help frame feedback:

Any general comments / questions? How does the presentation connect within your own

perceptions of HE reform? Do you perceive this as a wider threat to the

humanities that we should all be concerned about? How far can the issues represented here be

expressed to SMT? How suitable do you think the proposed module

specifications and abstract are for responding to issues raised here?

Thanks and Questions

Ball, S. (2008) The Education Debate. Bristol: Policy Press.

Berger, R. & McDougall, J. (2013) ‘Editorial: What Is Media Education For?’ Media Education Research Journal, 3 (1), pp.5-20.

Boden, R. and Nedeva, M. (2010) ‘Employing discourse: universities and graduate ‘employability’’, Journal of Educational Policy, 25 (1), pp.37-54.

Clark, L. (2008) Universities in Backlash against ‘soft’ subjects now accounting for one in three of all A-levels [online]. Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-567169/Universities-backlash-soft-subjects-accounting-A-levels.html (Accessed: 5th October 2013).

Collini (2012) What are Universities For? London: Penguin.

Curran, J. (2013) Professor James Curran’s Keynote Address to the MECCSA Conference in Derry 2013 [online]. Available at: http://cmr.ulster.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Defending-Media-Studies.pdf (Accessed: 18th July 2013).

Fairclough, N. (2009) ‘A dialectical – relational approach to critical discourse analysis in social research’ in Wodak, R. & Meyer, M. (eds.) Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis. London: SAGE, pp.162-186.

Fairclough, N. (1995) Critical Discourse Analysis. London: Longman.

Fazackerley, A. & Chant, J. (2008) The Hard Truth about Soft Subjects [online]. Available at: http://www.policyexchange.org.uk/images/publications/the%20hard%20truth%20about%20soft%20subjects%20-%20dec%2008.pdf (Accessed: 16th July 2013).

Fox, L. (2009) Liam Fox: A Crisis of Confidence Threatens Our Society’s Resilience [online]. Available at: http://www.conservatives.com/News/Speeches/2009/03/Liam_Fox_A_crisis_of_confidence_threatens_our_societys_resilience.aspx (Accessed: 16th July 2013).

Gove (2009) Tories Announce Major Overhaul of School Exam System and League Tables [online]. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/leaguetables/6034992/Tories-announce-major-overhaul-of-school-exam-system-and-league-tables.html (Accessed: 5th October 2013).

References (1)

Gove (2008) Michael Gove: We will reverse Labour’s devaluation of exams [online]. Available at: http://www.conservatives.com/News/Speeches/2008/11/Michael_Gove_We_will_reverse_Labours_devaluation_of_exams.aspx (Accessed: 16th July 2013).

HEFCE (2011a) Teaching Funding and Student Number Controls: Consultation on Changes to be Implemented in 2012-13 [online]. Available at: http://www.hefce.ac.uk/media/hefce1/pubs/hefce/2011/1120/11_20.pdf (Accessed: 14th July 2013).

JISC (2013b) JISC Consultancy Report for Newman University on their Audit of Digital Literacies [online]. Available at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/kvet0hpqtarnmz1/JISCDigitalLiteraciesProject_ResponsefromJISC_27-06-13.pdf (Accessed: 23rd July 2013).

JISC (2012) Digging Into Metadata : Enhancing Social Science and Humanities Research [online]. Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/digitisation/diggingintodata/digintometadata.aspx (Accessed: 5th October 2013).

JISC (2011) Launch of ‘Living’ Books Breaks Barriers Between Humanities and Science [online]. Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/launch-of-living-books-breaks-barriers-between-humanities-and-science-24-nov-2011 (Accessed: 5th October 2013).

JISC (2011h) Transforming Curriculum Delivery through Technology: Stories of Challenge, Benefit and Change [online]. Available at: https://files.pbworks.com/download/9OzCJApzwW/jiscdesignstudio/41433791/Transforming%20curriculum%20delivery_accessible2.pdf?ld=1 (Accessed: 19th July 2013).

JISC (2011i) JISC Inform 31 goes live with focus on the student experience [online]. Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/jisc-inform-31-goes-live-with-focus-on-the-student-experience-29-jun-2011 (Accessed: 19th July 2013).

JISC (2011j) Emerging Practice in a Digital Age [online]. Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/programmes/elearning/digiemerge/Emergingpracticeaccessible.pdf (Accessed: 19th July 2013).

JISC (2011k) iPhone walking tour sets students on the right road [online]. Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/iphone-walking-tour-sets-students-on-the-right-road-21-sep-2011 (Accessed: 19th July 2013).

JISC (2011m) LLiDA – Learning Literacies for a Digital Age – Looking to the Future [online]. Available at: http://www.caledonianacademy.net/spaces/LLiDA/index.php?n=Main.LookingToTheFuture (Accessed: 1st August 2013).

JISC (2009) Scientists’ Techniques Help Unlock Data for Arts and Humanities Scholars [online]. Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/scientists-techniques-help-unlock-data-for-arts-and-humanities-scholars-03-dec-2009 (Accessed: 5th October 2013).

Lees, D (2002) Graduate Employability – Literature Review. Palatine: Higher Education Academy Centre for Dance, Drama and Music. Available at: http://qualityresearchinternational.com/esecttools/esectpubs/leeslitreview.pdf (Accessed: August 1st 2013).

Mandelson, P. (2009) Higher Ambition: The Future of Universities in a Knowledge Economy [online]. Available at: http://www.employability.ed.ac.uk/documents/Staff/BIS-HigherAmbitions-Summary-Nov2009.pdf (Accessed: 25th June 2013).

References (2)

McGettigan, M. (2013) The Great University Gamble: Money, Markets and The Future of Higher Education. London: Pluto Press.

Merrick, J. (2009) Tories to tackle the media studies menace – Education News – Education – The Independent [online]. Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/tories-to-tackle-the-media-studies-menace-1772933.html (Accessed: 17th July 2013).

Moon, J. (2004) A Handbook of Reflective and Experiential Learning: Theory and Practice. London: Routledge.

Mulderrig, J. (2008) ‘Using keywords analysis in CDA: evolving discourses of the knowledge economy in education’ in Jessop, B., Fairclough, N. & Wodak, R. (eds) Education and the Knowledge Based Economy in Europe. Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. pp.149-169.

Paton, G. (2011) A-level Results: Tough Subjects Should Carry More UCAS Points, Says David Willetts [online]. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/8707656/A-level-results-tough-subjects-should-carry-more-Ucas-points-says-David-Willetts.html (Accessed: 18th July 2013).

Sastry, T. & Bekhradnia, B (2007) The Academic Experience of Students in English Universities [online]. Available at: http://www.hepi.ac.uk/files/33TheacademicexperienceofstudentsinEnglishuniversities2007.pdf (Accessed: 03rd October 2013).

UCAS (2012a) Qualifications Information Review: Findings and Recommendations [online]. Available at: http://www.ucas.com/sites/default/files/qir-findings-and-recommendations.pdf (Accessed: 18th July 2013).

White, D. (2012) Digital Visitors and Residents [online]. Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/projects/visitorsandresidentsinterim%20report.pdf (Accessed: 19th July 2013).

Willetts, D. & Cable, V. (2011) Higher Education: Students at the Heart of the System [online]. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/32409/11-944-higher-education-students-at-heart-of-system.pdf (Accessed: 25th June 2013).

References (3)