ESRC
ECONOMIC
& SOCIAL
RESEARCH
COUNCIL

LEARNING SOCIETY
PROGRAMME

PRINCIPAL
RESEARCHERS

Professor David Raffe
CES, University of Edinburgh

Professor Michael Young Institute of Education
University of London

Cathy Howieson
CES, University of Edinburgh

Ken Spours
Institute of Education
University of London

CONTACT
ADDRESSES

Professor David Raffe
Centre for
Educational Sociology
University of Edinburgh
7 Buccleuch Place
Edinburgh  EH8 9LW
Tel: 0161 650 4186
E-mail:  d.raffe@ed.ac.uk

Professor Michael Young
Post-16 Education Centre
Institute of Education
University of London
55-59 Gordon Square
London  WC1H 0NT
Tel:  0171 612 6758
E-mail:  m_young@ioe.ac.uk

Duration
24 Months
UNIFIED LEARNING PROJECT

OBJECTIVES

The study aimed to analyse current policy developments in Scotland, England and Wales which set out to change the relation of academic and vocational learning and to link or unify them.  These developments included Higher Still, which proposed a unified system of post-16 education in Scotland, and the Dearing Review of 16-19 Qualifications and the ensuing consultation on Qualifying for Success in England and Wales.  Its objectives were to:
	compare developments in post-compulsory education and training in Scotland and in England and Wales, in relation to the unification of academic and vocational learning;
	develop the concept of a unified system, to clarify its relationship with the concept of a learning society, and to explore issues in the design of unified system;
	develop complementary concepts and understandings of the process of unifying academic and vocational learning;
	engage with and reinforce the learning process of policy development and implementation.

APPROACH

The methodology of the project was comparative and the model of comparative research was collaborative.  Research teams from England and Scotland participated as equal partners and each team had prime responsibility for collecting and interpreting data on its own country.  The project used the comparisons to clarify policy alternatives and to support conceptual development.  By contrasting different systems the teams were able to identify the different dimensions of variation which were later included in the conceptual framework.

The project drew on a variety of data sources.  Published and unpublished policy statements and other documentary sources were analysed.  Approximately 90 semi-structured interviews were carried out with policy-makers and key stakeholders in England, Scotland and Wales and a series of consultation seminars was conducted which enabled provisional conclusions to be disseminated and feedback to be received.

MAIN FINDINGS

These are presented in a series of Working Papers.  Two are historical and contextual and review the state of debate in England and Scotland (papers 1 and 7); two developed the conceptual framework for analysing post-16 education and training, which is the distinctive contribution of the project, while also relating the unification of academic and vocational learning to the wider issues of a learning society (papers 2 and 3).

This conceptual framework is based on three distinctions:
(i)	Between different types of system which are described as tracked, linked, and unified.  There were no pure examples of any of these types.  Systems of post compulsory education and training can be located at different points on a continuum between tracked and unified systems but there has been a recent tendency for them to move towards unification.
(ii)	Different dimensions are distinguished on which systems can vary: these refer variously to aspects of content and process, system architecture, delivery, government and regulation.
(iii)	The distinction is made between what are called open and closed types of unified system: an open system has flexible entry points and the content, level and volume of study are not centrally prescribed.  On most dimensions, Scotland is closer to the unified end of the track-linked-unified continuum than either England or Wales.  The current strategy in Scotland is to develop a unified system, in contrast to the linked system currently pursued in England and Wales (but Wales may move further towards unification under the new elected Assembly).
All three systems are distinctive for their emphasis on certain dimensions of change - notably certification, government and regulation - rather than others such as pedagogy, curriculum or institutions.  The unified system being developed in Scotland is distinctive for its open character.

Working Papers 4, 5, 6 and 8 apply this conceptual framework to current policy developments, contrasting the implications of the unified system strategy in Scotland with the linked system strategy in England and Wales.  The issues examined include the role of awarding and regulatory bodies, the development of core/key skills, the question of overarching certification and the different forms it takes and the position of the work-based route.  Working Papers 9 and 10 study the policy process in Scotland and Wales and analyse the distinctive form of policy process required for policies to create a unified system.

POLICY IMPLICATIONS

At the consultation seminars conducted in London and Edinburgh, it was the conceptual framework that had been developed for analysing the policy process which seemed to be most valued by policy makers and other stakeholders.  A number of conclusions were drawn from the findings:
(i)	There is a trend towards unification in most of Europe, including England, Scotland and Wales, but strategies for unification differ widely and there is little evidence of convergence, even in the UK.

(ii)	There is a tension between an incremental model of policy change and the need for a clear vision to guide development.
(iii)	Although institutional change has not been a main dimension of reform in the British unification strategies, schools and colleges have an important role in shaping the unification process.
(iv)	A unified system may require a degree of central coordination which poses a challenge to more consultative and grass-roots models of educational change.
(v)	While it is difficult for unification to encompass the work-based route, especially as this is organised in the UK, its omission may result in further academic drift rather than the genuine integration of academic and vocational learning.

There is a need for a complementary analysis that links the unification of academic and vocational learning to wider social and economic change; we have only been able to hint at this analysis in the course of this project (Young et al 1997, Raffe et al 1998).

KEY PUBLICATIONS

Howieson, C., Raffe, D., Spours, K., and Young, M. (1997) ‘Unifying academic and vocational learning: the state of the debate in England and Scotland’, Journal of Education and Work, 10, 1, 5-35
Young, M., Howieson, C., Raffe, D., and Spours, K. (1997) ‘Unifying academic and vocational learning and the idea of a learning society’, Journal of Education Policy, 12, 6, 27-537
Raffe, D., Spours, K., Young, M., and Howieson, C. (1998) ‘The unification of post compulsory education: Towards a conceptual framework’, British Journal of Educational Studies, 46, 2, 69-187
Lasonen, J. and Young, M. (eds) (1998) Strategies for achieving parity of esteem in European upper secondary education, Institute of Educational Research, University of Jyvaskyla
Raffe, D., Spours, K., Young, M., and Howieson, C., (forthcoming) ‘Unifying academic and vocational learning: current policy developments in Wales’, Oxford Studies in Comparative Education
Howieson, C., Raffe, D., Spours, K., and Young, M. (forthcoming) Post-1 6 Education and Training in England, Scotland and Wales: Approaches to Unification. Kogan Page

The Unified Learning Project Working Papers are available from the two contact addresses (price £10 each).