1. O N M ATURE R EFLECTION … E MERGING F INDINGS FROM THE O PENING D OORS PROJECT Dr Hugh Busher, Dr Nalita James, Dr Anna Piela, Anna-Marie Palmer Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education University of Leicester Funded by Aim Awards and the British Academy

2. T HE O PENING D OORS P ROJECT A study of the learning transitions and experiences of adult learners (19 years plus) on Access to Higher Education (HE) in the East Midlands. Access courses are intended for people who would like to study in HE but who are: excluded, delayed or otherwise deterred by a need to qualify for (university) entry in more conventional ways (Parry, 1996) The Project aims to : Capture adult learners’ views of their learning processes and shifts in identity on these courses Understand how mature students’ learning is affected by social interaction among themselves and with their tutors Investigate mature students’ development of transferable skills to prepare them university and, possibly, for work. Generate new insights into what mature students’ consider successful teaching and learning on Access courses 2 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

3. P HASE O NE & T WO (2011/2013) Regional study of Access to HE students studying on a variety of pathways in 9 urban and rural FE colleges across the East Midlands Two thirds of the participants in the study come from Phase Two Students 91 students taking part in focus groups 3 times in the year 428 questionnaire respondents Access to students’ Facebook groups Tutors 31 tutors and Access Co-ordinators 20 former Access to HE students 3 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

4. M ETHODOLOGY Data collected in each College through: Questionnaire across all Access students in a College collected twice in the year (beginning and end of course) focus group interviews on three occasions (December, March and May) with about five students in each College. Concept maps with focus groups to collect students’ visual perceptions of their learning journeys Individual audio diaries with some students Observing students’ learning activities/ interactions on social media Individual and focus group interviews with students’ Access tutors and Access Co-ordinators. Individual interviews with former Access students FINDINGS presented here: Draw on student focus groups from Phase One (Dec 2011, March 2012 and May 2012) and Phase Two (Nov 2012), & Student Questionnaires Phase Two 4 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

5. SAMPLE June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester 5 Gender Ethnicity Age Education Female 25473.6% Male 9126.4% White 27281.2% Mixed/Multiple ethnic group 144.2% Asian/Asian British 195.7% Black/African/Caribbean/ Black British 278.1% Other ethnic group 30.9% Level Three No25670.1% Yes10929.9% Level Two No6618.1% Yes29981.9% Level One No4311.8% Yes32288.2% AgeTotalPercent 19-2419153.4% 25-3411131% 35-444312% 45+133.6%

6. S EEKING A CCESS TO HE A S A DULTS Interest in a subject area/ specific career When I was at secondary school I always wanted to go into psychology, but left sixth form. [did] hairdressing and I still was interested in psychology. (Phase 1, Coll B Dec) Personal contacts/ reasons / self-fulfilment to fulfil my own potential and to provide my daughter with stability and [get] a greater pay grade (Phase 1, Coll A Dec) Want to go to HE I’ll be the first person in my family to go to university. So I just want to do this for myself and I want to be educated. (Phase 2, Coll G Nov) Dislike of current job (opportunities) I was tired from school just dead-end job to dead-end job and just no future really. Then recession hit. It got really hard. Thought while you can’t get a job, might as well get into education and get qualified for something you want to do. (Phase 2, Coll A Nov) Had to choose the Access route [For] a lot of stuff, you need GCSE in Maths and I haven’t. (Phase 1, Coll B Dec) If you’ve been out of education and you want to get back into it, if there wasn’t the Access Course, you wouldn’t actually… I don’t know another way of getting into university (Phase 2, Coll F Nov) 6 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

7. S TUDENTS ’ V IEWS ON A CCESS C OURSES As a learner AT THE START of the Access course I was really rubbish. I was getting passes all the time. Now I can expect to get like merit or distinction (Phase 1, Coll A March) I was really enthusiastic because being a mature student I was sort of determined to do well (Phase 1, Coll B March) As a learner AFTER 3 MONTHS on the Access course The course is going okay so far. I’m finding it a bit difficult in places but obviously there’s help out there for me (Phase 1, Coll A Dec) I really enjoy coming to college and I love learning but [because] it’s aimed for mature students there’s no financial help (Phase 1, Coll B Dec) When I first started … I wasn’t really sure if I’d be able to do the course and if I’d be able to keep up with everything and working as well. But I feel more at ease because I can do the course. I’ve got the [university] offers (Phase 2 College B Feb) As a learner AFTER 6 MONTHS on Access course I feel like I’ve just got better and more intelligent actually. (Phase 1, Coll A March) now we’re this side of the Christmas holiday, I’ve felt much better about it and I enjoy it now. (Phase 1, Coll B March) 7 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

8. ON B EING P REPARED FOR HE Helping students to develop competence and confidence in learning You get a mark but you also get comments at the bottom of your work pointing you in the direction that maybe you should have gone down (Phase 1, Coll B May) It just helps you … the regular assignments …have deadlines. Whereas A- levels, deadlines don’t mean anything. You’re not penalised … whereas here... [late assignments] are capped at a pass (Phase 1, Coll C June) Becoming independent learners I’m a lot more confident like in my academic skills than when I started (Phase 1, Coll B June) It does all the study skills and essay plans … that A-levels don’t give you because you just have your subjects and there’s very actually little coursework to do at A-level. (Phase 1, Coll C June) Changed you personally It’s a big deal to come out of your comfort zone isn’t it? (Phase 1, Coll B June) I’ve got a better understanding of society … changed me as a person. (Phase 1, Coll B June) Like when you’re at school …You go home and you played when you were a kid. Whereas here you do your work. You go home. You still do your work and that’s what you’ll have to do in university. (Phase 2, Coll F Feb) 8 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

9. A PPLYING FOR U NIVERSITY Positive Experiences I’ve heard from three out of the four and it’s just like, ‘Maybe people do believe in me.’ It is good for like confidence (Phase 2, Coll A Feb) When I got into like the uni I want to go to, I literally like nearly had tears because I was so happy … I had so much panic with my like personal statement and everything and (Phase 2, Coll A Feb) Negative Experiences I’ve got a place at uni, …but because they’re asking for forty-five credits at merit, I’m not sure if I’m going to get the right grades. (Phase 2, Coll F Feb) A lot of the universities don’t really like Access courses being your sort of qualification … (Phase 2, Coll F Feb) [One student was asked why she didn’t have any extra-curricular activities and emailed the university back] “Would you like to read my statement again?” [the university replied] that although my experience … at the [hospital was] invaluable and is very appropriate … [It] would have preferred more experience in extra-curricular activities. I don’t have time for extra-curricular activities (Phase 2, Coll F Feb) 9 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

10. I MPLICATIONS OF THE F INDINGS Access courses are sites of students’ transformations. Initially many had little confidence in themselves as learners and had evidence of poor prior achievement particularly in examinations. When they finished their courses students had had experiences of learning success, with a range of offers of university places, and believed that they were becoming competent independent learners able to tackle the next stage in their learning journey. Access students reframed their learning identities as a result of their engagement in Access education. Students in the project thought it was an enriching experience, allowing them to instigate their own actions, thereby achieving a sense of agency. Engagement with learning, particularly for mature students, is a subjective experience bound up with other life events and experiences, and with the relationships they develop on their courses with colleagues and tutors. 10 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester

11. O PENING D OORS P ROJECT C ONTACT D ETAILS Project Email: accessproject@le.ac.ukaccessproject@le.ac.uk Project Twitter: @access_project@access_project Project Website: go.le.ac.uk/openingdoorsgo.le.ac.uk/openingdoors Project Team Dr Nalita James: nrj7@le.ac.uknrj7@le.ac.uk Dr Hugh Busher: hcb5@le.ac.ukhcb5@le.ac.uk Dr Anna Piela: ap474@le.ac.ukap474@le.ac.uk Anna-Marie Palmer: amp48@le.ac.ukamp48@le.ac.uk 11 June 2013 Centre for Labour Market Studies & School of Education, University of Leicester