Foundation Years and Why They Matter
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- Description
- Contents
- About
Every year, thousands of British students enter higher education via a foundation year. Despite their growing popularity, the place of foundation years has become an increasingly contested issue: little is actually known about them outside the sector and they are widely misunderstood, leading some to question their value. As this book demonstrates, though, foundation years are not homogeneous – they are diverse products of the institutions, students and communities they serve, providing vital pathways into higher education that address the specific needs of underrepresented and disadvantaged groups studying at specific universities, widening access and promoting social mobility.
Foundation Years and Why They Matter presents a selection of case studies, provided by experienced foundation year practitioners from twelve different UK Universities, illustrating the diversity of foundation year provision and delivering a compelling narrative about what foundation years are, what they do, how they do it, and the impact they have. This new and unique contribution to the literature on higher education and widening access is designed to help politicians, policy makers, and educators better understand UK foundation years and why they matter to the sector, to institutions, and above all to students.
Foreword; Lee Elliot Major
- Introduction; Stephen Leech
- PART 1. Why foundation years exist
- Chapter 1. Foundation Years for Social Justice; Stuart Peck and Nayyar Jaan Hussain
- Chapter 2. Widening access, diversifying cohorts: Embedding a foundation year within highly selective HE; Alex Pryce
- Chapter 3. ‘There is probably nothing you could do that would prepare you better for university life’: Foundation years as routes into higher education for mature students; Sarah Hale
- PART 2. What foundation years do
- Chapter 4. Closing the gap: A statistical analysis of the impact of a foundation year on awarding gaps in Business, Management and Economics; Gabriella Cagliesi and Mark Clark
- Chapter 5. Success in STEM – and how foundation years support students from neurodivergent groups to achieve it; Anna Barney
- Chapter 6. Student voices: Reflections on the value of a foundation year; Dawn Whitton and David W. Stoten
- Chapter 7. Doing the Maths: The impact of a foundation year on Mathematics students’ achievements and attitudes; Matthew J. Craven and Jenny M. Sharp
- Chapter 8. Creating a student identity: belonging and mattering; Lucinda Becker
- PART 3. What makes foundation years different
- Chapter 9. Growing good practice: Foundation years as an incubator for pedagogical innovation and development; Lewis A. Baker, Carol Spencely, and Robert Walsha
- Chapter 10. Skills for Success: A student-centred and student led curriculum; Jayne Hopkins, Ellie Davison, and Thomas Hobson
- Chapter 11. Playing the game: Gamification as a pedagogical approach; Anna Tranter, Amy Stickels, and Miriam Schwiening
- Conclusion: Foundation years matter; Sarah Hale and Stephen Leech
Stephen Leech is Head of Transitional Education for Durham University, UK, and Chair of the Foundation Year Network.
Sarah Hale is Programme Director of the Foundation Year Programme at the University of Sheffield, UK, and Policy Officer for the Foundation Year Network.