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Beach, Ian (2019) the Effectiveness of Scrutiny for Improving Education Practice: the Case of Modern Apprenticeships

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Beach, Ian (2019) the Effectiveness of Scrutiny for Improving Education Practice: the Case of Modern Apprenticeships Beach, Ian (2019) The effectiveness of scrutiny for improving education practice: the case of Modern Apprenticeships. MPhil(R) thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/74420/ Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Enlighten: Theses https://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] 2 The effectiveness of scrutiny for improving education practice: the case of Modern Apprenticeships. by Ian Beach Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree of Master of Philosophy School of Education, College of Social Sciences University of Glasgow October 2018 3 Abstract Many governments fund inspection agencies to scrutinise the effectiveness of their education policy. These inspection agencies monitor education standards and provide feedback to policy makers on how well their policies are being implemented. This dissertation focuses on further education and training policy in Scotland, exploring the effectiveness of scrutiny for improving education practice and learner attainment. Using a policy evaluation approach, the study develops a set of research questions that are addressed through a case study in a vocational training centre. The centre received a poor inspection report from Her Majesty’s Inspectors for its Modern Apprenticeship programme, as a result it was re- inspected 18 months later. This provided a unique opportunity to examine how effective the first inspection was in improving both education practice and the attainment levels of apprentices. The evaluation of data from the two inspection reports produced noteworthy results and provided a foundation for the field work, which examines the research themes through focus group interviews in the case study centre. The findings from this study have been quite remarkable, revealing that education practice and apprentice attainment improved substantially between the two inspections. This research concludes that for the case study centre, the inspection process acted as a catalyst for substantial and sustainable improvements in all aspects of the Modern Apprenticeship programme. In addition to these tangible improvements, the first inspection also initiated a sequence of distributed improvement effects and organisational learning within this institution. 4 Table of contents Title page 2 Abstract 3 List of tables 8 List of figures 9 List of graphs 9 Acknowledgements 10 Author’s declaration 11 Glossary 12 1. Chapter 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 13 Background and context to this study ........................................................................ 13 Overview of the study and research themes ............................................................. 14 Motivation and purpose ................................................................................................. 15 Contribution and potential value of the study ......................................................... 16 Summary of main findings ............................................................................................ 17 Order of chapters ........................................................................................................... 18 2. Chapter 2 Literature Review ............................................................................................. 19 Introduction..................................................................................................................... 19 Post-war further education in the UK ........................................................................ 20 2.2.1 National divergence and the development of inspection arrangements...... 23 2.2.2 An overview of regulation in Scottish further and higher education ............ 25 Apprenticeships .............................................................................................................. 28 2.3.1 Early developments ............................................................................................... 28 2.3.2 Apprenticeship training and the workforce ....................................................... 30 2.3.3 International aspects ............................................................................................. 32 The origins of inspection and its basis in UK education .......................................... 35 The imperatives of public accountability .................................................................. 38 2.5.1 Reporting of inspection activity .......................................................................... 39 2.5.2 Scrutiny, education practice and learner attainment ..................................... 40 2.5.3 School-based studies into the effectiveness of inspection ............................. 41 5 Side-effects of the inspection process ....................................................................... 47 Establishing a link between school-based studies and themes in this research . 52 Summary of findings from the literature review ...................................................... 53 Research considerations and approaches to this study ........................................... 55 3. Chapter 3 Theoretical and Analytical Framework........................................................ 57 Introduction..................................................................................................................... 57 Analytical framework .................................................................................................... 58 3.2.1 Analytical approaches for defining the research priorities ............................ 58 3.2.2 Policy evaluation .................................................................................................... 59 The Policy Cycle ............................................................................................................. 64 Policy evaluation strategies ......................................................................................... 69 3.4.1 Ex-ante appraisal.................................................................................................... 71 3.4.2 Monitoring ................................................................................................................ 71 3.4.3 Ex-post evaluation ................................................................................................. 72 3.4.4 Evaluation criteria ................................................................................................. 72 Analytical refinement using Logic Models.................................................................. 73 3.5.1 An introduction to Logic Models .......................................................................... 73 3.5.2 Theory into practice .............................................................................................. 75 3.5.3 Applying the Logic Model to this research ......................................................... 81 Positioning the research ............................................................................................... 82 3.6.1 Research themes .................................................................................................... 83 3.6.2 Further refinement of the research themes ..................................................... 85 3.6.3 Policy evaluation and the impact of inspection ............................................... 87 Developing the research plan ...................................................................................... 88 3.7.1 Policy context and evaluation ............................................................................. 89 3.7.2 The impact of inspection ...................................................................................... 89 4. Chapter 4 Policy Landscape and Context ....................................................................... 92 Introduction..................................................................................................................... 92 Policy landscape ............................................................................................................. 92 4.2.1 The policy approach of the Scottish Government to scrutiny and quality improvement in the further education and vocational training sector ........ 93 Policy context - Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce ...................................... 96 Control measures for monitoring policy implementation ..................................... 100 6 Policy aims within a National Quality Framework .................................................. 102 4.5.1 The role of Education Scotland within this policy setting ............................ 103 4.5.2 Policy in practice ................................................................................................. 104 Selecting a sector within further education and vocational training ................. 106 Case study proposal ....................................................................................................
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