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LEARNER PERCEPTIONS OF INFORMATION,
ADVICE AND GUIDANCE: A REVIEW OF RESEARCH
SECTION ONE: INFORMATION, ADVICE AND
GUIDANCE: INTRODUCTION TO THE REVIEW
1. 1 Aims of the review
This literature review has been undertaken
by the Centre for Research in Lifelong Learning at Glasgow
Caledonian University on behalf of the Enterprise,
Transport and Lifelong Learning Department (ETLLD) of the
Scottish Executive. The ETLLD requested the review to
inform work currently underway in the Department which is
aimed at improving the quality and consistency of
information, advice and guidance for adult learners.
The overall aim of the review is to
summarise the findings from research and development work
in relation to the needs of adult learners in Scotland who
are looking for information, advice and guidance on
learning, and the extent to which they perceive current IAG
services as meeting their needs. These points are addressed
both in relation to funding and in relation to other issues
on which adults seek information, advice and guidance. In
line with the specification for the review, literature
relating to groups who have traditionally had lower
participation rates of post-school learning are presented
separately from literature relating to groups who
traditionally have high participation rates. The
specification also requires that only recent relevant
literature be included.
More specifically, the research objectives
were set out as follows.
- What do potential adult learners want to know
when seeking IAG on learning?
- Where would learners turn for IAG?
- Are there patterns discernible as to who needs
what information, and who goes where for
information, for example by socio-economic status,
gender or age?
- What would the implications be of any emerging
patterns in terms of IAG provision?
- What are the findings from the learners' point
of view from evaluations / reviews / market
research on such things as:
success of marketing awareness;
relevance of IAG provision;
whether or not IAG was acted on;
success of sign posting to other sources of
help?
As Edwards
et al (1998) have previously noted, there is often
a naive realism embedded in the notion that when
undertaking a literature review there are well established
boundaries and the focus for the topic is clear. Rather, as
they rightly point out, a literature review is inevitably
selective in that it involves choices about what to search
for, where to search for information, and in establishing
boundaries as to what is and what is not legitimate for
inclusion. This suggests that the criteria for inclusion
and exclusion are important. Given the short timescale
involved in compiling this report, the following framed
this review.
- We have chosen to interpret recent literature
as that published from 1998 onwards.
- The review would focus on information readily
obtainable from national agencies (such as NIACE
and the Funding Councils), and on research which is
in the public domain. A more limited attempt was
made to access relevant "grey" literature, within
the time and resources available to track this
down.
- ETLLD requested that the review focus on adult
learners, which we have interpreted as those aged
16 and over. In the review, we distinguish between
adults, who in general are aged 20 and over; and
young people, who generally fall into the 16-19 age
group.
- We have focused wherever possible on those
groups whose participation in learning has
historically been lower. However, in the literature
reviewed, information specifically related to these
groups can be difficult to disentangle from
information on groups of adults who have
traditionally participated more often in adult
learning. There is therefore a differentiation made
between groups that do not traditionally
participate in learning, and those that do.
Findings are also presented for 'all adults' - that
is, findings that cut across these two categories.
The specification makes reference to the following
'hard-to-reach' groups: those living on low income,
adults who have skills but who are not
participating in learning, adults who have been
made redundant, those in receipt of benefits, and
those with caring responsibilities which have
prevented them from taking up learning. It has
generally not been possible to differentiate
between these groups in the presentation of
findings on those from low participation
groups.
- The review aims to look at the role and scope
of information, advice and guidance on learning
across Scotland. However, literature specifically
relating to Scotland is sparse, so literature that
focuses on these issues in the UK as a whole, in
England, or in England and Wales, is included to
provide a broader view of the issues. Where
findings relate specifically to Scotland this is
mentioned in the review.
- ETLLD requested that advice and guidance be
considered separately from information. However,
there is not often a clear differentiation between
these in the literature. For example, advice rarely
appears as a separate category in the literature,
it is either considered an extension to
information, with reference to information and
advice; or it is seen as related to guidance, with
reference to advice and guidance. Equally, the
terms were not necessarily used in a uniform way in
the literature. Making sense of the exact way the
terms have been used in different literature was
not possible in the timescale for this piece of
work. Our approach has been to use the term or
terms that were used in a particular piece of
literature when reporting on that literature.
- At the request of ETLLD, the review focuses on
literature that presents learners' perceptions of,
and perspectives on, the information, advice and
guidance they need and receive.
1.2 Scope of the literature reviewed
A search for literature was undertaken for
each of the organisations below. Literature which fitted
with the parameters of the review which could be obtained
within the time available to undertake the review has been
included.
- Scottish Executive
- Department for Education and Skills
- Learndirect / Scottish University for
Industry
- Careers Scotland
- Futureskills Scotland
- Communities Scotland
- HM Inspectorate of Education
- Learning and Skills Development Agency
- Learning and Skills Council
- Scottish Funding Councils for Further and
Higher Education
- Higher Education Statistics Agency
- Higher Education Funding Council for
England
- Scottish Further Education Unit
- Association of Scottish Colleges
- Scottish Enterprise/ Highlands and Islands
Enterprise
- National Institute of Adult Continuing
Education
- Centre for Educational Sociology, University of
Edinburgh
- Centre for Research in Lifelong Learning,
Glasgow Caledonian University/University of
Stirling
- Centre for Guidance Studies, University of
Derby
- Centre for Research on the Wider Benefits of
Learning, Institute of Education
- Scottish Council for Research in Education
- National Foundation for Educational
Research
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Guidance Council
- National Institute for Careers Education and
Counselling
- Trades Union Congress
- Workers' Educational Association
- Learning Link
- ADSET
- National Union of Students
In addition three education research
databases were searched for relevant published research,
using the keywords 'information', 'advice' and 'guidance'
in the title and abstract fields:
- British Education Index
- ERIC
- Education-line
Email lists were used to contact colleagues
who were asked to provide any known references and any
"grey" literature which was relevant to the proposed
study.
1.3 Structure of the review
ETLLD have requested a review which looks
at need and relevance on IAG across all sectors (HE, FE,
community, workplace) and which focuses on particular
groups. The review is structured by different groups.
Groups include the three broad categories already
described: all learners; groups who have traditionally not
participated in adult learning ('non-participant' groups);
and groups who have traditionally participated in adult
learning ('participant' groups). Within these, where
findings relate to a particular sub-group of these
categories, this is mentioned. The most commonly referred
to sub-group is 'young people', meaning those aged 16-19.
Findings related to specific groups, such as minority
ethnic adults, adults with a disability, homeless adults,
older people and refugees, are presented separately from
these three categories, as the information available on
them is much more limited, but raises particular issues.
Issues pertinent to particular sectors are pulled out where
possible throughout the review.
Section 2 of the report
summaries findings on the information, advice and guidance
needs of groups.
Section 3 summarises findings on
the sources of information, advice and guidance.
Section 4 presents evidence on
the impact of receiving different forms of information,
advice and guidance.
Section 5 considers the
implications of all the findings, and outlines issues
related to information, advice and guidance for adults that
require further research.
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