This thesis sets out to explore why records of achievement (RoA) became part of national education policy in the English education system, whether it is just one more education initiative, like so many others, which only had a relevance and significance at a particular time and within a certain context, or whether it might have a longer-term structural significance within the national education system. The thesis focuses particularly on the significance and role of the first nationally recognised and designed record of achievement - the National Record of Achievement (NRA) - which was introduced in 1991 and has been redesigned as a result of the Dearing Review of 16-19 Qualifications (Dearing 1996).1 The thesis argues that there are three major inter-related factors which determine the role that RoA has played or might play within the English education and training system - firstly, and most importantly, the context within which it is developed; secondly, the content or features of the record itself (particularly the change from locally developed and determined records to the National Record of Achievement); and thirdly, the balance in emphasis between the use of the process of recording of achievement and the use of the RoA document itself. These three factors form the basis of a theoretical framework which is developed in Chapter 1 and is then used throughout the thesis to analyse the role of RoA (and specifically the NRA) in the past and in the future. The thesis uses this theoretical framework, as well as a detailed case study, to identify and describe the role that RoA has played in its three major phases of development: Phase 1 (1969-1991) - RoA as a widespread but locally determined education initiative, largely brought in to meet the needs of lower achievers; Phase 2 (1991-1996) - NRA as a national policy instrument for use with all learners to record achievement; Phase 3 (a potential future phase) - NRA as a tool for supporting lifelong learning. The thesis concludes by arguing that it is in the type of role described in Phase 3 that the NRA will become more than just another education policy initiative and will take on a longer-term structural significance within the English education and training system. Dearing, Sir Ron (1996) Review of Qualifications for 16-19 Year Olds, London: DfEE.

The purpose of the thesis is to examine the social control and reproduction functions of what is known as nonformal education in the State of Mexico (Mexico). As such it is concerned with analysing what Bernstein calls the coding characteristics of the educational process and how this process is experienced by the participants and can reinforce their 'social positioning' in their society. To place the study in its context there is an initial consideration of the conditions in which nonformal education emerged in Latin America, followed by a critical assessment of its functions; new perspectives for the analysis of this form of education are examined. To set the analysis in its regional context a description of the development of nonformal education at both national and regional levels is provided. Then the definition, aims, and purposes of community education programmes are analyzed. A theoretical and conceptual framework is constructed to analyze the social control and reproduction functions of education; here emphasis is placed on Bernstein's sociolinguistic theory of cultural transmission. This is followed by a sociological appraisal of community education's underlying or invisible features. In the light of the above the methodological chapter presents the concepts and techniques which allowed us to examine the educational process and participants' viewpoint. A qualitative analysis was employed in order to account for the participants' perspective. It was supported by non-structured interviews and participant observation. Empirical work was carried out in four community education programmes in the State of Mexico. Three areas were considered during the field research: a) the educational process (curriculum, pedagogy and evaluation); b) teachers and students' motives for taking part in courses; c) the meanings assigned by participants to the courses as a result of their participation in and experience of the educational process. Data is discussed in terms of the basic concepts of the thesis: social positioning, control and reproduction. The main conclusion refers to the social control and reproduction functions of community education programmes resulting from participants overall exposure to educational institutions and practices. This, it is argued, is achieved through three basic processes: 1) the social positioning of participants which arises as a result of their identification with the educational coding; 2) the lowering of participants' expectations as a consequence of the marginal and marginalising characteristics of the educational process they undergo; 3) the very fact that the courses response to the motivations and satisfy the interests of the participants.

At a time when women are being encouraged to return to education because of changing demographic trends, this study explores the experiences of a group of women who are students on a variety of courses in further and adult education. Much research has already been conducted on women students in higher education and the 'problems' they encounter in taking on the student role, much less is known about the not so prestigious post sixteen sector. The study is grounded in a feminist perspective and utilises a qualitative methodology. A series of in-depth interviews were conducted during one academic year and adopted a life history format. The women were given the opportunity to tell their own stories in their own way and the importance of utilising this approach in reaching the 'private' accounts is highlighted. The first five chapters of the thesis are therefore concerned with presenting the background to the study; locating it within the literature; identifying the characteristics of a feminist perspective and the utilisation of in-depth interviews as the method of research. The following three chapters are concerned with a presentation of the data and emphasise the crucial importance of women's lives in the private sphere in the shaping of the return to study experience. Many of the problems they experience when they take on the student role are associated with fitting it in with the wife and mother roles. In addition a number of the women were studying at an institution which gave very little recognition to the needs of mature students. Two chapters are concerned with identifying the key aspects of the women's experiences and deconstruct the concepts of 'support' and 'fitting in' derived from the data. Based upon this, the ways in which the women negotiated the intersection between the public and private spheres is explored. In accordance with the underlying assumption of the thesis, that it should not just describe but prescribe action in the promotion of 'equal opportunities', the implications for policy and practice in women's education are outlined.

This research was designed to explore the factors which influence national adult continuing education (ACE) policy-making and people's demands of national ACE policies in England and Wales. To achieve the purpose, relevant literature was reviewed and empirical data were analysed. Empirical data were collected through two-stage visits, interviews, and a questionnaire survey. People directly or indirectly involved in ACE were sampled as subjects at two stages. In total, there were 158 valid responses including the interviews and questionnaire surveys. The instruments used to collect empirical data were developed by the researcher, linked to the findings of the literature review, visits, and interviews. Methods applied to analyse the collected data included quantitative and qualitative approaches. The major findings were as follows: 1. Policy-making in the DFE basically had characteristics of a pluralist process. 2. Learner, Economic and Political factors were more influential on the DFE's ACE policy-making. 3. The Learner and Economic factors were the principal influential determinants and they had interactive impacts upon the DFE's ACE policy-making. 4. National ACE policies directly helpful for adult participation in learning were thought important by a comparatively large proportion of the sample. 5. There was a gap between people's demanded ACE policies and the DFE's ACE policies. Comparatively, people's demanded ACE policies were more learner-oriented. 6. Systems theory could provide a systematic and comprehensive analysis exploring influential factors and policy-making in the DFE but was insufficient for discussing the micro process inside. 7. The debate on the ideas of learner-oriented and market-oriented ACE is still ongoing. Even in the recent Green Paper, we can see the coexistance of different policy focuses. According to the above findings, the researcher made suggestions to the DfEE, professional organisations, and researchers who will study similar topics.