Measuring the value of placements to employers

This article explores the concept and measurement of placement value, underexplored in theory and practice to date. The article makes a theoretical contribution to the placement value discourse by examining and articulating the placement value concept. It also offers a practical contribution by exploring a piloted tool to evaluate employer placement value, developed as part of a project funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England. It examines the immaturity of the placement value concept against contemporary value discourse, including service- and goods-dominant logic frameworks (exploring value-in-use and value-in-exchange) and calls for greater attention to be paid to placement value to support the sustainable provision of placements.

Further education in transition

In 1992 the Further and Higher Education Act created the English further education sector by taking colleges out of LEA control and bringing into existence the Further Education Funding Council (FEFC). As in higher education (HE), similar funding arrangements exist for further education in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.DOI:10.1080/0968776000080302

The evaluation of the National Learning Network

The National Learning Network (NLN) is part of a response to the expectation that the further education (FE) sector within England will grow steadily over the next three years to fulfil the Department for Employment and Education's requirement to widen participation in this area of education. The NLN is just one of the initiatives aimed at (though not exclusive to) new students from non-traditional, disadvantaged and previously excluded groups, and is expected to bring the student population in FE to over four million. The Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) has noted that traditional FE learning paradigms are not suitable for this level of participation and that increased levels of information and learning technology (ILT) will need to be implemented to cope with these increased student numbers.DOI:10.1080/0968776000080304

The impact of impact

The proposed introduction of impact into research funding assessments has been controversial. The current proposals for the new quality-related research (QR) framework contribute to a very tense environment which also includes looming cuts to higher education budgets. There are widespread concerns about how the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) will allocate the resulting budget.