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Purpose – UK urban state schools have recently experienced increased pressure to improve pupil performance levels and punitive policies appear to be one way of dealing with “problematic” young people. While some are permanently excluded for serious acts, others, who are by comparison less problematic, are unofficially “excluded” and referred to off-site educational provision (OSEP) where they receive reduced timetables and unchallenging courses. This research study set out to examine why 20 young people were “unofficially” excluded from school and their progress in OSEP.

Methodology – The study made use of ethnographic methods with 20 excluded young people in one south London borough in the UK. The research was undertaken from March 2009 to August 2009.

Findings – This chapter shows how “unofficial” exclusionary processes, to which these urban young people are exposed, have implications for their identity, self-worth and lifestyles, and makes them increasingly vulnerable to crime and victimization. The chapter makes use of labeling perspectives to understand the significance of the social reaction to deviant labels young people receive in school (Becker, 1953) and how they respond as a consequence (Lemert, 1972).

Increasingly, punitive policies on ‘poblematic’ pupils are implemented in poor‐performing UK urban state schools. While some are permanently excluded and referred to local authority educational alternatives, others are unofficially ‘excluded’ and referred to other forms of off‐site educational centres, where pupils receive a significantly reduced timetable, undertake unchallenging courses and are unlikely to return to school. Based on an ethnographic research project with 20 excluded young people in one south London borough, this paper will discuss what happens to these young people after their ‘exclusion’ from school. I will suggest that this form of unofficial ‘exclusion’ has significant life implications for these young people, contributing not only to their social exclusion, but also to their increased exposure to crime and victimisation. Moreover, their life options are truncated despite the efforts that they may make otherwise.

This report is the result of a five‐month survey of information provision in the London Borough of Islington. It looks at information on learning opportunities for adults and complements Brenda Neale's survey of adult learner needs which identified a lack of accessible information as a major barrier for adults in the Borough wishing to return to learning.

The Faculty of Information Technology at QUT does not formally carry out distance education for any of its courses. However, it has pursued a number of initiatives that have made it possible for students to carry out an increasing proportion of their coursework off‐site. These initiatives include computer‐managed learning, World Wide Web and CD‐ROM delivery of administrative and educational materials, and most recently the development of an integrated learning environment (ILE) for electronic delivery. These developments have been complemented and supported by the QUT library by means of different avenues of access to CD‐ROMs, a regional electronic document delivery service (REDD), and an electronic reserve (E‐Reserve) service. Issues associated with the operation and evaluation of such facilities are described, and the future library role in educational delivery is discussed.

This case study will detail and discuss the decision by a central student-facing learning development unit at Keele University, to provide student writing retreats, accessible to students at all levels of higher education (HE) studies. Staff and researcher writing retreats have been found to improve productivity and motivation, and to develop some participants’ sense of identity as “writers” (Casey, Barron, & Gordon, 2013; Moore, 2003; Murray & Newton, 2009; Papen & Thériault, 2018; Swaggerty, Atkinson, Faulconer, & Griffith, 2011). Many UK higher education institutions provide a range of writing retreats, in varying formats, to staff and PhD students to further their writing goals but rarely, if ever, to undergraduate (UG) or postgraduate-taught (PGT) students.

Over the past four academic years, the learning development unit at Keele University have been developing and running a range of student writing retreats for UG and PGT students as part of our freestanding academic skills development provision. This case study will provide a summary scope of the sector, present relevant literature supporting writing retreats and critically reflect on and evaluate the freestanding writing retreats provided to students. The educational evaluation to be presented here stands as an innovation in the teaching and support of academic writing practices of students.

This article is based on a study commissioned by the British Library Research & Development Department to consider the feasibility of setting up a national distance learning scheme for information and library studies in the United Kingdom. It reviews recent developments internationally in the field of distance learning and provides an assessment of the enabling technologies. A number of models for future action are proposed.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the quality of the current provision for school leadership in Kenya, the extent to which they have an impact on student outcomes and the return on school leadership preparation and development investment.

The paper draws from educational leadership, management and administration courses delivered by universities and other institutions to aspiring and practising educational leaders in Kenya. It employs a method for evaluating return on leadership development investment first articulated by Eacott (2013).

While there is growth in provision, consistent with international trends, this provision is more recognised for its standardisation than points of distinction; there is minimal attention to identified dimensions of leadership leading to higher student outcomes which raises questions regarding the universality of school leadership preparation and development curriculum; and the high course costs of current provision is an inhibiting factor in assessing the return on investment in school leadership preparation and development.

The study was limited to publicly available documents from a limited sample of institutions. There is a need for more studies in the area.

Institutions seeking to offer school leadership development have grounds on which to make decision about what programs their school leaders should undertake in terms of cost and quality. The study provides institution offering school leadership development courses evidence on which to base future policy direction.

The findings provide a case for investing in school leadership development given the impact courses may have on student outcomes.

The paper provides a comprehensive overview of the current provision on school leadership preparation and development in Kenya. It contributes to its understanding in Africa in terms of quality, performance impact and return on investment.

The paper reports on a research project undertaken for the North West Tourism Skills Network.

The project explored the provision of information technology within hospitality and tourism programmes in educational institutions in the region. Researchers conducted telephone interviews with key specialist staff in 80 per cent of the schools, colleges and universities delivering programmes for introductory, operational and managerial programmes.

Findings suggest that IT provision occurs in all programmes and can now be considered as a core basic skill along with literacy and numeracy. Provision was generally applied to the industry and the specific requirements of the programme. There were several examples of excellent educational practice. However, some smaller colleges and sixth‐form college providers found the high purchase price of industry software a barrier to on‐site resources. That said, many ensured familiarity with industry software through industry partnerships and industrial visits.

While research gathered responses from 85 per cent of hospitality and tourism providers in the North West region, the study needs to be replicated nationally because these interviews suggest that information technology skill development is a key requirement for those destined to work in hospitality and tourism occupations.

Highlights the importance of information technology in the curriculum.