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Purpose: The skillsets of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) graduates are widely recognised to be important for economic prosperity. At the same time, it is broadly accepted that in England there is a need to increase the number of people studying STEM degree courses and working in STEM. However, despite decades of interventions post-16, STEM participation rates remain lower than projected requirements. Some research reports suggest a lack of positive attitudes towards these subjects and aspirations amongst some social groups. As these debates continue, official reports such as those released by the Department for Education show these patterns from the labour market and higher education (HE) extend to both attainment and participation in science and math in school. Design/methodology/approach: In this paper, the authors summarise the authors' findings from the analysis of official reports, policy documents and major research reports focussing on attainment in school science and math and post-compulsory STEM participation. Findings: The authors identify the problematic ways in which STEM subject choices are made across the student life cycle and then discuss how the leaky pipeline metaphor can be ambiguous and needs to be used with caution. Research limitations/implications: Some aspects identified here warrant further research and will be of particular interest to researchers, practitioners and policymakers. Originality/value: In this new report, the authors identify the problematic ways in which STEM subject choices are made across the student life cycle in England and then discuss how the leaky pipeline metaphor can be ambiguous and needs to be used with caution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Although the assessment of enterprise education activities has been widely highlighted as a key area of concern, it continues to be under represented in the literature. Questions remain as to how educators seeking to monitor student progression can capture quality data and measure relevant aspects of development, often leading enterprise education to be monitored rather than assessed. This article seeks to explore the challenges of assessing enterprise education in the secondary education sector. It aims to provide useful insights to help practitioners understand how to evidence the impact of enterprise learning by students. Design/methodology/approach – The paper first presents a critical review of the existing literature with insights from specialist practitioners sourced through an online survey and a seminar. This provides a broad review of the field from a practitioner standpoint focusing on current assessment techniques and standards. Using these data a conceptual pedagogy is proposed for the delivery of enterprise education and a methodology for its assessment, to be developed in future work. Findings – A critical review of the assessment of enterprise education is presented. This exposes challenges of a confused field, with pockets of good practice in schools often not shared or understood out of context. The development of a novel pedagogical model for teaching enterprise education is proposed, linked to a prototype assessment methodology which presents a new approach for enterprise teaching and learning. Research limitations/implications – The work is limited at this stage since participants in the research were drawn from one geographic area in the East of England, and examples of qualifications reviewed were not exhaustive, but these limitations can be addressed in future research. Practical implications – The paper provides a conceptual model for structuring enterprise education which may have relevance across the secondary sector and beyond. Originality/value – The article investigates the problems of assessing enterprise in secondary education, examining what does and does not work, and providing practitioners with useful guidance. In this important topic it is vital that new approaches are developed which can create a broader debate especially at a time of such great change in the educational landscape. This paper provides a platform for further development in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The School of Nursing and Midwifery at De Montfort University has been consistently successful in producing student midwives who are, by the end of their chosen programme, fit for practice, purpose and award according to the DMU. This paper aims to investigate this claim. Design/methodology/approach - The paper looks at De Montfort University where an innovative tripartite assessment process has been developed to support midwifery students in practice. This involves the student, his/her personal tutor and his/her clinical midwife mentor. All three are involved in the planning of appropriate learning experiences to facilitate the student in meeting the clinical learning outcomes, utilising a personal professional portfolio. Findings - The paper finds that the close working relationships between the placement providers and the university have improved the assessment of practice and enhanced the student experience. Clinical midwife mentors have commented on how well the tripartite approach works and they appreciate the clear lines of communication that this relationship provides. The personal tutor role is well established in the School of Nursing and Midwifery and the midwifery team have developed this role to include the assessment of students within the tripartite structure. This is beneficial from a quality perspective; while clinical midwife mentors will obviously change due to differing student placements, the personal tutor is the variable that is the constant through the student's progression on the programme. Originality/value - The tripartite approach to the practice assessment of pre-registration midwifery education investigated in this paper has proved to be a robust approach to ensuring students are fit for practice, purpose and award at the point of qualification and eligible to register as a midwife with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a research paper which focuses on development of a collaborative learning environment through technology enhanced education (TE3) support. It reports on the development of a knowledge transfer project, part funded through TE3, designed to encourage innovation and improve the capability of SMEs in the West Midlands region of the UK. It outlines a proposal for a collaborative learning environment which will provide value to designers of virtual learning environments and funded support providers. Findings reveals that firms that efficiently tap into all relevant sources of knowledge are likely to thrive and those which cannot may struggle.

The article discusses a research paper, which focuses on financial education in small ethnic minority businesses in Great Britain, based on portal survey of owner/managers in 64 ethnic minority small-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and a control sample of 23 non-ethnic SMEs of United Kingdom. It evaluates the financial education needs of ethnic minority SMEs in the West Midlands region of the United Kingdom. It makes an empirically rigorous contribution to a relatively under researched aspect of SME research. Results of research are discussed which show that owner/managers of micro-businesses have lower educational achievements as well as higher financial education needs than their counterparts in small and medium-sized firms.

Purpose - To evaluate the impact of rural renaissance projects aimed at overcoming issues of accessibility and out-migration of the younger, more economically active population and to consider what young people feel about education, training and rural living in Ryedale, North Yorkshire. Design/methodology/approach - Twenty Single Regeneration Budget (SRB) 5 projects focus on the 10-29 age group to improve their confidence, employability and opportunities to encourage them to remain in, or return to, Ryedale. Research includes interviews with project managers and a survey of Year 11 students in four secondary schools to reveal views on education, jobs and rural living. The 320 replies are compared with 378 from a 2001 survey. Findings - Educational attainment is rising. Young people expect to remain in education post-16, but leave Ryedale for educational and employment opportunities. Job aspirations suggest mismatches between requirements and availability, especially in skilled professional, associate professional and technical fields. Ryedale is increasingly perceived as a pleasant, secure environment; many wish to stay or return eventually. Research limitations/implications - The surveys feature Year 11 pupils. Further work might examine different age groups, areas and factors encouraging young people to stay in rural areas. Practical implications - The SRB 5 projects produced positive impacts, however, scope remains for greater representation of young peoples' needs and inputs into local services and decision-making. Originality/value - The paper offers a temporal comparison of surveys and projects related to young people in a rural area. It is of value to policy-makers and educationalists examining young peoples' perceptions and out-migration influences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study by the OECD in 2001 indicated that the UK had one of the strongest links between social deprivation and educational underachievement. This article uses original analysis to report a close correlation over the period 1997-2001 between educational achievement in the London boroughs and various indicators of the extent of social deprivation in those boroughs. When the data are further disaggregated in terms of "inner" and "outer" London locations of those boroughs the so-called "cycle of deprivation" hypothesis is supported still more strongly. The article goes on to discuss the implications of these results for broader policy issues such as central government use of the "standards fund" to target finance to the more deprived schools and the recently announced government decision to appoint a commissioner to improve standards in London schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]