Speaker: Sarah Lever

Location: Thursday 27 March 11am-1230pm

Seminar Title: Adult Vocational Education in an FE College

My project relates to learner decision-making processes and influences within the complex system of a further education college. Briefly, the aims are to explore an understanding of the social context influences on adult vocational learner decision-making in order to develop recommendations for pedagogy, curriculum, and policy.

For this seminar, I will focus on the philosophical basis of my project. Through activities and discussion, I will explore my philosophical journey from critical realism to social constructivism. I will discuss why and how the philosophical base matters in relation to the project aims and initial study findings.

I will discuss the following related topics: what is meant by social structures; whether social structures exist objectively; the status and meaning of influence; and subjective realities and individual meaning influenced by social context. In addition, I will discuss the use of multi-methods within a project methodology and the meaning of triangulation when the main project focus is the learner interviews, their experiences, and subjective understandings of their course learning journeys.

Confirmation of attendance

All staff and students in SELCS are welcome to attend.

Please confirm your attendance asap and by Thursday 20 March 2025 at the latest:

Please email p.t.mccash@warwick.ac.uk and advise whether you wish to attend in person or online.

We look forward to seeing you there!