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Young people and alternative provision: Perspectives from participatory–collaborative evaluations in three UK local authorities
Author(s) -
Trotman Dave,
Enow Linda,
Tucker Stan
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
british educational research journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.171
H-Index - 89
eISSN - 1469-3518
pISSN - 0141-1926
DOI - 10.1002/berj.3495
Subject(s) - viewpoints , mainstream , general partnership , agency (philosophy) , curriculum , sociology , qualitative research , public relations , pedagogy , participatory action research , qualitative property , participatory evaluation , medical education , psychology , political science , medicine , social science , art , machine learning , anthropology , computer science , law , visual arts
This article reports the findings of four separately commissioned evaluations of alternative provision ( AP ) undertaken in three local authorities in the UK . The evaluations were specifically predicated on the principles of children's rights and used a combination of qualitative research methods and documentary analysis to elicit the experiences of young people in conjunction with the viewpoints of key stakeholders. Data from each evaluation was gathered over a total period of 6 years. The sites and time scales for each evaluation varied from 6‐month authority‐wide strategic reviews to a 3‐year evaluation of an AP free school and an evaluation of pupil referrals in a large school partnership. The evaluations involved 200 participant children and young people, 30 managers and stakeholders, 8 parents of non‐attending pupils and local authority officers and school governors. The evaluations report the complexity of needs amongst children and young people; the continuing problem of unsuccessful transitions between key phases/stages of education and the profound consequences of this for young people; assumptions around mainstream reintegration and managed moves; and the curriculum challenges of vocationalism and academic emphasis. While the research data confirms the positive value of multi‐agency approaches in AP , it also shows a more recent troubling increase in the number of young people now being referred to AP as a consequence of their exposure to performative school cultures.