Thank all of you who took the trouble to answer my query on the proportions of internal and external tutors on CE courses. I passed them all on to my colleague Sarah Speight who was delighted to receive them. She has sent me the following to distribute to you all as a summary of where she has got to on this.

Regards

David


Thanks to all colleagues who responded to a recent request from Nottingham for data on part-time tutor numbers and the number of full-time academics from outside CE participating in CE provision.
 
The data is being added to a paper on the changing relationship of 'internal' academics to CE in the period c. 1945-2000.
 
The results present no suprises. It is clear that internal academic participation in CE has dropped sharply since the early 1980s, the standard reason given being the increasing demands of QAA and RAE. There are other factors involved though:
 
* The picture has always been variable due to geographic, political and curriculum differences. CE departments with wide rural areas to cover lose links with internal departments the further they move from the centre [sometimes forging links instead with internal academics in retirement]
 
*The advent of CE awards seems to cause problems with internal academics feeling they cannot commit the necessary level of support. i.e. it is easier for them to contribute to non-accredited short programmes [for pastoral as well as practical reasons].
 
*The UCAE in general preferred the use of full-time CE staff tutors above that of internal academics - due to the perceived need for specific 'adult education' skills. The external part-time tutor came a  poor third. This means that when CE academic numbers are at their highest [1980s], internal academic participation declines as a result.
 
* Curriculum differences within discrete subject areas between internal departments and CE caused problems - eg. the type of archaeology taught. This has reduced crossover.
 
There are obviously other factors but the above have emerged strongly from the reports of UCAE and individual departments.
 
Back to the stattistics - in 1952-3 the UCAE report gave a national average of 40% internal academic participation in the CE tutor pool. The highest % involvement comes at Sheffield in 1970 with a 91% rate for internals. In 2002-3, while the figures again vary by institution, the range is from 0% participation to 18% with 7-10% appearing as the norm.
 
Feel free to comment.
 
Thanks all,
 
Sarah Speight
 
 
 
Dr.Sarah Speight
Lecturer in Archaeology & Medieval History
School of Continuing Education
University of Nottingham
Jubilee Campus
Wollaton Road
Nottingham NG8 1BB
Tel: +44 [0] 115 8466465
Fax: +44 [0] 115 9513711
www.nottingham.ac.uk/cont- ed

David Bodger
Director of Administration
School of Continuing Education
University of Nottingham
Jubilee Campus
Wollaton Road
Nottingham NG8 1BB
Tel: 0115 951 6528
Fax: 0115 8466455
email [log in to unmask]