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Papers by Karen Evans

Research in Post-Compulsory Education, 2010

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to investigate how knowledge of different kinds is put to ... more ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to investigate how knowledge of different kinds is put to work in workplace education programmes for adults with low skills and adults with higher skills. A novel framework, which has moved beyond narrow conceptions of ‘transfer’ to concentrate on different forms of knowledge and the ways these are recontextualised as people move between sites of learning, was used to examine three work‐based programmes in Canada. The aim was to compare the Canadian results with those obtained from six work‐based exemplar programmes previously analysed according to the framework in the United Kingdom. Results indicate that the seven elements in the framework hold some explanatory power across a wide variety of workforce upskilling programmes as well as across learner skill levels and at the same time help to focus in on four kinds of knowledge recontextualisations.

Journal of Adult and Continuing Education, 2009

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate some of the kinds of formal and informal... more The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate some of the kinds of formal and informal workplace training activities that workers with low literacy engage in from different parts of Canada and the United Kingdom. The study employed a multi-site case study research design with 31 employees and 18 instructors from seven different types of workplace literacy programmes in various regions of Canada and 42 employees and six supervisors/tutors from four workplace basic skills programmes in the north and south of Greater London, England. Data sources from each country were developed and were used for comparable purposes following a within case and cross case analysis. The findings are described under three main themes. The first theme depicts the range of formal workplace programmes in both countries that employees with low literacy have participated in. The second pattern highlights the main types of informal learning activities that emerged from the data which included: observ...

Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 2010

And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the fi... more And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. T.S. Eliot-Little Gidding-1942 This special issue both completes and celebrates the 40 th volume of Compare. We have been privileged to serve as editors of this important journal over the past six years. Both of us came to the role in 2004 and have completed our terms of office in 2009 and 2010 respectively. Part of the strict BAICE/Compare policy of appointing editors and all editorial members for fixed terms ensures a process of permanent renewal. Members of each incoming editorial team appraise the journal as they see it at the time. All do so from their own standpoints, perspectives, commitments and specialisms. This special issue has afforded us a rare opportunity to stand back and take a longer retrospective view, contacting past editors and inviting review and comment. We have experienced a journey back in time that has brought us to where we started, and in so doing we see the place differently, as for the first time. In this editorial, we share that journey with you, our readers.

World Studies in Education, 2000

This paper draws attention to the imminent publication of the Routledge book 'How Non-Permane... more This paper draws attention to the imminent publication of the Routledge book 'How Non-Permanent Workers Learn and Develop' (Bound, Sadik, Evans. & Karmel, 2018). The research underpinning the book was initiated as part of a Singapore-UK collaboration. It outlines connections with recent inquiries into casualisation of work in the UK (Taylor, 2017). It reviews connections between the European Union and International Labour Organisation perspectives (see for example EC, 2016; ILO, 2016) on the growing prevalence of non-standard work, the challenges this presents in contrasting economies and societies and the limited attention given to the learning and development of workers whose employment is characterised as 'precarious' or 'contingent'. The inquiry draws on draws on Ragin's (1991) comparative sociological approach in developing an extended dialogue between ideas and evidence yielded by recent research into how working lives are sustained in contingent wo...

Education + Training, 1993

ABSTRACT Examines the role of “key workers” in industry, who combine both technical and training ... more ABSTRACT Examines the role of “key workers” in industry, who combine both technical and training mastery in the workplace. Such workers are significant because, as well as providing training to meet existing needs, they also prepare workers to cope with the demands of longer-term change. The role of British key workers is compared with those of their counterparts in Germany and Japan. Factors which affect the development of key workers in the UK are discussed, focusing particularly on the introduction of National Vocational Qualifications and their functions as “enablers” or “containers”. Suggests that the key worker should not be viewed as one person. The term can be applied to many people at different levels within a company according to the nature of the training and development required.

Practice-Based Education, 2012

How non-permanent workers learn and develop, 2019

How Non-Permanent Workers Learn and Develop is an empirically-based exploration of the challenges... more How Non-Permanent Workers Learn and Develop is an empirically-based exploration of the challenges and opportunities non-permanent workers face in accessing quality work, learning, developing occupational identities and striving for sustainable working lives.

Http Dx Doi Org 10 1080 0305006900260105, Jul 6, 2006

Evans, Karen (2002) Challenging inequality, choosing inclusion: higher education in changing soci... more Evans, Karen (2002) Challenging inequality, choosing inclusion: higher education in changing social landscapes. In: Access, participation and higher education: policy and practice. Future of Education From 14+. Kogan Page, London, pp. 40-54. ISBN 978-0-...

Lifelong Learning Book Series VOLUME 2 Series Editors David N. Aspin, Em, Faculty of Education, M... more Lifelong Learning Book Series VOLUME 2 Series Editors David N. Aspin, Em, Faculty of Education, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia Judith D. Chapman, Centre of Lifelong Learning, Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, Australia Editorial Board William L. ...

Lifelong Learning Book Series, 2005

Learning, Work and Social Responsibility, 2009

Finding the right relationship between education and 'real life'has preoccupied educati... more Finding the right relationship between education and 'real life'has preoccupied educationalists and politicians for most of the last century. I start this book on Learning, Work and Social Responsibility with the words of a controversial English politician, known for ...

Learning, Work and Social Responsibility, 2009

Research in Post-Compulsory Education, 2010

Journal of Adult and Continuing Education, 2009

Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 2010

World Studies in Education, 2000

Education + Training, 1993

Practice-Based Education, 2012

How non-permanent workers learn and develop, 2019

Http Dx Doi Org 10 1080 0305006900260105, Jul 6, 2006

Lifelong Learning Book Series, 2005

Learning, Work and Social Responsibility, 2009

Introducing a 2021 volume of forty chapters bringing together perspectives and new empirical insi... more Introducing a 2021 volume of forty chapters bringing together perspectives and new empirical insights into learning and work, written by authors from around the world. Focuses on how work and learning are intertwined in changing times and through the life course.

This Handbook provides a state-of -the art overview of the field of workplace learning from a glo... more This Handbook provides a state-of -the art overview of the field of workplace learning from a global perspective. The authors are all well-placed theoreticians, researchers, and practitioners in this burgeoning field , which cuts across higher education, vocational education and training, post-compulsory secondary schooling, and lifelong education. The volume provides a broad-based, yet incisive analysis of the range of theory, research, and practical developments in workplace learningThe editors draw together the three essential areas of Theory, Research and Practice, and Issues in the field of Workplace Learning. In addition, final chapters focus on issues, future developments, and directions with recommendations for further development. Key researchers and writers in the field have approached workplaces as the base of learning about work, that is, work-based learning. There has also been emerging interest in variations of the idea such as learning about, through, and at work. Many of the theoretical discussions have centred on adult learning and some on learners' managing their own learning, with emphasis on aspects such as communities of practice and self directed learning.Early work in the field was often linked to the Vocational Education and Training (VET) traditions with concerns around skills, competencies and 'on the job' learning. The idea that learning and workplaces had more to do with real lifelong and lifewide aspects than the traditional "training" regimen has emerged in the last decade. Since the mid 1990s the field has grown as an area of theory, research and practical work which has not only expanded the interest but has also legitimized the area as a field of study, reflection and progress.The SAGE Handbook of Workplace Learning draws together a wide range of views, theoretical dispositions and assertions and provides a leading-edge presentation by key writers and researchers with insight into the field and its current state. It will be a basic source for researchers and academics interested in the scope and breadth of the Workplace Learning area.

The recent economic crises have presented new challenges for organizations and individuals global... more The recent economic crises have presented new challenges for organizations and individuals globally, particularly for young people whose life chances now appear worse than those of their parents' generation. We have been privileged to edit a new international collection of research papers focusing on these challenges, whose publication has been marked by a LLAKES seminar at the Institute of Education in November 2013.

Publisher's abstract (Routledge): Across the western world, there is a growing awareness of the ... more Publisher's abstract (Routledge):
Across the western world, there is a growing awareness of the importance of workplace learning, seen at the level of national and international policy, as well as in the developing practices of employers, training providers and Trades Unions. Authoritative, accessible, and appealing, it presents key findings on work-based learning, bringing together conclusions and investigating a variety of workplace contexts to show how such learning can be improved. An extensive practical treatment, brought to life with illustrations from both the public and private sectors, this book has a unique combination of breadth of coverage and depth of understanding.

Grounded in rich and detailed empirical studies, this volume challenges conventional thinking. An important new addition to the Improving Learning series, it focuses on guidelines for improving learning by marrying the very best theory and practice to provide an accessible and authoritative guide to workplace learning.

▶ Substantially revised and updated edition of International Handbook of Lifelong Learning ▶ Most... more ▶ Substantially revised and updated edition of International Handbook of Lifelong Learning ▶ Most comprehensive survey, analysis, exploration and development of problems, themes and issues in the field of lifelong learning ▶ State of the art contributions from a wide range of international contributors from an extensive number of countries ▶ Lifelong learning policies, programs and practices are being conceived, articulated, implemented and assessed

ED370001 - Becoming Adults in England and Germany.

The workplace is a crucially important site for learning in today's learning society. This i... more The workplace is a crucially important site for learning in today's learning society. This is reflected in the frequent calls for higher levels of skills within the workforce made by management experts, academics, policy makers and employers. This hook considers the changing ...

In this paper we will present early findings from a study of those whose work is contingent acros... more In this paper we will present early findings from a study of those whose work is contingent across three industry sectors: creative sector, the Continuing Education and Training (CET) sector and low wage sectors, specifically, cleaning and labouring work. The rise of contingent (non-permanent) work is indisputable. In fact not only is the percentage of those who undertake work where the relationship with the employer is less than 12 months increasing, but ‘flexible capitalism’ is resulting in changes in the nature of relationships between employers and those considered to be ‘permanent’ workers. The degree of precarity for those whose work is contingent upon the needs of ‘flexible capitalism’ impacts on learning opportunities for these workers. It is now well established that ‘non-permanent’ workers have less access to training and learning opportunities. The growth and extent of change in these working relationships creates an imperative to better understand in what ways the experi...