An investigation into the impact of the 2012 English higher education funding reforms on student engagement in higher education policymaking

2012年，英国高等教育资助体系发生了巨大变化，本科学生名额上限被取消，学费上限延长至9000英镑（Bolton, 2021）。自该政策实施10年以来，拟议的研究将询问是否以及如何将费用责任从国家转移到个人学生身上，改变了学生参与政策过程的能力和意愿。这项研究将考察十年来公众的参与，特别是学生及其支持者的参与，以调查学生个人和集体如何影响高等教育政策进程。本研究将运用萨巴蒂尔和詹金-史密斯（1980）的倡导联盟框架（ACF）来合理化政策演变的复杂性。该框架概述了全面分析政策进程需要10年的发展。ACF侧重于竞争行为者、资源和网络在实现政策变化中的作用（Cairney, 2020）。ACF的一个关键特征是确定行为者在政策过程中何时以及如何改变信念系统（Sabatier和Weible， 2007）。这项研究将寻求确定由学生或由支持性行为者组成的倡导联盟推动的高等教育政策的变化。该研究将重点关注由学生领导或参与的自下而上的创新如何影响高等教育政策（Hartley, 2014）。该研究将通过分析参与式审议过程（如参与式研究）的使用情况，探讨是否发生了系统的公众参与；公民参与产生想法或决策；以及公众咨询。主要研究问题将探讨2012年英国高等教育经费改革如何影响学生参与高等教育决策？以两个调查领域为基础：自2012年以来，采用了哪些参与式审议程序使学生能够参与政策制定？自2012年以来，有什么机制让学生参与英国高等教育政策的公众咨询？该研究将探索学生参与政策过程的正式记录，并将收集关于秘密参与政策过程的新的定性数据，以及行为者被拒之门外的场合的证据。

The English higher education funding system changed drastically in 2012, when the cap on undergraduate student places was removed, and the tuition fee limit was extended to £9,000 (Bolton, 2021). 10 years since the policy was implemented, the proposed research will interrogate if and how the shift in fee liability from the state to individual students has altered students' ability and willingness to engage in the policy process. The study will examine public participation, specifically that of students and their advocates, over the decade to investigate how students have individually and collectively influenced higher education policy processes. The study will apply Sabatier and Jenkin-Smith's (1980) advocacy coalition framework (ACF) to rationalise the complexity of policy evolution. The framework outlines that 10 years of development is required to comprehensively analyse the policy process. The ACF focuses on the role of competing actors, resources and networks to achieve policy change (Cairney, 2020). A key feature of the ACF is identifying when and how actors create change to belief systems during the policy process (Sabatier and Weible, 2007). The research will seek to identify changes in higher education policy that were driven by students or advocacy coalitions, made up of supportive actors. The research will focus on how higher education policy has been informed by bottom-up innovation, that is led by, or engages, students (Hartley, 2014). The study will explore if systematic public engagement has occurred by analysing the use of participatory-deliberative processes such as participatory research; citizen engagement in the generation of ideas or decision making; and public consultations.The main research question will investigate the question How has the 2012 English higher education funding reform impacted student engagement in higher education policymaking? is underpinned by two areas of investigation: What participatory-deliberative processes have been employed to enable students to participate in policymaking since 2012?What mechanism have been available to students to contribute to public consultations on English higher education policy since 2012?The study will explore formal records of student participation in the policy process and will gather new qualitative data on covert engagement in the policy process together with evidence of occasions where actors were shut out from participating.