This research paper is an qualitative examination of student attitudes towards the Scottish Collaborative On-Demand Publishing Enterprise (SCOPE) Readers for the ‘Social Differentiation’ course at the University of Stirling.

The course, organised by the Department of Applied Social Science, is undertaken as part of either and Evening Degree programme (Unit 4791), or the Day-time Honours Degree programme (Unit 4711) in Sociology and Social Policy. As a non-advanced degree unit, the course is often one of the first units taken by Stirling students, and may also count as a credit towards another degree. The course was completed during the Autumn semester (September to December) of the 1995/96 Academic Session.

The Reader was presented in three volumes, each costing £17.50, and contained extracts from articles and books considered important to study for the course. In general, the same broad topics were covered by at least one extract in each volume.

The research aims to explore the strengths and weaknesses of the Reader by gathering views from students who registered for the course. The study focuses primarily on students’ considerations at the time of purchase, consumer use in relation to the course structure and retrospective evaluation of the Readers. In addition, students’ comments on the organisation and future provision of the publication are examined.

The research was conducted over a two-week period in March 1996, approximately two and a half months after the completion of the Social Differentiation course. Fieldwork eventually involved the participation of 18 subjects drawn from both the Evening and Day-time degree programmes.

Of the 13 students who took part in the study, one was interviewed individually, whilst the remainder participated in two focused discussion groups of six students each. The five evening students were each interviewed individually. Six of the 13 day students were ‘mature students’, whilst the remaining seven had taken more traditional routes into the University, via school, ‘sixth-form’ colleges, or equivalent. Three students no longer studied on the Sociology and Social Policy degree programme. All focus groups contained a mix of male and female students. Students volunteered to take part in the interviews by turning up at the specified time in response to a request from the researcher in lectures, and from Wardens in first-year halls of residence.

It is important to note that the study does not attempt to contain a statistically representative sample. This qualitative piece of research is intended to show a wide range of views to reveal underlying attitudes to the Readers. An generalisation of results should be heuristic in nature, rather than relying on inferential statistics.

Individual interviews lasted between 25 and 30 minutes, whilst both group interviews lasted approximately 45 minutes.

DMn Day-time mature student (followed by participant number)

DTn Day-time traditional entry student (followed by participant number)

En Evening degree student (followed by participant number)

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D Analysis

Participants referred to a number of considerations which they felt were significant in their decision whether or not to purchase a Reader. These influences centred around an expectation that the Readers would aid an inexperienced university student, interlaced with monetary concerns. It is possible that the study experience gained from this course would negatively affect the decision to purchase any Reader introduced later in the degree programme.

Students indicated that, at the time of consideration for purchase, they were not necessarily clear about their precise use of the Readers for the Sociology course they were just beginning. For most students, 4711 was amongst their first university courses, and almost certainly their first Sociology course at Stirling. Inexperience with both the academic subject and the University Department’s course structures prevented students from making positive consumer decisions based upon a specific time, or task, during the course for which they knew at least on Reader would be necessary.

Conversely, participants indicated that it was concern for this inexperience which prompted some to buy the Readers. Unsure about the need for an unfamiliar Reader in an unfamiliar course of study, students were willing to follow the advice of Lecturers on 4711/4791 who prompted purchase.

Participants indicated that they were concerned about having the skills necessary to cope with University study. As such, they saw the presentation and possession of essential material in the Reader as a reassuring reference point as they begun their degree programme. This consideration appeared to be more central to the concerns of mature students who may have had a significant break from academic study:

Indeed, there was some evidence to suggest that this reassurance came at the critical point of deciding whether they would be capable of handling the pressures of University study. There was an indication that awareness of the Reader actually prevented students from withdrawing from the University:

Within this transition to university study, participants revealed particular trepidation at finding their way around the University Library. The reader would provide some basic material for students, whilst they developed knowledge of the Library building and system of loans:

The price of the readers was clearly an important factor influencing the question of whether to purchase any of the Readers for the course. Full-time students, in particular, presented financial pressures as the overriding negative influence in this decision. As such, this issue tended to dominate discussions with full-time students. Students concentrated their purchasing consideration on both their overall financial position and the perceived value for money of the Readers against alternative sources of reading material.

Lack of Funds for Purchase

Fundamentally, students believed that the price of the Reader for one of their University courses represented a significant proportion of their budget. There was a wide indication that each of the Readers was above the price which some students were prepared, or able, to pay for course material. For others, the price limited the number of Readers they would buy:

Evidence suggested that students regretted their inability to afford a Reader, and that lack of finance was the sole reason for them not being able to enjoy their perceived benefits. Participants suggested that the revelation of the Reader price negatively reversed their purchasing decision:

As part of the general financial concern, one view expressed questioned the price of the Reader against the worth of it's physical bulk and contents. Although there was general awareness of cost difficulties encountered during production, the view indicated that more material should have been provided for the money:

It was evident the purchasing decision was affected by the students’ perceptions of the use of the Reader after the conclusion of the 4711/4791 course. Evening Degree students expressed the belief that the long-term cost of the Readers would be reduced because they would be able to sell them on to the next generation of students opting for this course:

Day students, however, were more likely to see a greater value for money in the Reader if they felt they would be able to use them during further study. This may reflect the greater likelihood for continuous study of the social sciences in a Day student’s Honours programme, when contrasted to the modular variety of the Evening Degree structure. Certainly, students seemed more prepared to purchase at least one Reader if they believed it is likely that they would continue to study Sociology:

In addition, students felt that the Readers held transferable value for other Human and Political Sciences, and seemed more likely to buy a copy if they intended to pursue such subjects:

In contrast to the general concern for the cost of the reader, one view expressed a belief at the time of purchase that the initial financial outlay would save money on alternative sources of reading material during the course. Students perceived that having the essential reading in the Readers would lessen any need to buy books during the course, or photocopy library books for further study:

DM9 The reason I bought them was to save money on books and photocopying.

Sharing the three Readers, and their cost, between students had been suggested by 4711/4791 lecturers. However this advice failed to appreciate the practical difficulties encountered by students, and relied on frequent contact between students. Evening Degree students were aware that they would not be able to make frequent enough contact with other students to effectively swap material in between classes and course tasks:

In addition, students were not comfortable making such an arrangement, with financial involvement, on an introductory academic unit with other students they may have only just met.

Exceptions to this situation did, however, arise. If students were living on-campus and communally in Halls of Residence, it was more likely that they would have frequent contact with others on the course:

Alternatively, arrangements could be made between, usually full-time students who took other courses with Sociology students:

The purchasing decision was affected by the student’s perception of whether they would be able to find alternative sources of material. Although comfortable with their own ability to use the library, some students were not sure how easily they would be able to compete with the demands of other students for Library material:

DT4 I wanted to know that I always had something at hand, even if it was just backup.

Alternatively, there was a body of students who felt that there were enough resources in the Library to make a purchase of any of the Readers was an unnecessary expense:

Other students were comfortable with the Library resources whilst they had access to the Photocopy Packages, but changed their assessment of the situation upon their removal:

2 Consumer use within the course structure

The eventual extent and purposes for which the Readers were employed varied greatly between students. However, the views expressed did indicate that the Readers could be utilised throughout the whole teaching and learning experience of lectures, workshops, coursework and exams.

Students stated that the Readers were particularly useful during the initial stages of research for an in-depth essay. They were employed as a first port of call in an investigation, before proceeding to the library. No participant indicated that an essay was completed using the Reader alone, but that the extracts allowed them to become familiar with the essay topic and general area of reading. In addition, the Reader allowed the students to sample texts before deciding whether to buy or borrow the full version.

Participants indicated that preparation for regular workshops was significantly easier using a Reader in 4711/4791 than in subjects where no Reader or course text was available. Preparation could be fitted in between other work by using the Reader, without ever having to revert to alternative sources of reading material.

DM3 It was the only thing I used for tutorials [workshops].

Depending upon revision technique, students again suggested that the task of exam revision could be completed by using (usually more than one) Reader, without referring to any other reading material:

Students occasionally used the Readers as preparation for, or revision of lectures. The extracts in the Readers were used to clarify points of confusion in the lecture and to reassure the student that they had understood the context of the lecture. Students commented that lecturers would constantly refer to Reader texts during the class.

Some day students indicated that they also used the texts to give them a general impression and grounding in the course topics. Unrelated to any specific assessed course task, the students read them to increase their sociological knowledge and satisfy their wider interest:

DM1 I read them just for fun, there are some good articles in them.

Other students indicated that they would have used the Readers for this more general contextual purpose had the texts been available to them for a period before course began.

3 Consumer Evaluation

Having completed the course, the level of satisfaction with the Readers was influenced by the way in which they had been approached and employed by the participants. To a great extent, this reflected the wide variety of circumstances and learning situations which characterises the Stirling student population. As such, discussions included a broad range of ways in which the students felt that the Reader had facilitated, or failed to facilitate, their learning experience.

The extent to which participants felt that articles contained in the Reader were specifically relevant to topics and tasks featured in the course played an important part in their evaluation. Views on this issue varied greatly, largely depending upon whether the student preferred reading a range of material on a particular topic, or just being presented with limited essential material:

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Perhaps the strongest support for the Readers came from those who believed that owning a copy of the texts saved them time during busy periods of study. This factor was particularly important to Part-time students, and those who live away from the campus:

Students with young families, and those with employment, stated that the Reader had generally fulfilled their expectations by providing them with enough time to cope with outside commitments:

This time-saving facility was considered especially important when the only alternative source of reading material was the Library’s Reserve Book Room. Those living off-campus commented that restricted borrowing times would have meant travelling to the Library twice in the space of 24 hours:

Students also contrasted the instant and permanent access to the reader with the time-consuming popular alternative of photocopying Reserve Book Room books or photocopies. Participants suggested that their study techniques would have meant a lot of photocopying, and commented that this entailed considerable periods of time queuing for photocopy machines to become available.

Participants indicated that the time saved could be used to provide more flexibility in relation to studying for concurrent courses:

Associated with saving time, participants were keen to suggest that the possession of a Reader provided them with a constant and ‘handy’ source of reference which they could pick up at a moment’s notice. This convenience provided them with choice and flexibility in how and when they studied for 4711/4791, whether dictated by a strategic time-management plan, or just trying to take the path of minimum effort:

This convenience allowed students keeping a job or a family to look at their Readers whenever they managed to find a spare moment:

The constant and predictable availability of one’s own Readers was contrasted with the uncertain availability when wishing to borrow books from the University Library. This was particularly appreciated by off-campus students:

Owning the reference material in a Reader also meant that there was less pressure from the Library’s restrictions on the number of books which can be borrowed at any one time. Again, students could juggle the demands of Sociology with other courses:

Some students, however, did offer the view that the additional flexibility offered by the Reader was unnecessary to their study situation. They stated that they were able to spend sufficient time in the University Library, and found enough appropriate reading material for their needs without recourse to the Reader:

In contrast to those students who wished to sell their Readers on at the end of the course, for some students one of the most positive aspects of owning their own reading material was the ability to legitimately write on their copy. Again, the Reader allowed for flexibility in study technique:

Participants commented that they preferred owning a reader to a traditional recommended course text-book. Access to articles, perspectives and knowledge from a spectrum of authors contrasted with the students’ experience with set text-books:

When research a particular topic, students found that the Reader articles would act as an initial guide to the subject area and related material, and may provide specific references to other studies found in the library:

However, other participants believed that the direction provided by the Reader spoilt their sense of social investigation and discovery. They enjoyed exploring a topic from scratch, without the provision of articles in the Reader:

4 Organisation, packaging and marketing

During the course of discussion, students made a range of suggestions for how the production and presentation of the Reader could have been improved. Some of these comments consisted of constructive comparisons with the SCOPE Reader later used for 4712/4792 Sociology course.

Early production of readers

Some students felt that they would have benefited by having access to the Readers for a period of time before the course started. As such, previously registered students would have the vacation to focus on the course, and new students would be introduced to the type of topics and texts they would be studying in Sociology:

Discussions often touched upon whether it was useful to have several articles on every subject spread across the Readers, or whether this choice should be restricted in favour of just one of two essential extracts. Students cited this as a contrast between the 4711/4791 Readers and the single volume Reader for the following 4712/4792 Sociology course. Those preferring the choice of several articles argued that this ensured that there was closer to comprehensive coverage of the main issues involved in topics, and that the texts were complementary and helped to shed light on each other:

Arguments for more restricted and concise Readers focused on the opinion that there was too much material in three volumes, taking too long to read. Students stated that they would have preferred more specific direction:

The students retrospective estimation of the Readers’ value for money seemed to depend upon the extent to which the volumes were felt to cover the reading felt necessary to complete the course. This estimation could, however, be calculated in two very different ways, depending upon whether the Readers themselves, or a ‘reading list’ provided by the lecturer was seen to define ‘essential reading’.

The value for money of one of the three 4711/4791 Reader volumes could be viewed as just a third that of the single volume 4712/4792 Reader because it contained all the reading material considered vital enough to be placed in a Reader:

In contrast to this view, some students stated that the single volume reader represented a smaller proportion of texts which the lecturers’ reading list describes as ‘essential’. The Reader’s value is reduced if students feel that purchase did not prevent the need to take out other books in order to cover this list:

A number of students indicated that they would have preferred the organisation of the Readers to have reflected the chronological order of lectures on the course. If the Reader is again published in three volumes, there was some disagreement on whether each individual volume should reflect the full chronology of the course, or whether the articles should be grouped and the chronology spread over the three volumes. To some extent, this depended upon whether students preferred a broad overview of the course or would only buy the Reader which specialised in their essay topic. However, those adopting the latter approach still recognised the advantage of broad reading to inform essay choice:

Students indicated that they would appreciate the inclusion of material other than extracts from texts in the Readers. Suggestions focused upon:

5 Future use of computers

Participants also considered the use of computers to download articles which they require to construct their own Readers. In principle there was support for a method which may personalise cost of the reader and allow students to specialise on certain topics. However, participants identified certain practical concerns.

Students appreciated the chance to oversee which articles would make up their own Reader, and to concentrate the volume on the topics featured for their essays and exam revision:

Concern was expressed that preparation of the personalised Reader would be time consuming, and thus counter one of the major benefits of the current system. Time would be taken both in travelling to and from an access terminal, and choosing articles for the Reader:

In addition, students felt that demand for access to the downloading terminal would result in the types of queues which owning one’s own Reader has helped to avoid:

Concern over computers

Some students commented that they would be reluctant to use computer for this purpose, particularly in the first semester at University, when they may be using computers for the first time:

E Summary

Consumer Expectation