I started letting the teachers in’: what factors contribute to successful educational outcomes for disengaged young adults?

ABSTRACT

This paper identifies and examines the narratives of the lived experience of young adults who had been previously disconnected from mainstream education but who are completing, or have successfully completed, an education in an alternative education programme in a regional city in Australia. It highlights the factors that contribute to successful educational outcomes and foregrounds the pedagogical practices that contribute to success. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven current and/or past participants. The narratives and narrative portraits reveal that the structure of learning and teaching environments, supportive relationships, as well as opportunities to identify goals and ambitions and manage fear and anxiety were key factors in achieving successful educational and personal outcomes. Success is influenced by pedagogical practices that are underpinned by an ethos of care, respect and flexibility.

KEYWORDS:

• Non-mainstream education
• alternative schooling
• pedagogy
• transitions
• student voice

Acknowledgments

The School of Education, Federation University Australia, supported this research study. Thank you to the young people who shared their experiences in such open and trusting ways. I extend my appreciation to the young people, staff and stakeholders at the Flexi Program for their support and assistance in the project.

Thank you to the two anonymous reviewers who provided feedback to help improve this paper.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.