Do role models help to widen participation? An investigation into the effect of social background on choice of role model

Issues of access, social exclusion and lifelong learning currently dominate educational policy agendas. Questions of how to widen participation and combat social exclusion in education are both pressing and troubling. Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning is one of the few journals that addresses these questions nationally and internationally. The journal is based on the belief that there are neglected links between research and theory, and policy and practice in the promotion of widening participation in post-compulsory education and lifelong learning. It aims to provide a forum for the development of theory, the addressing of policy questions and the dissemination of innovative practice in the field of widening participation and lifelong learning. The journal is international, interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral, relating widening participation to higher education, further education, community-based learning and schools. Each issue of the journal contains editorial providing analysis of current key policy issues in the field; diverse articles drawing on empirical research, contextualised within current national and international policy debate, which develop the theoretical base of the field or report on significant research projects; critical evaluations of examples of innovative practice, which provide a forum for practitioners and researchers to share and discuss specific projects that are either in progress or have been completed; and reviews of important new publications. The journal is of interest to all those who want to understand the issues involved in widening participation and lifelong learning and who are working to create positive change: researchers, policy makers and practitioners.