Spanish legislation obliges the public administration to ensure equal opportunities and support for access to higher education for people with disabilities. This work has one central goal: to analyse and understand the causes for the potential inequality for people with disabilities in accessing higher education in Spain and the barriers they…

This paper proposes a critical assessment of equality policies from a theoretical standpoint. As an analytical proposal, this idea is exemplified within the educational context of Vocational Education and Training in Spain, specifically in the Region of Valencia. We have analysed Order 85/2016, insofar as it establishes mechanisms that seek to…

The Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda have set a new horizon for higher education institutions. Universities must guarantee an inclusive and quality education for all. Far from this objective, in the Spanish university system, the expansion of participation seems to have come to a halt, generating obvious situations of inequality.…

Purpose: To uncover age inequalities in participation in higher education (HE) in Spain, the socio-demographic profile of Spanish adult undergraduates is compared to that of the general population of the same age group (25-54). Specific attention is devoted to differentials between face-to-face and distance adult students.…

Although the importance of developing students' academic literacies has been well-established, academic oracy has been forgotten. There is a paucity of attention to oracy in higher education, despite the key role played by students' oral communication in academic achievement and graduate employability. This study offers a scoping review of the…

This article contributes to the development of systematic knowledge relating to equity policies during a pandemic. Based on Didier Fassin's conception of biopolitics as a theoretical framework, the study makes use of critical discourse analysis to examine the school closure policies of two EU countries (Sweden and Spain) and one non-EU country…

The transfer of global education policies occurs unevenly across contexts and fails to consider local identity and characteristics. These policy practices are wrapped up in political interests, power relations and ideological implications. Transferring global policies of inclusion in education to national education systems is a relevant example of…

Whereas universal public access to early childhood education and care has long occupied a prominent place in feminist demands to end patriarchy, not only has such access gone largely unmet in most countries, save some noteworthy exceptions, but privatized childcare and early education has only gained momentum through neoliberalism, a process that…

This open access book addresses challenges related to women in STEM in higher education, presenting research, experiences, studies, and good practices associated with the engagement, access, and retention of women in the STEM disciplines. It also discusses strategies implemented by universities and policymakers to reduce the existing gender gap in…

Education is seen as a resource at a global level but is currently considered to be in crisis in many parts of the world. This constitutes a significant drawback in terms of humanity's prosperity and well-being since education is the key not only to an educated workforce but also to humane, collaborative, and caring societies. Even within this dim…

Adult learners globally face a multitude of challenges in learning and obtaining educational degrees. This can be due to a variety of reasons including academic stress, as well as additional responsibilities with managing families, childcare, household duties, careers, and jobs. Different cultures may face unique barriers in education; however,…

In 2020, 1.5 billion students in 188 countries/economies were locked out of their schools. Students everywhere have been faced with schools that are open one day and closed the next, causing massive disruption to their learning. With the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic still raging, many education systems are still struggling, and the situation is…

The health and social crisis caused by coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has had an especially strong impact on the academic prospects of the most vulnerable populations in society. This paper focuses on the consequences of the current crisis in terms of their potential to negatively impact school disengagement and early school-leaving rates. First,…

This paper offers a review of history of education statistics in Spain, starting in the mid-nineteenth century, describing their traditional means of operation based on censuses, flat tables, and macro-statistical data, which usually display a purely quantitative analysis. Only in recent decades have statistical analyses appeared, supported by…

This article analyses the progresses and challenges in education in Latin America since the Salamanca World Conference on Special Needs Education. The main advances have been in the access to education of a greater number of students derived from a higher public expenditure. The challenges that still exist can be summed up through insufficient…