With contributions from around the world, this book brings together inter-related research from three fields: social capital, place management and lifelong learning regions. Providing valuable insight into the management of place and the development of learning at a regional level, the book presents international research that underpins the development and implementation of policies and practices that improve the quality of living and working circumstances at both local and regional levels. International in scope and at the cutting edge of research into this growing field that links lifelong learning to place, the book will appeal both to academics undertaking research in this burgeoning field and to those involved in lifelong learning at local, national and international level.

This authoritative volume is a truly international contribution to the worldwide debate on how best to widen access to lifelong learning. The first section of the book comprises research studies from around the world, reflecting the diversity of contexts in which widening access is researched and considers issues central to the access debate, including different understandings of the concept of access, organisational and structural change, curriculum development, entry policies, performance and retention and labour market outcomes. The second section illustrates diverse and innovative methodological approaches that have been employed by researchers in the field, and considers the range of approaches available. Given the growing concern around the world on the need to combat social exclusion and to improve economic circumstances through access to lifelong learning, this book acts as a unique reference point informing the ongoing debate, exploring the relationships between research, policy and practice.

Arising from work by the Gender and Lifelong Learning Group of the Gender and Education Association, this book presents reconceptualisations of lifelong learning. It argues that the current field of lifelong learning is based on certain hidden values and assumptions and examines the mechanisms by which exclusionary discourses and practices are reproduced and maintained. The book opens up ways of conceptualising learning that takes into account multiple and shifting formations of learners from different social contexts. The authors broaden what counts as learning and who counts as a learner, offering different understandings of lifelong learning that are able to include currently marginalised values and principles. Organised in four sections the book looks at: reclaiming - it draws on feminist and post-structural conceptual frameworks to create a critical analysis of the current 'field' of lifelong learning retelling - it tells the tales of different multi-positions in lifelong learning revisioning - it moves from narrative to analysis and the authors present their revisioning of learning which provide the tools to reconceptualise the field of lifelong learning reconstructing - it furthers the discussion to outline new approaches to and practices in lifelong learning.

Originally published in 1988. This book provides an overview of women's experience, access and needs in distance education. It includes contributions on distance learning programmes in Holland, Canada, the South Pacific, West Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Kenta, Great Britain, India, Papua New Guinea, Sweden and Turkey. Within this diversity are common international themes on the nature of the educational process for women in distance learning, whether the subject is building construction or art teaching. The incorporation of a historical perspective and an evaluation of the prospects for the future contextualises the descriptions of the ways in which women are currently re-defining themselves through distance education around the world.

Assessment is a value-laden activity surrounded by debates about academic standards, preparing students for employment, measuring quality and providing incentives. There is substantial evidence that assessment, rather than teaching, has the major influence on students' learning. It directs attention to what is important and acts as an incentive for study.

This book revisits assessment in higher education, examining it from the point of view of what assessment does and can do and argues that assessment should be seen as an act of informing judgement and proposes a way of integrating teaching, learning and assessment to better prepare students for a lifetime of learning. It is essential reading for practitioners and policy makers in higher education institutions in different countries, as well as for educational development and institutional research practitioners.

This book critically assesses the learning that is required and provided within a learning society and gives a detailed sociological analysis of the emerging role of lifelong learning with examples from around the globe. Divided into three clear parts the book:

• looks at the development of the knowledge economy
• provides a critique of lifelong learning and the learning society
• focuses on the changing nature of research in the learning society.
  

The author, well-known and highly respected in this field, examines how lifelong learning and the learning society have become social phenomena across the globe. He argues that the driving forces of globalisation are radically changing lifelong learning and shows that adult education/learning only gained mainstream status because of these global changes and as learning became more work orientated.

The fourth edition of Psychology and Adult Learning has been thoroughly updated to encompass shifts in the concerns of adult educators as they respond to changing global social and economic issues. It examines the role of psychology in informing adult education practice and explores the seminal traditions of key psychological theories as well as discussing issues and problems in applying them to an understanding of adult learning and development. Providing a thoughtful and accessible approach to understanding self and personal change in adult education, and with a new emphasis on diversity, this new edition has been revised and updated in light of the impact of globalising processes, the emphasis on diversity among educators, developments in cognitive neuroscience, the impact of social media, and the theoretical move away from 'grand theory'. It examines the formation of identities, and places increased emphasis on how a conception of selfhood lies at the heart of teaching adults. Considering adult learning in a variety of contexts, topics covered include: * Humanistic psychology * Selfhood in the adult years * The relevance of neuroscience * Adult intelligence and cognition * Behaviourism * Group learning * Transformative learning Psychology and Adult Learning examines the psychological dimension of adult education work by analysing and critiquing key psychological theories that have informed our understanding. It is essential reading for all those who seek a critical account of how psychology informs contemporary adult education theory and practice.

Bringing together the current international body of knowledge on key issues for educating for well-being in law, this book offers comparative perspectives across jurisdictions, and utilises a range of theoretical lenses (including socio-legal, psychological and ethical theories) in analysing well-being and legal education in law. The chapters include innovative and tested research methodologies and strategies for educating for well-being. Asking and answering the question as to whether law is special in terms of producing psychological distress in law students, law teachers and the profession, and bringing together common and opposing perspectives, this book also seeks to highlight excellent practice in promoting a positive professional identity at law school and beyond resulting in an original contribution to knowledge, and new discourses of analysis.

Originally published in 1989, it was thought that one effective way out of the unemployment problem facing many young people in Britain at the time was to ensure that vocational courses in further education had a close 'fit' with the needs of industry and commerce. People involved in further education were therefore making tremendous efforts to develop appropriate forms of learning and assessment and to achieve effective communication between college and employers. The contributors to this book provide a clear assessment of directions in further education and an overview of the key changes and developments taking place at the time. Many of the changes and developments discussed profoundly altered the nature and structure of educational provision for the 16-19 age-group and mature students returning to learning. Topics explored are some of the more important issues challenging FE at the time: facilitating learning; assessment and profiling; course evaluation; the Open Colleges movement; the Review of Vocational Qualifications; ethnic minorities and FE provision; open learning strategies. Each chapter is written by an experienced teacher actively involved in formulating and putting into practice many of the new ideas being developed within further education at the time. The book will still be of interest to people working in further education, adult education and continuing education.

What can the politics of discourse tell us about the discourse of politics? How are flexibility and lifelong learning positioned within policy? Flexibility and lifelong learning have become key aspects of education policy in nation states and bodies such as the European Union and Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development in recent years. They are positioned as necessary for the knowledge economy and social inclusion. The failure to adapt through becoming more flexible and participating in lifelong learning is held up as a failure at individual, organisational and national levels. But how has that narrative come to be constructed? In what ways is it persuasive? And what forms of political action are possible and necessary? These are the questions addressed in this text. Drawing upon the work of Michel Foucault and on the notion of rhetoric, this book forensically explores examples of the work of policy texts in the discourses of education, lifelong learning and flexibility that they construct. In so doing, it argues for the need to take policy discourse seriously and not simply dismiss it as 'spin'. Through a detailed examination of policy texts from primarily Australia, the UK and European Union, this text provides insights into the strategies through which flexibility and lifelong learning become realized and realizable as part of the common sense of educational discourse. Rather than simply rejecting these ideas, or suggesting they are merely the window dressing for the more malign interests of the knowledge economy or globalization, it suggests a politics of the wedge and possibilities for the insertion of different meanings. Central to the claims of this text are that we need to engage closely with the discursive and rhetorical strategies of policy, in order that we understand both how it is constructed and thus how it can be deconstructed.

Paul Ryan has brought together the writings of the most prominent British research into vocational preparation in Britain in comparison to the other advanced economies, primarily within the EEC. The book, originally published in 1991, documents various aspects of inadequacy in British practice at the time, concentrating upon intermediate skills, which are of crucial importance for economic performance. The introduction outlines the strengths and weaknesses of comparative research. Part 1 discusses the use which has been made of it by policy makers in Britain and various aspects of comparative methods in practical comparisons, including an Anglo-Scottish one. Part 2 concerns vocational preparation in connection with productivity and produce markets, noting its importance for economic performance and its dependence upon companies' product choices. Part 3 contains studies of the organization of skills and work and the finance of training within the EEC as a whole. Part 4 comprises studies of training in relation to labour market structures, each of which indicates similar alternatives for training policy in Britain - alternatives whose relevance and political prospects can only be enhanced by the demise of Thatcher government deregulatory policies.

This collection brings together insightful chapters which explore diverse student success initiatives and programs in response to challenges faced by community colleges. Each chapter of the collection magnifies a specific aspect of student affairs to illustrate how dedicated departments and practitioners have effectively supported student success via select projects or initiatives. Readers will gain a deeper insight into the contemporary applications, practices, and impacts of agendas such as the assessment of student affairs and services, student success programming, Guided Pathways, and The Completion Agenda. By demonstrating the meaningful involvement of student affairs practitioners in fulfilling institutional missions and visions, this collection contributes to an overarching dialogue about promoting community college student success. This collection will be of interest to researchers, academics, graduates, and postgraduate students in the fields of higher education administration, educational leadership, adult education, and lifelong learning.

In the past, and over the last decade in particular, the arts and arts spaces have become integral to the research, theory and practice of adult education. This edited volume showcases the possibilities and challenges of work by adult educators in community settings, university classrooms and arts and cultural institutions in Canada, the United States and Europe. The authors share the ways in which they use aesthetic practices to promote human and cultural development, address complex issues such as racism, respect aboriginal knowledge, or simply aim to provide spaces and opportunities to creatively and critically re-imagine the world as a better, fairer and more healthy and sustainable place. This book will benefit educators in universities, communities and art galleries who wish to expand their knowledge and understanding of the arts as tools for change. This book was originally published as a special issue of the International Journal of Lifelong Education.

In recent years the idea of lifelong learning and the learning society has become central to both society and to everyone involved in education throughout the world but, as yet, no truly exhaustive study has been made of these phenomena. This ground-breaking distillation of Peter Jarvis' thoughts on lifelong learning will comprehensively correct that omission.
This book, the first in a forthcoming series, concentrates on the processes of human learning and considers the fact that research into learning itself has hitherto been unsystematic and, for a while, mainly psychological. In the first section of this book the author argues that learning is existential, and so its study must be complex and interdisciplinary. A number of the existing theories of learning are then critically examined, in order to see how they can be reconciled with a more complex model. Applying his expert analytical approach to this wide-ranging topic Professor Jarvis looks in detail at
- Learning in the social context
- The transformation of experience
- The outcomes of learning
- Cognitive theories
- Emotions and learning
- Experiential learning
Although it is acknowledged from the outset that a totally comprehensive theory of learning is not possible, the ultimate goal of this book (and its forthcoming companion volumes) is nothing less than an endeavor to construct an integrated but critical theory of lifelong learning and the learning society.
It will be essential reading for students in education, HRD and teaching and learning generally, in addition to academics and informed practitioners.

Review of Adult Learning and Literacy: Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice, Volume 6, is the newest volume in a series of annual publications of the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) that address major issues, the latest research, and the best practices in the field of adult literacy and learning. Each Review opens with an overview of significant recent developments in the field of adult literacy during the previous year, followed by a set of chapters presenting in-depth reviews of research and best practices on topics of high interest to the field. Volume 6 includes chapters on: Demographic change and low-literacy Americans; The role of vocabulary in Adult Basic Education; Implications of research on spelling for Adult Basic Education; Issues in teaching speaking skills to adult ESOL learners; The preparation and stability of the Adult Basic Education teaching workforce; The adult literacy system in Ireland; and Broad-based organizing as a vehicle for promoting adult literacy. the field and is an essential resource for all stakeholders who need to know what research can reveal about how best to serve adult learners.

This book provides a lively introduction to the theory and research surrounding adult learning of English by speakers of other languages. Offering an accessible discussion of contemporary debates, the book examines a wide geographical and social spread of issues, such as:
- How to understand the universal characteristics of learning an additional language
- What makes a 'good' language learner
- Multilingualism and the taken for granted assumptions about monolingualism
- Learning the written language
- Learners coping with oral communication outside the ESOL classroom
- The effect of recent Government immigration policy on language learning processes.
As a majority of adults learning ESOL are made up of communities of immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers, the diversity of social and personal histories of the learners is a critical dimension of this unique book. The question 'what is the relationship between themental processes of language learning and the social and cultural contexts of learning?' is one that threads through the entire text, bringing in discussion of types of classroom and language teaching methodologies.
Full of practical activities and case studies, this book will be essential reading for any basic skills teacher undertaking a course of professional development, from GNVQ through to post-graduate level.

This book focuses on reconceptualising the teaching of STEM education through dialogue and transformative learning, presenting examples of research from Mexico and the UK. It centres on research which introduces critical pedagogies in the teaching of STEM, where in the past there has been an over-emphasis on content and a technicist perspective on science. The research in this book considers critical and dialogic approaches to teacher education for STEM subjects and emphasises the crucial role that teachers play in improving life chances for marginalised young people and their communities. STEM education is not just a way of improving a country's GDP, but if taught through dialogic and transformative pedagogies it can enable teachers to empower students to improve their own lives. The collaboration between these two countries is timely and comes as Mexico is developing and emerging as a key global economic nation. The work presented here engages in theoretical and empirical work that has application beyond the two countries. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Education for Teaching.

Providing a very contemporary overview of literacy, numeracy and "English as a Second or Other Language" teaching, this book presents a radically new perspective on reading, writing and mathematics among adults.
As literacy is predominantly shaped by social and cultural contexts, rather than by skills and techniques, Uta Papen introduces a social, rather than a skills-based understanding of literacy, and discusses its relevance for Adult Basic Education (ABE) today.
This book shows how teachers and curriculum developers have much to gain from understanding the role of literacy in learners' lives, in relation to their families, social networks and their jobs. This view of literacy is particularly suited to help readers better understand:
- How a social theory of literacy and numeracy compares with other theoretical perspectives
- How to analyze reading and writing in everyday life using the concepts of social literacy as analytical tools.
- The role of reading and writing in everyday life, and what this tells us about learners' teaching needs
- What is actually happening in adult basic education and how literacy is really being taught
How to examine their own practice as ABE teachers, and better meet the needs of their students.

This practical text offers students, consultants, and training specialists proven strategies for launching successful training initiatives in developing nations. While there are many resources available for trainers, no other book takes the expatriate perspective - to prepare international trainers for the unique challenges they face when conducting training in underdeveloped regions. Truly global in scope, the book features examples and experiences from a variety of third world settings, including sub-Saharan Africa, Eastern Europe, and Central and South America. The contributors provide essential general strategies for trainers in developing countries, as well as specific advice on training in various fields - including public health, economic development, public sector development, and media and journalism.

This practical text offers students, consultants, and training specialists proven strategies for launching successful training initiatives in developing nations. While there are many resources available for trainers, no other book takes the expatriate perspective - to prepare international trainers for the unique challenges they face when conducting training in underdeveloped regions. Truly global in scope, the book features examples and experiences from a variety of third world settings, including sub-Saharan Africa, Eastern Europe, Central and South America. The specialized chapter authors provide essential general strategies for trainers in developing countries, as well as specific advice on training in various fields - including public health, economic development, public sector development, and media and journalism.

This book is based on a fieldwork intensive, EU funded project, aimed at sustaining the empowerment processes of career guidance practitioners by developing their awareness and use of their individual, organizational and networking resources. The field work activity was carried out in three different national contexts: Italy, Bulgaria and Switzerland, and based on a creative methodological approach called Participative and Appreciative Action and Reflection (PAAR). The contributions cover a wide range of intertwined subjects. These include (a) deep reflection on life long career guidance (LLCG) systems and processes in the three national contexts involved, (b) the challenges of managing PAAR projects in organisations (c) the role of a participative and appreciative approaches in facilitating a positive shift from professionals inside welfare state institutions, to a more counselling oriented mission (d) how to build up an appreciative memory that is a way of representing experience and creating space for relationships so that they remain stable over time (e) reflection on what may happen to learning processes if the contexts in which the empowerment practices are implemented happen through a virtual environment such as a blog or a social network. The Editors are all experienced researchers and practitioners working if the field of facilitation, life long career guidance, counselling, reflective learning and social innovation. This book was originally published as a special issue of Reflective Practice: International and Multidisciplinary Perspectives.

The book provides a historical overview of adult literacy theory, policy, practice, and research from the mid-1980s to the present. The main focus is a descriptive analysis of three distinctive schools of literacy: the Freirean-based participatory literacy movement grounded in oppositional politics and grass-roots community activism; the British-based New Literacy Studies that focuses on the ways in which diverse students utilize various literacy practices in their daily lives; and the U.S. federal government's focus on functional literacy linked to a 45-year policy emphasis on workforce readiness. These three schools of thought lead to substantially different implications over such critical areas as curriculum, assessment and accountability, and the socio-cultural role of literacy, policy, and political culture, which are discussed throughout the chapters of the book. This discussion includes a chapter on research traditions that closely parallels these perspectives on literacy education. Demetrion argues that unless values grounded ultimately in political culture emerge, it is exceedingly unlikely that the adult literacy field will be able to move from its current marginalized status toward that of achieving the level of public and policy legitimacy many believe it needs for its long-term institutional flourishing. It is argued that any settlement of this issue must be accomplished in the field of practice rather than the ground of theory, even as theoretical insight can help to frame the issues. Conflicting Paradigms in Adult Literacy Education: In Quest of a U.S. Democratic Politics of Literacy speaks to a wide audience, including not only the adult literacy community, but anyone interested in educational theory, practice, policy, research traditions, or political culture, and more fundamentally, in their intersection. Given the breadth of the topics covered, as well as the broad scope of the argument, the book is also meant for those who would like to gain a useful perspective on contemporary U.S. culture, through the window of these conflicting tensions within the field of adult literacy education.

The book provides a historical overview of adult literacy theory, policy, practice, and research from the mid-1980s to the present. The main focus is a descriptive analysis of three distinctive schools of literacy: the Freirean-based participatory literacy movement grounded in oppositional politics and grass-roots community activism; the British-based New Literacy Studies that focuses on the ways in which diverse students utilize various literacy practices in their daily lives; and the U.S. federal government's focus on functional literacy linked to a 45-year policy emphasis on workforce readiness. These three schools of thought lead to substantially different implications over such critical areas as curriculum, assessment and accountability, and the socio-cultural role of literacy, policy, and political culture, which are discussed throughout the chapters of the book. This discussion includes a chapter on research traditions that closely parallels these perspectives on literacy education. Demetrion argues that unless values grounded ultimately in political culture emerge, it is exceedingly unlikely that the adult literacy field will be able to move from its current marginalized status toward that of achieving the level of public and policy legitimacy many believe it needs for its long-term institutional flourishing. It is argued that any settlement of this issue must be accomplished in the field of practice rather than the ground of theory, even as theoretical insight can help to frame the issues. Conflicting Paradigms in Adult Literacy Education: In Quest of a U.S. Democratic Politics of Literacy speaks to a wide audience, including not only the adult literacy community, but anyone interested in educational theory, practice, policy, research traditions, or political culture, and more fundamentally, in their intersection. Given the breadth of the topics covered, as well as the broad scope of the argument, the book is also meant for those who would like to gain a useful perspective on contemporary U.S. culture, through the window of these conflicting tensions within the field of adult literacy education.

Conducting a good interview is more difficult than one might imagine. Of course, thorough preparation is essential, but equally important are knowledge of the specific subject area and effective communication skills. Interviewing: Theory, Techniques and Training presents relevant theoretical perspectives, provides material to help develop a range of communication skills and describes tried and tested ways of preparing for interviews.

There have been many developments in the field of interviewing in recent years. Computer-assisted protocols now play a prominent role in interviewing and there has been much research into the role of communication processes in interviews. Interviewing incorporates these recent developments and insights and offers up-to-date examples and practical suggestions.

This edited collection focuses on the early development, gradual evolution, and present status of distance learning and online education in the social work profession. Relevant for social work students and educators in baccalaureate, masters and doctoral programs, this book is an authoritative statement authored by widely recognized educators on the cutting edge of technological innovation. In addressing the future of web-based social work education, the collection demonstrates the power of distance learning and online technology. The chapters cover a comprehensive range of topics, including organizational and administrative aspects, teaching and practice, recent research and the challenge of creating intimacy and interaction. The volume provides a valuable set of insights into how distance learning and online education are transforming how social work is increasingly being taught today, and will surely be offered in the future. This book was originally published in the Journal of Teaching in Social Work.