Lifelong learning; elements

Available online at www.sciencedirect.com

Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 47 (2012) 1562 – 1566

CY-ICER 2012

Lifelong learning; elements Marjan Laal a *, Ashkan Laal b a, b

Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Sina Trauma & Surgery Research Center, Sina hospital, Tehran 11555/3876, Iran

Abstract This review article seeks to characterize the elements needed to develop lifelong learning in a society. It begins with givin g a clear concept of the term and continues to describe a sum of the key necessities pertinent to establish it. Lifelong learning is viewed as involving all strategies that are put in place to created opportunities for people to learn throughout life. Six essential elements are identified by European Communication include: Partnership working, İnsight into the demand for learning in the knowledge-based society, Adequate resourcing, Facilitating access to learning opportunities, Creating a learning culture, and Striving for excellence. © 2012 2012 Published Publishedby byElsevier ElsevierLtd. Ltd.Selection and/or peer review under responsibility of Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Uzunboylu © Keywords: Lifelong learning, concept, elements, needs;

1. Introduction Globalization and the growth of the fast-changing knowledge economy mean that people require upgrading their skills throughout their adult lives to cope with modern life, both in their work and in their private lives. Nowadays, there is an increasingly important basic skill in ever-changing technological universe: ability to learn and adapt to the needed new skills and training (OECD, 2007). The learning is a process of becoming aware of the frame of reference within which we think, feel, and act, becoming critical of its adequacy with conscious of where it comes, developing newer more adequate frames of reference which are more inclusive, and discriminating of experience (the experience of old age) and finally acting out of this frame of reference. This is the most important kind of adult learning and it is lifelong (Fleming, T., 1997). In various attempts to produce a clear account of the topic, it may be perceived the presence and operation of a particular preconception. In many scientific works on lifelong learning (LLL), there seems to be an implicit acceptance of the notion that it is possible to arrive at some uniform descriptive definition of the term LLL. The common assumption particularly the earlier ones, seems to be that a clear agreement on the meaning and applicability of the term is conceivable, possible and attainable (Aspin, D. N. & Chapman, J. D., 2007). The learning society is the vision of a society where there are recognized opportunities for learning for every person wherever they are and however old they should be (Green, A., 2002).

* Corresponding author: Marjan Laal. Tel.: +98-216-675-7001 E-mail address: [email protected]

1877-0428 © 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and/or peer review under responsibility of Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Uzunboylu doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.06.862

Marjan Laal and Ashkan Laal / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 47 (2012) 1562 – 1566

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LLL is viewed as involving all strategies that are put in place to created opportunities for people to learn throughout life. It therefore should be a process of conscious continuous learning that goes throughout life and directed towards providing both the individual needs and that of the relevant community (Abukari, A., 2004). In order to stimulate LLL and to establish a learning society, one has to define the fundamental elements relevant to LLL. This article is an attempt to present the basic elements of LLL. 1.2. Material and method This review article looks on the essential elements pertinent to LLL and describes the key necessities thereof to establish it in a society. Key issues related to the topic, were identified through review of the literature on LLL and through review of literature on its elements. 1.3. Results When we start to think about what we have learnt over the period of our lives, we find that a great deal of learning takes place outside of the school system. The term for this type of learning is LLL (Lewis-Fitzgerald, C., 2005). LLL encompasses learning that takes place at all stages of life, whether formal learning at school or in daily life (Maruyama, H., 2009). Consequently, this includes all types of social education activities (Ogden, A. C., 2010). LLL is about acquiring and updating all kinds of abilities, interests, knowledge and qualifications from the preschool years to post-retirement. It promotes the development of knowledge and competences that will enable each citizen to adapt to the knowledge-based society and actively participate in all spheres of social and economic life, taking more control of his or her future (Harvey, L., 2009). The components of a LLL strategy, as defined by Commission of European Communities (CEC) are; Developing partnerships at all levels of public administration as well as between suppliers of educational services and civil society in the broad sense; Identifying the needs of the learner and labour market in the context of the knowledge society; Identifying adequate resources by encouraging an increase in public and private investment and new investment models; Making learning more accessible; Creating a learning culture; Putting in place evaluation and quality control mechanisms. By the beginning of 2003, the Commission was to launch a prize for firms that invest in LLL, in order to award and draw attention to good practices in this area (Europa, 2009). More than ever before, individuals want to plan their own lives, are expected to contribute actively to society, and must learn to live positively with cultural, ethnic and linguistic diversity. Establishing a culture of LLL represents a major task for everyone in the country, especially for the Government and those people whose job it is to fund, promote or provide learning. They will all need to modify their approach and behaviour, if lifelong learning for all is to become a reality (Paye, J.-C., 1995). The Communication identified six priorities for action: Valuing Learning; Rethinking guidance and counseling; More investment in human resources; Bringing learning closer to home; New basic skills for all, and; Innovation in teaching and learning (CEC, 2000).

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1.4. Discussion Learning was not universally approached as a lifelong process, prior to 1980 (Collins, J., 2009). In 1980, father of adult learning, Malcolm Shepherd Knowles predicted that LLL would become the organizing principle of all education, and the term of LLL is now a part of everyday conversation in educational parlance (Duyff, R. L., 1999). Rapid socio-economic and technological changes have exerted a strong influence on education and training systems in countries. Concepts and terms such as information society, knowledge-based economy, and learning societies now feature prominently in mainstream educational and governmental policy discourses, and the importance and relevance of learning at every stage of human development is widely recognized (Nesbit, T., Dunlop, C. & Gibson, L., 2007). CEC identified six essential elements for coherent and comprehensive LLL strategies, as follows: Partnership working; not only between decision-making levels (national, regional and local), but also between public authorities and education service providers (schools, universities, etc.), the business sector and the social partners, vocational guidance services, research centres, etc. Insight into the demand for learning in the knowledge-based society; which will entail redefining basic skills, to include for instance the new information and communication technologies. Analyses should take into account foreseeable labour market trends. Adequate resourcing; involving a substantial increase in public and private investment in learning. This does not only imply substantially increasing public budgets, but also ensuring the effective allocation of existing resources and encouraging new forms of investment. Investment in human capital is important at all points in the economic cycle; skills gaps and shortages can certainly co-exist with unemployment. Facilitating access to learning opportunities; by making them more visible, introducing new provision and removing obstacles to access, for example through the creation of more local learning centres. Special efforts are necessary in this context for different groups such as ethnic minorities, people with disabilities or people living in rural areas. Creating a learning culture by giving learning a higher profile; both in terms of image and by providing incentives for the people most reticent to opt for learning. Striving for excellence; through the introduction of quality control and indicators to measure progress. In concrete terms, provision must be made for standards, guidelines and mechanisms whereby achievements can be recognised and rewarded (CEC, 2001; Sultana, R. G., 2007). Six priorities for action of a LLL, which mentioned former, are more discussed in the following: Value learning; to significantly improve the ways in which learning participation and outcomes are understood and appreciated. Proposals focus on the identification, assessment and recognition of nonformal and informal learning as well as on the transfer and mutual recognition of formal certificates and diplomas. Strengthen information, guidance and counseling services; to ensure that everyone can easily access good quality information and advice about learning opportunities throughout their lives. Investing time and money in learning; particularly in the context of the call for Member States to raise overall levels of investment in education and training is a condition of bringing about the kind of fundamental changes which LLL implies. Bring learning opportunities closer to learners; to provide LLL opportunities as close to learners as possible, in their own communities and supported through ICT-based facilities wherever appropriate. Proposals to encourage and support learning communities, cities and regions as well as enabling workplaces to become learning organizations are seen as key ways to bring learning and learners closer together. Importance is also attached to the development of local learning centers.


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Provide everybody with basic skills; to guarantee universal and continuing access to learning for gaining and renewing the skills needed for sustained participation in the knowledge society. Innovative pedagogy; to develop effective teaching and learning methods and contexts for the continuum of lifelong and lifewide learning. It addresses a shift in emphasis from knowledge acquisition to competence development and the new roles for teachers and learners that this implies (Europa, 2009; CEC, 2001; Sultana, R. G., 2007). Learning how to learn, to adapt to change and to make sense of vast information flows are now generic skills that everyone should acquire. Employers are increasingly demanding the ability to learn and acquire new skills rapidly and to adapt to new challenges and situations. A solid command of these basic skills is crucial for everyone, but it is only the beginning of a continuum of learning throughout life (CEC, 2000). The Heads of State of eight major democracies (G8) in their 25th Economic Summit in Germany adopted these essential elements of a strategy for LLL and training, which are: High-quality early years education; Primary education that enables all children to achieve good competence in reading, writing, arithmetic, and Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and to develop basic social skills; Secondary education that develops the aptitudes and abilities of all students, not only those bound for higher education and professional careers, provided by schools aware of the needs of labor markets; Vocational training that imparts skills attuned to the needs of the labor market and the most up-to-date technology and which opens up pathways to higher qualifications; Higher education that offers opportunities for everyone capable of profiting from degree-level work, with financial support as necessary to ensure access for everyone who can benefit; Adult skill acquisition that enjoys appropriate public or employer support, accommodates family needs and affords ready opportunities for re-skilling throughout life. This should include high-quality workbased learning systems and equipping people with the skills needed for self-generated learning. At all stages of learning emphasis should be given to the importance of creativity, entrepreneurship and education for democratic citizenship, including respect for the political, civil and human rights of all people, the value of tolerance and pluralism, and an understanding and respect for the diversity of different communities, views and , 1999). traditions ( 1.5. Conclusion LLL has been repeatedly recognized as the guiding principle which leads to the achievement of personal development, economic growth and cohesion objectives, in present day modern and complex societies. The learning society is the vision of a society where there are recognized opportunities for learning for every person wherever they are and however old they should be. The essential components for establishing a LLL strategy are: A partnership approach is stipulated as the first building block. All relevant actors, in and outside the formal systems, must collaborate for strategies to work on the ground. Gaining insight into the needs of the learner, or the potential learner, along with learning needs of organizations, communities, wider society and the labour market is the next step. Adequate resourcing, in terms of financing and the effective and transparent allocation of resources, can then be addressed. The analysis then proceeds to how to match learning opportunities to learners' needs and interests and how to facilitate access by developing the supply side to enable learning by anyone, anywhere, at any time. There is a clear need here for the formal sector to recognize and value non-formal and informal learning. Creating a culture of learning depends ultimately on increasing learning opportunities, raising participation levels and stimulating demand for learning. Finally, mechanisms for quality assurance, evaluation and monitoring are suggested, with a view to striving for excellence on an ongoing basis.

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