Tale of Three Cities: Elsinore--Montreal--Tokyo. The Influence of Three UNESCO World Conferences upon the Development of Adult Education. Landmarks and New Horizons in Continuing Education Series No. 3.

Overview & Synopsis

The three cities of Elsinore, Denmark; Montreal, Canada; and Tokyo, Japan share in common one event--they were the scenes successively in 1949, 1960, and 1972 of three World Conferences on Adult Education under UNESCO sponsorship. The 1949 Elsinore Conference, with representatives from 27 countries, focused on education for workers and for work, education for leisure, the aims of adult education, the role of universities, and international machinery to secure continued cooperation. The Montreal Conference in 1960 had a significantly broader international representation than the 1949 conference and dealt mainly with: the role and content of adult education, methods of adult education, and structure and organizations of adult education. This conference laid the foundations for a period of steady expansion of adult education around the world. The 1972 meetings in Tokyo, attended by representatives of 83 nations, lacked the excitement of the 1960 conference but reflected the success of the adult education concept. Conference resolutions included plans for national and international action and many comprehensive resolutions based on the knowledge of cooperation and growth that has come to pass. (MW)