The 1980s and Post-Compulsory Education.

Overview & Synopsis

Summaries of five keynote addresses and proceedings of task forces of a conference on postcompulsory education in the 1980s, attended by educational theorists and planners from 30 nations, are presented. The opening address by Lord Asa Briggs provided a worldwide overview of postcompulsory education, and Burton Clark spoke about academic coordination of postcompulsory education. Urban Dahllof addressed the topic of "recurrent education" and indicated that sharp distinctions between secondary and higher education would fade in the future. Lord Vaizey spoke about the subject matter of postcompulsory education in the coming years, and Gordon Oakes suggested that the walls of elitism of the universities be removed, without diminishing the quality, to break the barriers between them and other legitimate institutions. The task force on postcompulsory structures primarily considered national educational systems. The task force on education and the working life recommended that postcompulsory institutions assume the leadership in helping to solve socioeconomic problems through new models and research, and the task force on student learning considered the processes and outcomes of learning. The group on staff development considered reorganization, realignment or closure of postcompulsory institutions, changes in student populations and diminishing resources. The group on media noted the utilization of television and radio broadcasting and print media by England's Open University and the distance learning networks of Australia and New Zealand. Priorities of postcompulsory education were discussed by the task force on priorities. (SW)