Lifelong Learning in Higher Education. Third Edition.

Overview & Synopsis

This book, which is intended for academics, educators, educational managers, and policymakers concerned with higher education, examines how universities and colleges can prepare their students for lifelong learning through continuing education, specialized courses for adults, and mainstream teaching programs geared toward traditional students. The following are among the topics discussed: (1) basic concepts of lifelong learning (adults' participation in formal, informal, and nonformal learning); (2) lifelong education as a system (systematic support for lifelong learning, organization of lifelong learning); (3) the nature of lifelong learning (the meaning of learning, adults as learners, implications for higher education); (4) lifelong learning and higher education institutions (transforming existing institutions, students, teaching and learning activities, certification, coordination within and among institutions); (5) lifelong learning and promising instructional methods (distance learning, linking education and work, innovative approaches, independent learning programs, learning from peers, alternative teacher roles); (6) transforming institutions into lifelong education institutions (special-purpose institutions, educational technology); (7) evaluating lifelong learning (the importance of evaluation, evaluation problems, evaluation results, a framework for evaluation); and (8) stocktaking and addressing continuing problems in implementing lifelong education (weaknesses of the theoretical base, practical problems, institutional factors). Appended are practical ideas to help academics promote lifelong learning. (MN)