Lifeworlds and Learning Essays in the Theory, Philosophy and Practice of Lifelong Learning

Lifelong learning is an indispensable idea. UNESCO, OECD and the European Union (EU) promote it as the key to prosperity and democracy in the twenty-first century. It is at the heart of current debates about the Learning Society, sustainable international development and world peace. Against the necessary background of global economic modernisation, the profound political and social dislocations of twentieth-century history, the essays in this book explore the promise and limitations of current models of lifelong learning. Distinctive in tone and perspective, they demonstrate that learning is inseparable from morality and freedom. The tightening bond between knowledge and power can only be loosened through new forms of teaching, learning and creativity, all of which are central to any credible idea of lifelong learning. Each requires new forms of dialogue and of citizenship to secure change in formal education, the renewal of communities, the democratisation of employment and strategies to combat inequality and social exclusion on an international scale. Lifelong learning both requires and builds a new kind of society.;Written for an international audience of learners, educators and policy-makers, this book is a challenging and accessible contribution to contemporary debates about lifelong learning.