This article discusses how the current Korean lifelong learning, led by citizens, is connected with cultural learning, citizenship learning, and community engagement, rooted in the community and combination of active community building projects. It also introduces the structure and policies of lifelong education in Korea, the background and recent…

This article introduces Kominkan and its practice on Japanese social education and how it facilitates Japanese adult education and lifelong learning in local communities. Historically, social education was understood as all education that promotes social development and societal progress. Kominkan, as Japanese social education institutions for…

This article shows how community libraries can create and support literate environments, which are essential for building and sustaining literacy skills in local communities. The paper begins with a subject analysis reviewing available background materials and literature on the topic. Next, relevant issues are considered based on experiences and…

Telecentres in the 21st century may be able to improve standard of living, quality of life, and stability of knowledge for the rural population. The role of telecentres is widely increasing in developing political and management awareness, economic, socio-culture, technology, education and regulation awareness in rural communities. Telecentres in…

Mission statements of universities in developing countries usually include serving the surrounding communities. Often this service does not reach beyond lip service. This article puts into context the experience of developing an adult education research program responding to the needs of the surrounding community in a historically disadvantaged…

Like a lot of people, the author has been trying to get his mind around David Cameron's Big Society agenda, and what it means for his own institution, City Lit. There has already been a lot written about this subject, especially in the press, much of it reflecting a degree of scepticism. Where to start? The author thinks the Prime Minister tried…

This compilation offers global examples of innovative and promising literacy and numeracy programmes that link the teaching and learning of literacy to sustainable development challenges such as health, social equality, economic empowerment and environmental sustainability. This publication is a timely contribution to the 2030 Agenda for…

In March 2006, Premier Wen Jiabao acknowledged that the situation in the Chinese countryside is desperate and claimed new resources would be devoted to healthcare and education. This announcement should have pleased architects of the Chinese "learning initiative" who are building learning cities and villages. The authors describe why…

From 1912 to 1975 the Department of Extension at the University of Alberta provided an impressive range of programmes and services to people across the Canadian province of Alberta. The four Directors of Extension at the University of Alberta during this period became leading figures in the history of adult education in Canada. They positioned…

Explores how nonformal education contributes to the quality of life in Israel's Kibbutzim. The focus is on basic life functions that provide criteria for the successful development of individuals and communities. (CT)

One of the Millennium Development Goals declared by the United Nations in 2000 was to reduce by half the population of people living in extreme poverty, by 2015. Adult education can and should contribute significantly to this development goal. Nevertheless it has hardly been explored so far in the national Poverty Reduction Strategies Papers. In…

Founded in 1932 at Monteagle, Tennessee, Highlander has functioned as a residential school, serving a variety of constituencies. Throughout its history, it has sought to help disadvantaged victims of injustice and poverty, principally in the South, to learn how to change their conditions. (SSH)

The Idaho Rural Partnership (IRP) was created within the Idaho Department of Labor to join diverse public and private resources in innovative collaborations to strengthen communities and improve life in rural Idaho. The IRP is an accessible organization that listens to local problems and collaborates to develop systemwide solutions. The board of…

Traditionally, university outreach and public service have been organized around two distinct, fragmented approaches: supporting research and instruction linked directly to economic and community development (extension education) and meeting continuing education needs. Two programs at the University of California, San Diego, use a regionally…

A new conceptual framework for further education has been developed as part of the reforms currently being undertaken by Australia's Adult, Community, and Further Education Board. Four key principles underpin the curriculum framework: multiplicity, connectedness, critical intelligence, and transformation. According to the framework, educational…