This paper explores the impact of technological advances and digital transformations, with a particular focus on the "future of work" and its implications for lifelong learning and adult working learners. We emphasize the pressing need for human-centric solutions to address complex human challenges that technology alone cannot resolve,…

This Ideas in Practice article investigates lifelong learning practices in a women's studies course at a program of Osher OLLI (Lifelong Learning Institute). The course adopted a holistic and positive approach by celebrating lifelong learners' strengths--their invaluable backgrounds and life experiences--fostering vitality and wholesomeness in…

The aim of this study is to examine what it means to be a student in a vocational education and training programme in the municipal adult education system in Sweden and how the interplay between school and working life affects students' identity formation. To achieve this, 12 students from two different programmes have been interviewed at the end…

The purposes and implementation of adults' lifelong education (LLE) has been shaped by two imperatives: i) neoliberal reforms and ii) focuses on employability and economic outcomes. This has led to LLE taking similar pathways across many countries, i.e., away from a focus on personal and cultural betterment, to one associated with promoting…

Liberal education in the United States begins with the premise of inclusion, a response to histories of exclusion of members of marginalised communities. Inclusive practice is developed to validate diverse students by acknowledging and incorporating these students' cultures, languages and histories into regular classroom practice. However, in…

This article aims to examine how to improve the support for working learners in their learning and education based on the findings of the issue's articles. For this, I focus on describing what can be learned from the articles' findings and, based on that information, discuss directions and practices necessary to support adult working learners. I…

This paper investigated a research area worthy of greater attention: foreign language classroom anxiety (hereafter FLCA) and enjoyment (hereafter FLE) of older adults learning English as a foreign language in Chinese Universities of the Third Age. Understanding the largely overlooked emotional involvement of older language learners contributes to…

The present study is part of an exploratory research study conducted to understand the Learning experiences of adult learners in Higher Education Institutes in India. The primary aim of the present study was to examine the motivational orientations of adult learners for lifelong educational courses and hence, the Educational Participation Scale…

In light of its low fertility rate and long life span, Hong Kong is facing the challenge of a rapidly ageing population. To foster successful ageing, learning throughout life regardless of age is promoted as lifelong learning. A total of 20 older adults who are studying the Diploma in Active Ageing at the School of Professional Education and…

The impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on nonformal adult education has become a frequently discussed issue in lifelong learning. Nonformal adult education is understood here as all organised adult learning outside formal education that usually does not result in official certification. Many scholars have considered the pandemic as the…

Purpose: To uncover age inequalities in participation in higher education (HE) in Spain, the socio-demographic profile of Spanish adult undergraduates is compared to that of the general population of the same age group (25-54). Specific attention is devoted to differentials between face-to-face and distance adult students.…

This study seeks to develop Age-Friendly University (AFU) implementation guidelines to enable universities to self-identify their age-friendliness levels and establish specific strategies toward becoming an AFU. The survey was completed by primary leads for 26 AFUs-recognized institutions globally. The questionnaires included an inventory of 68…

Increasing mature-age access to education and training in a way that is responsive to changing labour market needs is a key policy challenge. In this paper we examine the impacts of a unique reform in the Australian state of Victoria that aimed to meet this challenge by introducing a broad-based voucher for those 25 and older. In effect, the…

Reverse education, where younger individuals teach older adults, has gained prominence but lacks comprehensive understanding regarding its dynamics and impacts. This study addresses this gap by exploring the cognitive processes of older adult learners who view young university students as their teachers. Through semi-structured interviews with 12…

This qualitative research explores the impact of university lifelong learning programs on the participants' perceived employability by examining six training programs implemented by the Lifelong Learning Center of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. The grounded theory approach was used throughout the research. After a set of data were gathered…