Lifelong education

Lifelong Learning
To function properly in our knowledge-based
economy, individuals need to be well-educated,
but they also need to continue to develop their
knowledge and skills. The Education Council aims
to encourage learning at all the stages of people’s
lives.
The Education Council sees four basic functions of
lifelong learning:
repair: those who missed out on education at
a young age should be able to catch up at a
later stage;
career changes: those who only discover later
on that they would be happier doing
something else or discover new talents
should be able to follow a programme of
study to make that change;
keeping skills up-to-date and getting ahead in
society : adults should be able to keep their
knowledge and skills up-to-date in order to
maintain their position in the labour market
and to improve their position;
socio-cultural and personal development:
people learn not just to improve their working
careers, but also to continue their personal
development in a general sense (Secondary
and Higher Education for Adults, 2009) .
To ensure the achievement of these basic
functions, the Education Council has formulated a
number of recommendations.
1. strengthen the education available;
2. allow stakeholders to invest in post-initial
education;
3. make higher education appealing for people
in work;
4. capitalise on knowledge and skills acquired
outside school; and
5. formulate a vision on the outlook for adult
education.
1. Strengthen the education available
Adult education in the Netherlands consists of a
private component (non-funded institutions) and a
public component (government-funded
institutions). More interaction between both
systems would be desirable. For the provision of
adult education, it is important that the reference
function of the public component of the education
system is strengthened: it should be clear to
everyone what knowledge and skills are required
for which diploma. In other words: what is the
value of a diploma? Because there is currently no
independent reference guide and there is also no
framework for the private sector, the supply is not
particularly transparent. The Education Council
believes that close links between private
programmes and state examinations are required.
Providers should also take into account the limited
time and financial resources that adult learners
have (Secondary and Higher Education for Adults ,
2009; Een diploma van waarde (Diploma of value),
2010) .
2. Allow stakeholders to invest in post-initial
education
Citizens, businesses and the government could
invest more in education for people in work and
job seekers. The Education Council believes that
schools and businesses should join forces to
provide joint funding for programmes of study. The
Education Council also asks why the number of
partially publicly funded training places for those
aged 30 and older in senior secondary vocational
education are limited. This makes it more difficult
for people without an adult education diploma to
gain access to higher education later in life – an
additional barrier to lifelong learning (Make lifelong
learning work, 2003; About the quality of vocational
education , 2011) .
3. Strengthen accessibility and the value of
diplomas
Examinations in secondary education and higher
education could be better organised and made
more widely accessible. Everyone who wants to
should be given the chance to sit exams and
obtain an award, regardless of whether they have
followed the corresponding course of study.
Opening up exams in secondary and higher
professional education as well as in university
education would result in a situation comparable to
the state examinations in secondary education.
Standardised examinations should be introduced
for the relevant vocational components in higher
education (such as in teacher training and
healthcare practitioner training programmes) to
ensure that the value of the diplomas is transparent
and safeguarded (Examinering: draagvlak en
toegankelijkheid (Assessment: acceptance and
accessibility), 2006 ; Een diploma van waarde
(‘Diploma of value’), 2010).
4. Capitalise on knowledge and skills acquired
outside school
The Education Council believes that knowledge and
skills acquired outside of formal education could
be put to better use. As a volunteer, for instance, a
person could learn skills that are relevant to a job.
Credits for prior learning should be awarded, for
example, where an assessment can show that a
level of competence has been achieved
comparable to that achieved through mainstream
education. The Education Council also believes that
credits for prior learning should be restricted to
around 20% to 25% of the total credits available
for a study programme (Make lifelong learning
work, 2003 ; Een diploma van waarde (Diploma of
value), 2010).
5. The outlook for adult education
Lifelong learning forms part of the Lisbon
objectives (formulated in 2000) and in this sense
represents a key target of education policy. The
Dutch government, however, has not formulated any
long-term vision on adult education. By way of
illustration, the action plan entitled Focus op
vakmanschap 2011-2015 (Focus on professionalism
2011-2015) only includes the intention to maintain
the current earmarking of adult education funding
during the current cabinet period. Because the
financing of adult education in recent years has
always been an uncertain factor for regional
training centres (ROCs), the existing infrastructure
in this area is threatened with collapse (About the
quality of vocational education , 2011 ).