ESREA Conference: Educational Journeys and Changing Lives

Seville, Spain
University of Seville

Adult education and learning in Europe takes place in a diverse range of sites and contexts, both formally and informally in the family, community, civic society and the workplace. Accessing formal adult education, however, is not always easy and varies by institution and countries despite the continuing policy push for lifelong learning.

The ‘push’ by governments, the European Commission (EC) and policy makers, though, is largely an economic one. Yet there are wider benefits to participating in education and learning for both the self and society, including the possibility for self development, transformation and changing identity. The learning career and journey of an adult learner may not always be straightforward, and for some, keeping on going on may be difficult because of internal and external pressures. Adult learners are not homogeneous and as a result learning careers and identities are shaped by issues of class, gender, ethnicity, disability and age. At the same time adult educators also face challenges in terms of their learning and identity as educators in a changing adult education world This conference aims to explore the learning journey and changing identities of adult learners and adult educators in a range of educational settings such as further and higher education, adult and community education, the workplace as well as informal spaces such as the family or civic society. The following areas of research in relation to the above will be explored:

• The interconnected aspects of learning, or not, across the lifespan in relation to access, learning careers and identities
• How adults perceive their experiences and identity as a learner / Experiences of learning and shaping of identities in different learning/ educational contexts
• What keeps adult learners going on with their learning (or not)
• The impact of other factors such as family, work, relationships, community and the self in developing a learning career and identity
• The role of adult educators in shaping the learning career and identity of adult learners.

For more information on the conference please visit:     http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/study/cll/esrea/thme/