Analysis of three Web discussion forums concerned with social change (Znet, Youth Forum Online, Commie Love) identified factors conducive to online learning communities. Interaction was higher when discussion involved peers and the host acted as an equal. Online discussion might benefit groups that face obstacles to communication. (SK)

Adult educators can support communities in search of sustainability by helping them resist globalization and build civil capital (community action that blocks or challenges unsustainable activities). Grounded in life values, civil capital can form the basis of a civil society. (SK)

Discusses implications of Whitehead's process thought (the primacy of becoming/process over being/product), especially in terms of relationship building and recovery of mind and heart in teaching. Suggests how a process approach to adult religious education can offer a more inclusive vision of spirituality. (SK)

Lifelong learning has evolved from the UNESCO concept in the 1960s-70s of democratization through education to the 1990s' economic competitiveness arguments. Current economic and social conditions demand a broader conception that encompasses changes in work, technology, and demography and environmental sustainability. Focus should shift to…

An electronic survey of 200 distance education students and data from phone calls to the course coordinator found that online environments enhanced knowledge acquisition, confidence in subject and technology use, and communication skills. Conditions that maximize learning included practical content of online discussions, supportive environment on…

University of Papua New Guinea students (n=23) who took a 1-semester peace studies course were compared with 23 who were studying politics. Only peace studies students significantly changed their critical thinking and values. (SK)

Informal adult educators in an Australian rural community (n=31) viewed their characteristics and commitment to teaching as varying according to purpose and context. The study suggested that differences in informal teaching are influenced by the lack of externally imposed criteria and other institutional constraints. (SK)

Raises issues about self-directed learning: its relatively unquestioned status, emphasis on individuals, and practices that are not necessarily emancipatory. Reflects on the way language shapes what is known. (SK)

The discourses of citizenship in the lifelong learning agenda are narrow and economistic, emphasizing adult learners as workers and producers, reducing adult education to training for work. The discourse of democracy and social change, an adult education tradition, is being neglected. (SK)

Critiques planned changes in the British National Vocational Qualifications Framework. Makes recommendations for units, credits, and credit-based qualifications. (SK)

Problems in research on participation in adult education include the following: (1) treatment of participants as voluntary, which ignores the growth of compulsory training in the workplace; (2) lack of knowledge about the choice to be a nonlearner; (3) individualistic focus; and (4) inadequate investigation of informal learning. (SK)

CITINET is a network of learning centers in Sheffield, England, where adults can access information about educational opportunities and use information and communications technology. Both job-related learning and nonvocational learning are supported. (SK)

Describes the following aspects of information and learning technology strategies in British further education colleges: accessibility, delivery, student support, skill development, and materials. (SK)

A framework for further education in Australia includes eight lifelong-learning goals and four key principles: multiplicity, connectedness, critical intelligence, and transformation. The curriculum-design model outlines educational, learning, recognition, and pathway outcomes. (SK)

Current rhetoric about lifelong learning views vocationalism and employability as the central purposes of education. However, job training cannot provide complete answers to complex social and economic problems, and adults have diverse needs beyond economic ones, necessitating more comprehensive lifelong learning. (SK)