Education at Crossroads

5.

Lifelong Learning Project

The aim would be to make available appropriate opportunities for lifelong learning to increasing number of people without regard to restrictions of previous 'education or training, sex, age, handicapped condition, social or ethnic background, or economic circumstance.

Lifelong learning is the process by which individuals continue to develop their knowledge, skills, interests and cultural attainments throughout their life times.

Lifelong learning is a "motherhood" issue, and it overarches all aspects and all levels of learning, formal, non-formal and informal.

Justification of lifelong learning project is to be viewed in the context of the impact it has on developing the human potential and quality of life.

Lifelong learning project will have a special role in promoting work place skills and in stimulating participation by increasing number of people in the civic, cultural and collective life of the country. Lifelong learning includes continuing education, adult education, independent study, open system education, agricultural education, business education, labour education, occupational education, job training programme, parent education, pre-retirement and post-retirement education, remedial education, special education programmes for groups or for individuals with special needs, education for cultural development and excellence, and educational activities designed to upgrade occupational and professional skills to assist business, public agencies, and other organisations in the use of invocation and research results, and to serve family needs and personal development.

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Initial activities of the lifelong learning project will include:

(a) review of the lifelong learning opportunities and delivery systems provided through schools, post-secondary educational institutions, cultural institutions, libraries, museums, media, employers, unions and other public and private organisations in order to determine means by which enhancement of their effectiveness and co-ordination may be facilitated;

(b) study of ways and means by which the Central Government, State Governments, and local bodies can more adequately support lifelong learning activities;

(c) support research and experimentation, including review of existing major foreign lifelong learning programmes in order to determine the applicability of such programmes in our country;

(d) support demonstration projects;

(e) suggest ways and means of eliminating barriers to life- long learning;

(g) improvement of information and assessment efforts;

(h) encourage the establishment of interstate and regional services for adults;

(i)" support programmes that develop new learning approaches for adults;

(j) suggest ways and means of making financial resources available to programmes of lifelong learning;

(k) organising round-tables, seminars and a National Conference on lifelong learning;

(1) evolve programmes to develop learning society in the country.

Long-term activities will include:

(a) Planning and assessment to determine whether in each State there is an equitable distribution of lifelong learning services to all segments of the population, particularly women, handicapped and gifted;

(b) assessment of the appropriate roles for the Central, State, and local governments, educational and cultural insti- tutions;

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(c) consideration of the alternative methods of financing and delivering lifelong opportunities;

(d) development of alternative methods to improve:

i) research and development activities;

ii) training and retraining people to become educators of adults;

iii) development of curricula and delivery systems appropriate to the needs of various programmes of lifelong learning;

iv) development of techniques and systems for guidance and counselling of adults and for training and retraining of counsellors;

v) development and dissemination of instructional materials appropriate to adults;

vi) assessment of the educational needs and goals of older and retired persons and their unique contributions to lifelong learning programmes; and

vii) promotion of activities that will stimulate pursuit of wisdom and highest ends of life.

The fundamental goals of human resource development will be I kept in view in designing and executing the above activities, and a special effort will be made to integrate education and physical, intellectual, aesthetic and spiritual culture. Special emphasis will be laid on the needs of parents, children, youths and women.

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