Governing the Ungovernable

TLDR

Lifelong learning is a prominent yet poorly measured policy issue that spans multiple actors and ministries, and whose shift away from welfare models has confined initiatives mainly to extending initial education or reforming vocational training. The article contends that the scarcity of substantive lifelong learning measures is not merely due to political bad faith, resource constraints, or weak vested‑interest lobbying. The absence of concrete lifelong learning measures has serious consequences for those managing and delivering learning programmes.

Abstract

Lifelong learning occupies a leading place in policy discourse, but specific measures of any substance are relatively rare. The article argues thatthis is not simply a product of political bad faith, a lack of resources, or the weak lobbying power of the relevant vested interests. It is also associated with the nature of lifelong learning as a policy issue, aggravated by changes in the nature of government. Lifelong learning is an amorphous phenomenon which relies upon the behaviour of a range of actors, and not solely or even primarily that of governments. In so far as it involves governments, unlike schools or higher education, it is diffused across a range of policy areas with different ministerial structures and interests. Shifts away from welfarist models of service provision particularly affect areas suchas lifelong learning, which are defined by the requirement for active engagement with and of citizens and other non-governmental actors. As a result, policy initiatives have usually been limited to prolongation of initial education or reform of vocational training. This has serious consequences for those involved in managing and delivering learning programmes.