Lifelong learning is the ongoing, voluntary and self-motivated pursuit of knowledge for personal or professional reasons, undertaken across an entire life rather than confined to childhood and formal schooling. It recognizes that learning happens in many settings beyond the classroom, including the home, the workplace and leisure activities, and that it strengthens both individual employability and broader social goods such as civic participation and social inclusion. Many licensed professions now require ongoing professional development as a condition of keeping a credential current. The concept differs from continuing education, which targets specific professional or industry needs, because lifelong learning aims more broadly at developing a person's full potential over the whole of life, supported by institutions such as dedicated lifelong learning institutes and university programs open to learners of any age. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Core ClaimLifelong learning is the ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated pursuit of learning for either personal or professional reasons. 1 Classification
Education Level Education Level FAQs
Is lifelong learning only for adults?
It covers learning activities for people of all ages.
No. The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning describes lifelong learning as covering learning activities for people of all ages.
Sources
1. Lifelong Learning (Wikipedia)
lead section, first sentence
Lifelong learning is the "ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated" pursuit of learning for either personal or professional reasons.
History section, second paragraph
The first lifelong learning institute began at The New School for Social Research (now The New School) in 1962 as an experiment in "learning in retirement".
Body
However, while the learning process can be applied to learners of all ages, there is a focus on adults who are returning to organized learning.
In Group: Adult Education and Lifelong Learning Concepts, Lead
Lifelong learning is the "ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated" pursuit of learning for either personal or professional reasons.
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