International and national public policy debates emphasise the role of adult education and learning (AEL) as a crucial part of lifelong learning and personal, societal, and economic development (Council of the European Union, 2021; UNESCO & UIL, 2016). However, there is no consensus in understanding or defining what adult education should embrace and consist of.
This panel will explore the local realities and great challenges of AEL in Spain, which follows a decentralised pattern, as the state transfers responsibilities for policy implementation and funding distribution to the 17 autonomous communities (ACs) and two cities (OECD, 2018). While the Spanish Constitution indicates that all public authorities should promote every citizen’s right to education and training, it does not define lifelong learning, nor adult education. The distribution of responsibilities regarding adult education and learning takes place across three different levels: the state level, the 17 ACs, and municipalities.
The discussion will analyse the main differences and specificities of AEL policies in different ACs in Spain so as to evaluate to what extent there has been a general tendency to inscribe AEL in an economy-oriented EU Lifelong Learning (LLL) paradigm against more popular, people-driven and community-based agendas. The aim of this panel is to counterpoise UE LLL productivist and neoliberal undertones to an AEL approach which prioritises collective, communal aspects of learning, projecting an image of participatory citizenship at odds with the atomised versions prevalent today.
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