Beyond Education

The paper aims at mapping the macro level transitions in global policies from adult education to lifelong learning, and hence the move beyond educational sectors towards lifelong learning ecosystems. Ehlers’ Box Model and policy frameworks are used to analyse policy documents from international organisations to highlight two transitions: first, from educational sectors to lifelong learning ecosystems; and second, from the sector of adult education to adult learning and education within the framework of lifelong learning. The paper argues that the transitions are inevitable due to resource considerations and provide enormous opportunities for learners, but these opportunities are not reflected in participation. The stakeholders engaged with adult education could therefore either facilitate the transitions, shape the emerging possibilities positively, and voice the concerns of the unheard learners, or resist the transition and perish due to lack of relevance, and thereby resources, in the long run.