The aim of this thesis is to point out the critical position of University Continuing Education Units in the context of knowledge economy for their contribution to local development, and to analyse to what extent these units in the case of Turkey serve for this function. For this purpose, first, the nature of knowledge economy and transformations initiated in this process in labour markets and in nature of education are analysed. Next, new understanding of lifelong learning and restructuring process in universities, which are connected with transformation in these two fields, are discussed. Later, position of cities and importance of urban policy for local development within the context of knowledge economy is examined. Consequently, as a product of these intertwined transformations, it is revealed that University Continuing Education Units appear to be key actors for cities for their contribution to local development. Then, based on the facts developed in the theoretical arguments / data of University Continuing Education Units of Turkey and Middle East Technical University Continuing Education Center (METU CEC) scrutinised in order to reveal how far these units in Turkey serve for local development. Finally, findings and conclusions are summarised, and policy proposals are developed for University Continuing Education Units should follow in order to serve local development effectively.

This study sets out the policy frameworks concerning older workers in Sweden and the Netherlands. This will be done by setting out both European and national contextual backgrounds. Further this study will examine whether or not there are specific initiatives taken by trade unions, and if so, what their features are. The results are gathered through a qualitative document analysis, complemented with the results of a self-completion questionnaire that has been sent to trade union confederations. The results of this study show that in both Sweden and the Netherlands policies are in place that strengthen the position of older workers. Sweden has developed multiple policies that aim to motivate people to work longer than the age of 61, and is focused on increasing the employability of workers. Even though in the Netherlands early retirement opportunities were widespread, currently policies and pension reforms discourage people from retiring early. Further, the debate about participation in and access to lifelong learning has regained importance, which shows that there is an increased attention for the development of employability of (older) workers. When it comes to trade unions, in Sweden there are no specific initiatives aiming at older workers. In the Netherlands, on the contrary, all trade unions participate in the development of i.e. the Policy Agenda 2020.

Σκοπός της εργασίας ήταν η διερεύνηση των απόψεων παιδιών Γ΄ και Δ΄ τάξης δημοτικού σχολείου για της έννοιες της εκπαίδευσης ενηλίκων και της δια βίου μάθησης. Στο μέρος που αφορούσε την εκπαίδευση ενηλίκων συμμετείχαν 96 μαθητές από 6 τμήματα σχολείων της ευρύτερης περιοχής των Πατρών, ενώ στο μέρος που αφορούσε τη δια βίου μάθηση συμμετείχαν 74 μαθητές από 5 τμήματα σχολείων της ίδιας περιοχής. Η έρευνα βασίστηκε σε ποιοτική προσέγγιση στην οποία χρησιμοποιήθηκαν ως ερευνητικά εργαλεία η τεχνική της συζήτησης, η οποία είχε σαν αποτέλεσμα ένα μικρό κείμενο των μαθητών, και η ανάλυση του ιχνογραφήματος. Τα αποτελέσματα για την εκπαίδευση ενηλίκων έδειξαν πως η πλειοψηφία των κειμένων ταυτίζεται με τα ιχνογραφήματα, υπάρχουν διαφορές ως προς το φύλο των μαθητών, την περιοχή που βρίσκεται το σχολείο και το φύλο που ιχνογραφούν οι μαθητές. Αναφορικά με τη δια βίου μάθηση τα αποτελέσματα δείχνουν πως τα κείμενα δεν ταυτίζονται απόλυτα με τα ιχνογραφήματα και δεν υπάρχουν σημαντικές διαφορές ως προς το φύλο και την περιοχή που βρίσκεται το σχολείο. / The purpose of this paper is the definition of the ideas that children of 3rd and 4th grade of primary school have regarding adult education and lifelong learning. In the reasearch on adult education participated 96 students from 6 classes of schools located in the area of Patras. In the reasearch on lifelong learning participated 74 students from 5 classes of schools located in the same area. It is a qualitative approach, in which were used the technique of the discussion - resulting in creating texts- and the analysis of drawings. The results of the research about adult education revealed that the majority of texts are releated to drawings, whereas there are differences as far as the sex, the region of school and the sex that is depicted are concerned. Additionaly, the results about lifelong learning revealed that that the majority of texts are not releated to drawings, there are no differences as far as the sex and the region of school are concerned.

The aim of the study – to justify theoretically and to investigate empirically the improvement of the education of parents (as adults) in the educational institution for the children with hearing impairment through the case-analysis. Base of study and participants. The subjects were the parents of pupils from one Lithuanian educational institution for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing. The answers were received from 134 parents (mothers, fathers, foster-parents) whose children attend preliminary- the 10th grades. Results and conclusions. The study showed that parents are interested and know quite well about the activity of their child in school, about the activities of school in general, and about persons with hearing disorders. Parents are the most concern about the information, which is directly associated with their child. It was found out that the parents prefer informal learning to formal one. The one fifth of the parents have expressed their wish to be educated during the seminars, and only 2 percents of respondents have named their willingness to study in the formal educational institution. The evaluations of parents’ opinions about the dissemination of their experience let us conclude that majority of respondents has positive attitude toward educational activity: they tend to participate in the mobile groups of self-assistance, to share their knowledge and experience during mass events (meetings, seminars). Almost all departments of the educational institution for the... [to full text]

In the present-time society, where constant and intensive changes of life take place, where the idea of lifelong learning is being focused on, educational systems as well as the situation of school’s and pedagogues’ activities are undergoing changes. The significance of teachers’ constant up-dating increases; not the finite knowledge but the ability to constantly learn, improve one’s personality and professional skills become the main feature of professional mastery. Exactly this is the point towards which the system which is being formed at the moment for improvement of pedagogues is oriented in order to provide conditions for every teacher to constantly improve one’s own competency; it also reduces the gap between institutions training pedagogues and schools which undergo changes. Training of music teachers who are able to effectively strive for aims of musical education always has been among the most topical and problematic issues; that is why a special role falls on lifelong professional improvement of music teachers themselves. In order to ensure successfulness of this process, researches which disclose peculiarities of self-improvement of music teachers and factors which predetermine it are a must. The present study explores the demands and conditions for self-improvement of music teachers in the context of lifelong learning. It is aimed to disclose the factors which stimulate and limit professional self-improvement as well as to assess existing educational conditions... [to full text]

The work aims at exposing the importance of constant learning of teachers under conditions of changing education, teachers' needs and how the informal lifelong in-service educational institution, called Educational Centre, meets them. The characteristics of Educational Centre and its readiness to fulfil teachers' lifelong teaching are analyzed. The conceptualism of constant learning is analyzed in this work: the concept of qualification and competence, the importance of general skills, possibility to improve them and to get them while learning constantly. Pedagogical, psychological and social presumptions of lifelong learning are discussed. In the unit on methodology of lifelong learning it is said that constant learning of the teachers is an important condition of changing education, it is cleared up what the aims of adult teaching and psychological parameters of adult education are. The teachers' constant (lifelong) learning is investigated in details. The qualitative analysis of activity of Molėtai Educational Centre and its readiness to meet the needs of teachers' constant learning are presented. At the end of the work the conclusions about teachers' lifelong learning and readiness of the Educational Centre to do it are presented. Key words: constant learning, lifelong learning, informal in-service adult education, teachers' educational centre, qualification, qualification improvement, competence, andragogics, adult teacher.

Šiuolaikinėje visuomenėje ryškėja sparti mokymosi paslaugų suaugusiems pasiūla, todėl svarbu nustatyti teritorinės ugdymo erdvės ypatumus, (Bitinas, 2006, p. 51) lemiančius savivaldybėje vykdomą suaugusiųjų švietimo organizavimą. Šio tyrimo problema – suaugusiųjų švietimo organizavimo atskleidimas savivaldybėje. Tyrimo tikslas – įvertinti Panevėžio rajono savivaldybėje organizuojamo suaugusiųjų švietimo būklę. Siekiant realizuoti darbe užsibrėžtą tikslą ir uždavinius, taikyti šie metodai: 1. Mokslinės literatūros ir dokumentų analizė. 2. Struktūrizuotas interviu. 3. Anketin�� apklausa. 4. Duomenų apdorojimas taikant SPSS 12.0 for Windows programinę įrangą. Suaugusiųjų mokymasis yra aktyvus procesas, vykstantis tam tikroje aplinkoje; planuojamas ir reguliuojamas, kurio metu vyksta refleksija, siekiant įgyti naujų žinių, sąmoningai eksperimentuojama su savo aplinka, kurio rezultatas yra naujos žinios ir sukauptų žinių pritaikymas. / The rapidly growing supply of adult learning services evidences in the modern society, therefore it is important to identify the characteristics of the territorial education space (Bitinas, 2006, p. 51), which determine the organization of adult education executed in the municipality. The problem of this research is disclosure of adult education organization in the municipality. The objective of the research is to perform evaluation on the state of adult education organized in Panevėžys District Municipality. In order to realize the objective and tasks set in the work, the following methods were applied: 1. Analysis of scientific literature and documents. 2. Structurized interview. 3. Questionnaire survey. 4. Processing of data while using SPSS 12.0 for Windows software. Learning of adults is an active process, occurring in a certain type of environment, which is planned and regulated and involves reflection; while seeking to acquire new knowledge, the environment is consciously subjected to experiments and the result of this process encompasses new knowledge and application of the acquired knowledge.

Magistro darbe išanalizuotas suaugusiųjų profesinis rengimas, akcentuojamas naujas suaugusiųjų švietimo tikslas, išryškinamos formalaus ir savaiminio suaugusiųjų mokymosi vertinimo teorinės nuostatos. Išnagrinėti suaugusiųjų švietimo ir mokymo sistemos apibrėžiantys dokumentai, švietimo paslaugas teikiančių institucijų pasiskirstymas pagal tipus, vietoves. Išanalizuota Mažeikių rajone funkcionuojanti suaugusiųjų profesinio tęstinio mokymo sistema ir suaugusiųjų mokymu užsiimančių organizacijų veikla, trūkumai ir galimybės. Atliktas suaugusiųjų mokymosi galimybių tyrimas; pateiktos rekomendacijos dėl suaugusiųjų profesinio rengimo sistemos tobulinimo. / In this work has been analyzed professional training in the context of adults professional training, emphasized a new aim of adults education; also theoretical rules of evolution for formal, informal and spontaneous education of adults. This work analyses the dokuments defining the systems of adult's education and training, also educational institutions according to their types and localities. There has been analyzed the present systam of adults education in Mazeikiai district, its advantages, disadvantages and possibilities; also the activity of the organizations engaged in the education of adults and given the recommendations for continued educacion in the district.

Gyvename tokiu laikotarpiu, kai vis sunkiau darosi suspėti žengti koja kojon su besiplėtojančiu mokslu, technika, ekonomika. Pertvarkant švietimo įstatymą vis daugiau dėmesio skiriama suaugusiųjų kvalifikacijos įgijimui bei jos tobulinimui. Dabar visi švietimo įstaigų darbuotojai tik ir kalba apie mokyklų tobulinimą ir jų kaitą. O kaip to pasiekti, jei ten dirbs nekompetentingi, nekvalifikuoti, nesitobulinantys pedagogai. Poreikį nuolat mokytis jau reikia pradėti ugdyti pradinėje bendrojo lavinimo mokykloje, o pagrindinis „...švietimo kaitos ir mokyklos tobulinimo veiksnys yra mokytojai“ (Hargeaves, 1999, p. 9). Kadangi mokytojų darbo mastas ir kokybė yra tiesiogiai susiję su profesiniu ir asmeniniu tobulėjimu, šiuo metu vis labiau švietimo reformos tobulinimo plane pirmenybė teikiama darbui su mokytojais. Juk nuolat besitobulinantis mokytojas turi didžiausią poveikį mokiniams. Tyrimo objektas – pedagogų tobulinimosi motyvacija nuolatinio mokymosi kontekste. Tyrimo tikslas – išnagrinėti Mažeikių rajono pedagogų tobulinimosi poreikius ir motyvaciją nuolatinio mokymosi kontekste. Tyrimo u����daviniai – atlikti suaugusiųjų švietimą reglamentuojančių dokumentų analizę; atskleisti suaugusiųjų mokymosi teorinius motyvus; anketinės apklausos būdu išsiaiškinti pedagogų tobulinimosi motyvus, poreikius, galimybes. Tyrimo metodai – mokslinės ir metodinės literatūros analizė; anketinė apklausa; statistinė anketos duomenų analizė. Tyrime dalyvavo 260 Mažeikių rajono pedagogų. Atlikus... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / We live in the period when it is getting more and more difficult to be in step with developing science, technique and economy. Reforming the law of education more attention is paid to the attainment and development of adults’ qualification. Now all employees of educational institutions speak about development of schools and their changes. How to achieve the aim if incompetent, unqualified pedagogues, who do not want to improve their knowledge, work there. The demand of continuous learning should be developed in primary school and the “…teachers are the main factor of education changes and schools development” (Hargeaves, 1999, p. 9). Whereas the proportion and quality of teachers’ work are closely related to professional and personal development, the priority in development plan in education reform is preferred to the teachers’ work now. The subject of the research is pedagogues’ developmental motivation in continuous learning context. The aim of the research is to analyze teachers’ developmental demands and motivation in continuous learning context in Mazeikiai district. The objectives of the work are the following: to make the analysis of adult education regulating documents; to reveal the theoretical motives of adults learning; to find out pedagogues’ developmental motives, demands and opportunities using the method of questionnaire survey. The methods of the research are: analysis of theoretical literature sources; questionnaire; statistical analysis of... [to full text]

Tobulėjant šiandieninės visuomenės naudojamoms technologijoms, vis didesnis dėmesys skiriamas mokymosi visą gyvenimą procesui. Norėdami gyventi pilnavertiškesnį gyvenimą mokytis turi ir pagyvenę žmonės. Nemaža dalis pagyvenusių žmonių gyvena senelių globos namuose. Šio darbo tikslas - išryškinti vyresniojo amžiaus žmonių mokymosi poreikių tenkinimo galimybes. Tyrimo objektas – pagyvenusių žmonių mokymosi poreikiai ir jų tenkinimo galimybės. / There is a growing attention paid to the process of lifelong learning as the technologies used by nowadays society are improving. The elderly have to learn as well if they want to lead a full-rate way of life. A fair number of the elder people live in nursing homes. The aim of this work is to show up the possibilities of the learning supply of the senior people. The object of the research is learning needs of senior people and the possibilities of their supply.