Licínio C. Lima

European strategies in lifelong learning: a critical introduction

This book proposes an analytical framework for the discussion of adult learning and education policies. This framework is applied to the EU policies for the adult education and training sector as well as to the proposals presented by UNESCO since the 1970s with respect to lifelong education and lifelong learning. Lifelong learning and education is a key concept for the development of adult education as an area of practice and theoretical consideration. In recent decades, meanwhile, the idea that education and learning last for the length and breadth of life is central to the guidance of various international organisations and to the public policies of many countries. Lifelong learning is currently widely accepted in terms of its benefits and so the meanings it can contain are rarely questioned. This book proposes three models for analysing public adult education policies, the democratic-emancipatory model, the modernisation and state control model, and the human resources management model. The models guide the critical discussion on the EU policies for the adult education and training sector. This analysis also contains references to national adult education policies. The book further describes the proposals presented by UNESCO since the 1970s with respect to lifelong education and lifelong learning. The underlying purpose of this approach is to identify and interpret other meanings which the idea may contain today. This option is intended to help students and other people who may be interested in this topic to question ways of looking at a priority issue in contemporary public policies. From the Contents: Introduction Lifelong Education, Lifelong Learning, and the State The Analysis of Adult Learning and Education Policies The European Union: Strategies for Lifelong Learning UNESCO as a Policy Actor in Education Final Remarks. (Verlag)

Patterns of institutional management : democratisation, autonomy and the managerialist canon

This chapter examines the most salient changes and reforms introduced in Higher Education Institutions in Portugal between 1974 and 2009. In particular, it attends to those which had impact on, and consequence for, governance and authority structures as well as on the patterns of institutional management. Attention is paid to the institutional responses to these reforms, for such responses entail the recontextualisation of public policies by the various educational organisations involved, not to mention the possible resistance shown by the actors.

The promised land: school autonomy, evaluation and curriculum decision making in Portugal

Portuguese education continues to be profoundly influenced by an historical tradition in which a strong political and administrative centralisation is prominent. The school ‘autonomy’ that exists has to be conceptualised in largely ‘instrumental’ terms — an autonomy merely of process and of implementation.

A Gestão Democrática das Escolas: do autogoverno à ascensão de uma pós-democracia gestionária?

O autor assinala tres elementos basicos que tem sido historicamente associados a gestao democratica das escolas: eleicao, colegialidade, participacao na decisao. A combinacao ou rejeicao de algumas dessas diferentes dimensoes, em contextos sociais especificos, pode resultar em varias concepcoes de gestao democratica das escolas, desde o autogoverno ate a possivel ascensao de uma pos-democracia gestionaria.

A avaliação institucional como instrumento de racionalização e o retorno à escola como organização formal

O papel central da avaliacao, da avaliacao institucional e dos processos de garantia da qualidade de escolas e universidades nas politicas educacionais e objeto de discussao, tambem considerando a reforma do Estado. As teorias da nova gestao publica e as perspectivas gestionarias sao consideradas como algumas das principais fontes de inspiracao e de legitimacao no contexto dominante de uma educacao contabil. Dados empiricos preliminares resultantes do processo de avaliacao externa de escolas basicas e secundarias portuguesas sao apresentados e interpretados de acordo com os principais conceitos e representacoes organizacionais de escola presentes nos relatorios externos. Examinando algumas das imagens e dos significados de escola, cultura de escola, autonomia, objetivos, lideranca e eficacia presentes nos relatorios de avaliacao, o autor releva a importância das imagens formais, racionais e burocraticas de escolas. Varias questoes de investigacao sao apresentadas tendo por base aquilo a que o autor chama o processo da hiperburocratizacao das organizacoes educativas. Algumas dimensoes do conceito de burocracia de Max Weber sao revisitadas, em articulacao com perspectivas neocientificas de garantia da qualidade e com as tecnologias da informacao e comunicacao. O autor sugere que maior relevância deve ser atribuida aos modelos formais e racionais de interpretacao das organizacoes educativas, pois os processos de avaliacao e de garantia da qualidade estao a contribuir para a formalizacao de escolas e universidades e para a intensificacao do seu processo de racionalizacao, isto e, para a emergencia de uma imagem analitica das escolas como hiperburocracias.

Por que é tão difícil democratizar a gestão da escola pública

Apesar da consagracao legal no plano das orientacoes para a acao – desde os textos constitucionais, passando pelas leis de bases da educacao, ate a legislacao ordinaria e aos discursos politicos –, a gestao democratica da escola publica permanece como uma realizacao dificil de alcancar no plano da acao organizacional efetiva, em cada escola concreta. Sendo muito relevantes, ate como resultado da democratizacao politica que afastou regimes autoritarios, os referenciais juridicos democraticos sao, porem, insuficientes para garantir a democratizacao da gestao escolar. Neste texto sao apresentados alguns dos obstaculos politicos e organizacionais, tambem historicos e culturais, que tem dificultado a concretizacao de uma gestao democratica das escolas, incluindo uma analise critica sobre o proprio conceito e sobre as suas exigencias mais substantivas.

Lógicas políticas da educação de adultos em Portugal

This article analyzes adult education policies in Portugal from 1974, based on three perspectives: democratic-emancipatory; modernization and state control; and, human resources management. These perspectives are discussed following the developments and main characteristics of adult education public policies over the last 40 years. It emphasizes the influence of the European Union regarding the vocationalist and human resources management trends.

Adult learning and education policies in Germany, Portugal and Sweden: An analysis of national reports to CONFINTEA VI

The chapter presents a theoretical proposal of three analytical models of Adult Learning and Education (ALE) policies� Some analytical categories and the corresponding dimensions are organised according to the ALE rationale which is typical of each social policy model� Historical, cultural and educational features are mentioned in connexion with the different policy models and its interpretative capacity to making sense of policies and practices implemented in Germany, Portugal and Sweden� The analysis includes the states of the art and the official representations of ALE produced by the respective national authorities through national reports which were presented to CONFINTEA VI (2009)�!e chapter presents a theoretical proposal of three analytical models of Adult Learning and Education (ALE) policies. Some analytical categories and the corresponding dimensions are organised according to the ALE rationale which is typical of each social policy model. Historical, cultural and educational features are mentioned in connexion with the different policy models and its interpretative capacity to making sense of policies and practices implemented in Germany, Portugal and Sweden. !e analysis includes the states of the art and the official representations of ALE produced by the respective national authorities through national reports which were presented to CONFINTEA VI (2009).

Recognition of prior learning at the centre of a national strategy: Tensions between professional gains and personal development

This paper focuses on recognition of prior learning as part of a national policy based on European Union guidelines for lifelong learning, and it explains how recognition of prior learning has been perceived since it was implemented in Portugal in 2000. Data discussed are the result of a mixed method research project that surveyed adult learners, some of whom were interviewed, who successfully completed the recognition of prior learning process from 2007 to 2011 in a new opportunities centre. Adult educators, and workplace representatives from the companies in which these adults in the recognition of prior learning process were working, were also part of the survey. A theme-based content analysis was done on the resulting data. Findings revealed tension between the goals of economic and human resource management and the change experienced by these adult learners in their professional status. Based on these results, the closing remarks to this article highlight the tensions caused by the failure of the goals of the policy to which recognition of prior learning was central, and the personal and social changes referred to by learners. Important educational changes were achieved although they were undermined by the adult education policy and European Union guidelines.

Sobre a educação cultural e ético-política dos professores

A formacao de professores como educadores profissionais tem sido dominada pela razao instrumental. Politicas educativas baseadas no gerencialismo, na performance competitiva da escola, em padroes de avaliacao, tem sublinhado a necessidade de um novo tipo de professor: um professor altamente racional, dotado de um perfil fortemente tecnico. Instituicoes de formacao tambem tem mudado os seus projetos educativos para a formacao de professores, agora muito centrados nas novas tecnologias e em instrumentos praticos para a acao didatica, para avaliacoes de todo o tipo, para a microgestao da sala de aula e para a medicao atraves de testes, o uso de padroes e a producao de evidencia empirica sobre o seu trabalho. Estas tendencias instrumentais e os riscos envolvidos no processo de didatizacao da educacao dos professores sao criticados com base na importância de uma educacao cultural e etico-politica de professores. Os trabalhos de Paulo Freire foram escolhidos como a principal fonte para refletir sobre algumas das exigencias basicas para alguem se tornar um professor, de acordo com uma agenda democratica e critica. De acordo com a prespectiva freiriana, as possiveis contribuicoes resultantes de uma educacao emancipatoria e transformadora de educadores profissionais exigirao a capacidade de combinar formacao tecnica, cientifica e profissional com educacao politica, sonho e utopia.