scholarly journals Conclusion: Divergences or Convergences? Facilitating Active Citizenship Through Adult Education Across Europe and Beyond

2021 ◽  
pp. 167-182
Author(s):  
Hanna Toiviainen ◽  
Natasha Kersh ◽  
George K. Zarifis ◽  
Pirkko Pitkänen
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Adult Education ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Active Citizenship ◽  
Education Policies ◽  
Life Long Learning ◽  
Participatory Citizenship ◽  
The Future ◽  
Future Challenges

AbstractThe chapter draws the lines of discussion of the book together and scrutinises the findings from the perspectives motivating the EduMAP study. A multiplicity of adult education policies, programmes and actions presented in the book sought answers to the question: What policies and practices are needed in the field of adult education to include young adults at risk of social exclusion in active participatory citizenship in Europe? Each contribution in this volume approached the question from original social and educational starting points, which may further be elaborated on within the national, European and wider contexts. Chapter includes reflections on alternatives to the discourse of Neo-liberal Life-Long Learning and Adult Education, the expectations vs. reality of Adult Education as a means to prevent social exclusion, and key conclusions outlining the future challenges for Active Participatory Citizenship pursued through adult education.

scholarly journals Active Citizenship, Lifelong Learning and Inclusion: Introduction to Concepts and Contexts

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Natasha Kersh ◽  
Hanna Toiviainen ◽  
George K. Zarifis ◽  
Pirkko Pitkänen
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Adult Education ◽  
Lifelong Learning ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Active Citizenship ◽  
The Social ◽  
Participatory Citizenship ◽  
Political Dimensions ◽  
Social Competences

AbstractThis chapter provides insight into the rationale, background and key concepts of the book and will discuss relevant theoretical considerations, contexts and discourses. The complexity surrounding the conceptual understanding of active citizenship, adult education and vulnerability will be considered, and approaches towards achieving a shared understanding of the nature of adult education and lifelong learning will be addressed within this chapter. In this book, the concept of active citizenship is used as a conceptual lens to understand the role of adult education in including young adults in active social, political and economic participation and engagement. The findings indicate that the social, economic and political dimensions of active citizenship, encompassing the development of social competences, labour market skills as well as civic and political participation, have been related to various educational initiatives (programmes) to engage young adults in active participation. The chapter will open the discussion of the cross-national complexity and interdependencies between adult education, social inclusion and active participatory citizenship, which underpin the dialogue offered in the seven contributions within this book.

scholarly journals Active Citizenship Programmes for Unemployed Young Adults with Low Skills in Southern Europe: Participation, Outreach, and Barriers

2021 ◽  
pp. 19-35
Author(s):  
George K. Zarifis
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Adult Education ◽  
Lifelong Learning ◽  
Active Citizenship ◽  
Southern Europe ◽  
European Research ◽  
Value System ◽  
Horizon 2020 ◽  
Early School ◽  
Participatory Citizenship

AbstractThe development of policies and targeted initiatives that promote or support active participatory citizenship for vulnerable young adults with low skills has largely passed unnoticed in Southern Europe in the last decade. Despite the existing lifelong learning (LLL) strategies, most countries in the area do not place active citizenship for low-skilled young adults as a priority. This chapter is based on the results of the European research project EduMAP (Horizon 2020), and focuses on participation of unemployed young adults with low skills (hence early school-leavers) in educational activities that either focus or promote active citizenship in Southern Europe (Greece, Cyprus, Malta, Italy, Spain and Portugal). More specifically the chapter explains the reasons behind low participation rates among vulnerable young adults in the region. South European countries are not yet showing any favourable conditions for increasing participation of the low-skilled unemployed young adults in such programmes. Some of the countries that were hit by economic depression in particular, face –not necessarily for the same reasons– major barriers for implementing policies to increase the number of low-skilled young adults in active citizenship oriented courses. The chapter concludes that one of the problems in promoting active citizenship through adult education activities is that the programmes delivered in the region are still not competence-based. Adult education is not high in the value system, and therefore low skilled young adults do not appear motivated to obtain such skills and competences. A key challenge therefore is to deliver a service that simultaneously meets the needs of the learners, provides sufficient responses to the needs of the local societies, and stimulates further demand.

scholarly journals Programi aktivnog građanstva za nezaposlene niskokvalifcirane mlađe odrasle osobe u južnoj Evropi: Učešće, dometi i prepreke

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1 2021) ◽  
pp. 129-151
Author(s):  
George K. Zarifis
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Adult Education ◽  
Active Citizenship ◽  
Southern Europe ◽  
European Research ◽  
Participation Rates ◽  
Value System ◽  
Horizon 2020 ◽  
Early School ◽  
Participatory Citizenship

The development of policies and targeted initiatives that promote or supportactive participatory citizenship for vulnerable young adults with low skills has largely passed unnoticed in Southern Europe in the last decade. Despite the existing lifelonglearning (LLL) strategies, most countries in the area do not place active citizenship forlow-skilled young adults as a priority. This article is based on the results of the European research project EduMAP (Horizon 2020), and focuses on participation of unemployed young adults with low skills (hence early school-leavers) in educational activities that either focus or promote active citizenship in Southern Europe (Greece, Cyprus, Malta, Italy, Spain and Portugal). More specifcally the article explains the reasons behind low participation rates among vulnerable young adults in the region. South European countries are not yet showing any favourable conditions for increasing participation of the low-skilled unemployed young adults in such programmes. Some of the countries that were hit by economic depression in particular, face –not necessarily for the same reasons– major barriers for implementing policies to increase the number of low-skilled young adults in active citizenship oriented courses. The article concludes that one of the problems in promoting active citizenship through adult education activities is that the programmes delivered in the region are still not competence-based. Adult education is not high in the value system, and therefore low skilled young adults do not appear motivated to obtain such skills and competences. A key challenge therefore is to deliver a service that simultaneously meets the needs of the learners, provides sufcient responses to the needs of the local societies, and stimulates further demand.

scholarly journals Understanding vulnerability and encouraging young adults to become active citizens through education: the role of adult education professionals

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Toiviainen ◽  
Natasha Kersh ◽  
Jaakko Hyytiä
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Adult Education ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Adult Educators ◽  
Active Citizenship ◽  
Education Professionals ◽  
Participatory Citizenship ◽  
Mediator Role ◽  
Political Dimensions

The recent debate on active citizenship and adult education has been strongly underpinned by the discussion on how active citizenship could be exercised in a way that would promote inclusion and participation. The paper focuses on the role of adult educators in encouraging young adults in vulnerable life situations to become active citizens specifically through two empirical cases, from Finland and England (UK). The central questions the paper seeks to answer are: how do adult educators conceptualise vulnerability, and how do they see their role as facilitating young adults' active citizenship through their teaching? The consideration of socio-cultural, socio-economic and political dimensions of active participatory citizenship provides the conceptual lens to explore young adults’ participation in different social contexts. The analysis of the case studies supports the argument that active participatory citizenship is indirectly rather than directly included in the education and training of vulnerable young adults. This leads the article to highlight the adult educators’ mediation work in facilitating the socio-economic and political dimensions of active participatory citizenship in interaction with the students. Their mediator role is broadly invisible and in contrast with the ideal of adult education as the straightforward path to socio-economic citizenship and employability.

Robots and potential technological unemployment in the Russian regions: Review and preliminary results

2017 ◽  
pp. 142-157 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Zemtsov
Keyword(s):  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Russian Regions ◽  
Preliminary Results ◽  
Technological Unemployment ◽  
Life Long Learning ◽  
Compensation Mechanisms ◽  
The Future

The use of unmanned technologies can cause a decrease in the level of employment. The article discusses the compensation mechanisms and conflicting results of empirical studies. On the basis of internationally comparable methods, it was estimated that about 44% of the workers in Russia can be replaced, which is lower than in most developed countries. In the regions, specializing in the manufacturing industry, this value is higher, the least values are in the least developed regions. Some people will not be ready for life-long learning, competition with robots, and accordingly there is a possibility of their social exclusion in the future.

The Temporality of Being NEET: A Longitudinal Study of NEET Occurrences among Young Adults in Denmark

Young ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 110330882094509
Author(s):  
Helle Bendix Kleif
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Critical Assessment ◽  
Quantitative Analyses ◽  
Employment Education ◽  
Qualitative Literature ◽  
Cross National

The NEET concept has become standard vocabulary when addressing youth disengagement. Across countries, the definition is used to measure young adults at risk of social exclusion. Using sequence and clustering analyses on unique Danish register data, this article presents a longitudinal study of the temporal developments of NEET occurrences. This enables a critical assessment of the quality of the NEET concept as a proxy for measuring young adults at risk of social exclusion. The article demonstrates how four out of five young adults labelled NEET cannot be characterized as being at risk of social exclusion. Using quantitative analyses, the results confirm the criticism of the NEET concept in some of the qualitative literature and find that there is a need to discuss the applicability of the concept nationally to define who is at risk, as well as in cross-national comparisons of young adults not in employment, education or training.

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