Adult education, lifelong learning, and the future

Abstract

Adult continuing education will be of increasing importance, as the median age of our society and the pace of change continue to increase. The paper begins with an examination of the goals of all learning. It focuses on a new paradigm for learning, tried so far only on a very limited basis: computer‐based tutorial learning, considered particularly important for adult learning. This paradigm, practical today with modern technology, allows a much more individualized approach to learning than is largely available today, for very large numbers at much lower total costs than at present. Student interaction with the computer will be frequent (every few seconds) and in the student’s native language. Little large‐scale experience is available with such highly interactive material, so we should begin with extensive experimental efforts in this direction. A large worldwide developmental effort in many languages would follow successful research.