Being an Adult Learner in Austere Times

Ellen Boeren is Reader in the Moray House School of Education at the University of Edinburgh, UK. A prize-winning author and researcher, she is also co-editor of UNESCO’s Fourth Global Report on Adult Learning and Education, and is currently involved in the Horizon 2020 project Encouraging Lifelong Learning for an Inclusive and Vibrant Europe.Nalita James is Associate Professor in the School of Education at the University of Leicester, UK. Her research interests centre in the sociology of education, encompassing access to higher education, the changing patterns of education, and adult education and lifelong learning.

“The book provides valuable insights into inequalities of access and outcomes in ALE, as well as options for challenging these. … Boeren and James outline a series of recommendations for researchers, policymakers and practitioners, looking forward to a rather different future.” (John Field, International Review of Education, Vol. 65, 2019)“This book constitutes a good contribution to the literature on adult learning in times of austerity. Both editors and contributors succeeded in presenting the theme of this book with a comprehensive view of the field. Being an adult learner in austere times should be of interest to policy makers, adult educators, practitioners and students in the field of adult and further education.” (Khalaf Mohamed Abdellatif, Malta Review of Educational Research (MRER), Vol. 13 (1), 2019)“This book makes a valuable contribution to the body of literature on adult learning, the historical and political context of adult education provision, and the potential for transformation in the face of adversity and austerity. Policy makers, academics and community practitioners alike would benefit from reading this interesting and thought-provoking collection.” (Louise Sheridan, International Journal of Lifelong Education, May 23, 2019)

• Chapter 1. Adult education in austere times: an introduction; Nalita James and Ellen Boeren.- Chapter 2. Being an adult learner in Europe and the UK: persisting inequalities and the role of the welfare state; Ellen Boeren.- Chapter 3. The message or the bottle? Community, associationism and adult learning as "part of the process of social change"; Sharon Clancy.- Chapter 4. Keeping going in austere times: the declining spaces for adult widening participation in HE in England; Lindsey Fraser and Kerry Harman.- Chapter 5. Mature Students and Social Isolation: being excluded or choosing to be alone?; Charlotte Sutton.- Chapter 6. Subjects in formation: women's experiences of Access to Higher Education courses and entering Higher Education; Sherene Meir.- Chapter 7. Further educations: transformative teaching and learning for adults in times of austerity; Vicky Duckworth and Rob Smith.- Chapter 8. Adult education in community organisations supporting homeless adults: exploring the impact of austerity politics; Katy Jones.- Chapter 9. Conclusions and recommendations; Ellen Boeren and Nalita James.