Philosophical Foundations of Adult Education

Introduction

In the modern Western state, the education of adults can be described as a field of non-compulsory education which consists of a variety of practices ranging from trainings of further and continuing education, lectures, and talks to webinars, courses, and university study programs. Institutionalized and informal shapes of adult education change historically depending on training providers, labor market requirements, political schemes, and sociocultural aspects such as shifts in the way of life. It is often organized by institutions of the civil society. Some are private companies, some nonprofit associations, and bodies of the church, and some are closely connected to unions, etc. Thus, civil engagements together with economic enterprises and welfare schemes bring about a great variety of educational opportunities and forms. Consequently, the historical volatility of forms of adult education does not exist independently from the development of Western societies and their...