Why those who promote “life-long learning” get only partial credit
Abstract
Many currently promote a new need for Life-Long Learning in the future distinguishing it from the older model of learn once and then work. We argue that while life-long learning may indeed happen for many, it is not a useful goal. A far better goal is Life-Long Accomplishment, since, outside of academia, humans learn in order to accomplish. Too many assume that if people learn things, accomplishment will automatically follow, but this is false. Although learning new things is certainly a piece of what is needed in a changing world, it is far better to focus people on why, for instance, what do they want to accomplish? Focusing on the continuation of learning throughout life, and not on the accomplishments it leads to is, in many cases, self-serving for those who see themselves in the learning business. Life-Long Learning leaves unasked and unanswered the question of to what end. The world does not need life-long learners, however the world needs people who can get things done and learn whatever they need as they do. Focusing people only (or even primarily) on the goal of learning gives a false idea of what is truly needed for in the 21st century, and therefore deserves only partial credit as a useful solution.
Downloads
References
Prensky, M. (2015). El mundo necesita un nuevo currículo. Ediciones SM.
Prensky, M. (2011). Enseñar a nativos digitales. Una propuesta pedagógica para la sociedad del conocimiento. Ediciones SM.
Copyright (c) 2020 Marc Prensky
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Those authors who have publications with this journal accept the following terms:
a. The authors will retain their copyright and guarantee the journal the right of first publication of their work, which will be simultaneously subject to the Creative Commons License. Non-commercial attribution 4.0 International that allows to share, copy, and redistribute the material in any medium or format and adapt, remix, transform and build on the material in the following terms:
Recognition - You must give the appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes have been made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in a way that suggests that the licensor or its use endorses it. Non-commercial - You cannot use the material for commercial purposes. Share under it - If you remix, transform, or create on the material, your contributions must be distributed under the same license as the original.
b. Authors may adopt other non-exclusive licensing agreements for the distribution of the published work (e.g. deposit it in an institutional telematic file or publish it in a monographic volume) whenever the initial publication in this journal is indicated.
c. Authors are allowed and encouraged to distribute their work through the Internet (e.g. in institutional telematic archives or on their website) before and during the submission process, which can produce interesting exchanges and increase citations of the published work. (See The effect of open access).
d. In any case, the Editorial Team understands that the opinions expressed by the authors are their exclusive responsibility.
