The Debates on Education are an initiative of the Jaume Bofill Foundation and the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, geared to the promotion of social debate on the future of education. [+]
Abstract
We should not accept the myth that lifelong learning is now possible, as according to empirical studies, only a certain group of people have access to ongoing learning: it is the most highly educated group of people, concentrated in the under-35s, and with clearly high earning power. It is this group of people who have most access to formal further education.
In order to achieve lifelong learning for everyone, emphasis has to be placed on creating a more flexible education, replacing the rigid, formal education currently in place.
Likewise, companies concentrate the resources for training employees on those who have a higher level of education and permanent contracts. In turn, there is very little continuous education for the rest of the employees. Companies would rather have institutions train these employees, on temporary contracts, to fulfil urgent tasks.
Keywordsschooling, education, economy, job market
He has a PhD in Economics from the University of Chicago and a BS in Electrical Engineering from Caltech.
He worked for four years at The Brookings Institution as a research associate, working on trade and development in Latin America.
In 1969, he joined the School of Education at Stanford, where he helped create the International and Comparative Education Program. He is currently Professor of Education and Economics at the university and President of the Comparative and International Education Society.
He is the author of a great number of publications on education and economic development, the political economy of the United States, the role of the state in social change, and the changing international economy. His most recent works are: Sustaining the New Economy: Work, Family and Community in the Information Age and, together with Jane Hannaway, The Different Worlds of Urban and Suburban School Districts.
He writes regularly for international organisations such as the ILO, UNESCO, the Inter-American Development Bank, the OECD and the World Bank. He is also editor of the <i>International Encyclopedia of the Economics of Education</i>.
He is a member of the UOC's Internet Interdisciplinary Institute's (IN3) Scientific Committee
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