Speaking in different tongues: an analysis of subject matter differences in the lifelong learning discourse in the North and South
Akpovire Oduaran, Rebecca Lekoko, Choja Oduaran, University of Botswana, Botswana
Paper presented at SCUTREA, 33rd annual conference, University of Wales, Bangor,
1-3 July, 2003
Introduction
The prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 28 verse 11 prophesied that people would speak with other tongues and that had been confirmed by the personality at the centre of Scriptures; for in Mark 16, verse 17, Jesus Christ reaffirmed Isaiah’s prophecy and this was practically manifested at the Pentecost in Acts 2 when the apostles spoke with different tongues, and the audience was astonished. Speaking with and in tongues has moved beyond the spiritual realm into modern scholarship related to lifelong learning.
Not every one believes in the transitions that are embedded in lifelong learning discourses in the first place. For Alheit and Davidson (2002), lifelong learning is ‘double-faced’. Wexleer (1992: 39) is worried that the tendency for lifelong learning to compel educators, learners and workers to merely run on learning treadmills where one set of transaction leads to another can reduce the process to another burden and source of anxiety. For Beck, Samerski and Illich (1999) have described the term ‘lifelong learning’ as absolutely novel and anti-pedagogical doctrine. They contend as follows:
…it is necessary to seek critical distance from this new phenomenon, and its practice. We do so in full awareness that our critique will seem comical from the more ‘responsible’ standpoint of mainstream sciences and academic disciplines.
The skepticism of Beck and others is premised on the ‘fears’ that the doctrine of lifelong learning might overturn traditional ideas of education, especially as the pundits in the specialization begin to ‘manufacture’ and intentionally disseminate ‘plastic’ words like ‘creativity’, ‘competence’, ‘competitiveness’, and ‘communication’ to wipe into compliance and followership ideologues who would normally have preferred to remain tied to tradition. There are those who contend that lifelong learning discourses and ideologies have ended up in causing confusion (Hughes, 2003). Some scholars are overtly requesting us to be cautious, positively skeptical and, indeed, suspicious as governments all over the world are beginning to be suddenly and officially enthusiastic about causes we had long espoused and about which we had been previously laughed to scorn (Martin, 2000). That might well be so, and times are definitely changing.
When discourses concerning lifelong learning become highly politicized and unexpectedly controversial, there could be no gainsaying the fact that we are not only in the thresholds of speaking with other tongues but in different tongues altogether. This paper therefore posits that lifelong learning discourse has not only yielded scholarship that is divided between protagonists and antagonists but has actually created a major contextual gap as can be gleaned from the subject-matter differences between scholars in the North and South.
Conceptually, lifelong learning is viewed as a continuous process of information gathering, regrouping, and linking diverse ideas and perspectives in an attempt to gather knowledge for basic functioning in day-to-day life activities. Epistemologically, concerns and goals for lifelong learning are achieved through carefully planned modalities such as scholastic learning, methodologies, programming and research. Such modalities are thought of and developed in specific contexts. A contextual perspective is thus manifested in a specific geographic space, the socio-economic, cultural and political realities within which scholars of lifelong learning operate. We believe that there are fairly distinctive elements that can be found in a number of lifelong discourses within Southern countries that could offer much food for thought for Northern scholars. Similarly, there may be qualities that many Northern lifelong learning programs have which may not have been examined and considered in the South. Quite often, these divisions influence who receives education and for how long, and what is learnt. So then, we need to re-visit issues of opportunities, accessibility and delivery. Questions such as ‘Is lifelong learning something that should be accredited and promoted within formal education systems?’ are asked. The tendency in Britain, for example, is to see lifelong learning as something that should be accredited and promoted within formal education system (Smith, 2002). Scholars in the South might not entertain this thinking.
The Gap
The literature indicates that lifelong learning discourses are obviously contextualised and diversified between the North and the South. This position had been confirmed by the European Regional Conference on Lifelong Learning (2002) that first drew attention also to unevenness in the discourses. For example, in a well-publicized 30-chapter book on international perspectives on lifelong learning edited by the Holford and others(1999), it is revealing that just a handful of countries that are not fully representative of the South were included. This reality is even more bewildering as one turns over thousands of pages of journal, bulletins and magazines that originate from the digitalized and reading societies of the North. One manifestation of what we have tried to point out is the digital divide in which the North is certainly ‘the information haves’ and the South ‘the information have-nots’. Be that as it may, it is possible for one to decipher the obvious subject-matter differences in the discourses.
Speaking in Tongues?
In the North, lifelong learning discourses seemed to be aimed at contextual issues that are obviously related to political and economic power relationships and social inclusionism. Moreover, the discourses are not necessarily in the aspect of exploring meanings per se. They seem to be dominated by queries on the kinds of lifelong learning policies that countries in the North ought to endorse. Within this concern, the discourses are debating Bernstein’s earlier criticisms of education policies and taking the view that lifelong learning cannot cure all the ills of society (Edwards and others, 2002). In almost all the discourses on policy, there was agreement that the rhetoric of lifelong learning policy is anchored on the premise that public education has failed (Griffin, 1999a, 1999b). There are appeals then to policy goals that could enhance the capacities of the North to create learning societies, a learning age, a learning culture, economic competitiveness in globalized economies and social inclusion.
Discourses in the North are posed for the exploration of how lifelong learning practices could best address social capital formation. Within that pursuit, debates are centred on assessment skills and technological accreditation in the emerging highly technicised and scientific societies. As a matter of fact, skills acquisition and development focus tend to overwhelm and dominate other perspectives (Edwards, 2002). There is demand for the diversification of supply of learning opportunities, flexibility and reflexive learning that can accommodate current challenges and circumstances of the North. The question is asked as to the kind of learning the people need in order to engage with the change processes to which lifelong learning ought to respond (Collis and Moonen, 2002 and Rubenson, 2002). This is even more crucial as Northern scholars become ever more engrossed in discourses related to risk, insecurity, uncertainty, unpredictability and exclusion in post-modern times.
The discourses indicate increasing disenchantment with the tendency for lifelong learning to want to support the polarization between the rich and poor. The over-emphasis on the use of lifelong learning to support increased employers expectations of employees to the point of objectifying the latter has been condemned in the literature (Rubenson, 2002 and Cruishank, 2002). In an apparent move away from instrumentality, the literature indicates interests in subjects like active citizenship, democratic renewal, gypsies and shape-shifters, children participation in adult learning, language learning and arts. These definitely are highly contextualised concerns. In the eyes of scholars in the South, however, what might seem even more intriguing is the Northern scholars penchant to explore somewhat unimaginable topics like witches and wizards (Courtenay, Merriam and Baumgartner, 2001). It may be equally rewarding for the discourses in the North to begin to challenge the dominance of racism, marginalisation, poverty, disease, ignorance, HIV/AIDS, political instability and economic emasculation as they affect the relationship in scholarship between the North and South.
Contrariwise, discourses in the South have been narrowed to what Chapman and Aspin (2001) has aptly described as the triadic nature of lifelong learning. Within this context, the discourses in the South have focused more on how lifelong learning should be geared towards:
- Economic progress and development,
- Personal development and fulfillment,
- Social inclusiveness and democracy,
- Democratic understanding and activity,
- Cultural practice wherein the people’s history, politics and culture are paramount in effective lifelong learning programming, and
- Constructions of socially and culturally nourishing communities.
Discourses on economic progress and development have almost automatically appealed to a thorough examination of Southern entry into globalisation probably for the main reason that it has little or no choice in this matter (Oduaran, 1999). However, the issue of whether or not the South should gear up for entry into globalisation is hotly contested.
Southern discourses are closely connected to issues that have to do with environmental degradation, irrational utilization of natural resources, and the use of community theartre in enhancing community participation (Nthunya, 2002, Manyozo, 2002). But the discourses are even much more extensive when it comes to the issue of poverty. Leys (1994) has already drawn attention to the fact that in Sub-Saharan Africa alone, nearly 300 million out of a total population of about 500 million are living in absolute poverty. The situation has not changed significantly in spite of all the efforts that have been made because the global demand for produce from Sub-Saharan Africa is either diminishing or stagnant while the North is ever expanding its market.
The application of lifelong learning to democracies in the South is reverberating probably as a result of external pressures. So then, the South is increasingly required to develop forms of political cultures and practice as well as respect for human rights for their governments to be acceptable and tolerable to the supposedly more ‘civilized’ and developed North. It is then not strange to find many of the discourses exploring how best the Southern governments can do so in spite of the vocal opposition by scholars who are opposed to what they term as the ‘new colonialism’ that must be jettisoned.
Consequence
An imbalance has emerged in the way scholars in the North and South are focusing their thoughts. If nothing else, the North has continued to dominate and influence some of the discourses in the South in terms of shaping the direction of the discussion, knowledge creation, knowledge utilization, material and personnel development, research and scholarship.
As things stand at the moment, it would be a pipe dream for anyone to ever expect knowledge exchange between the North and South to be on an equal key. This is especially so as Southern scholarship is scantily accommodated in the more ‘sophisticated’ and ‘current’ Northern publication outlets and the Northern-dominated Internet. Southern scholarship can only but be assessed based on the understanding and interests of the readership that is Northern. To the Southern scholars, the message must be simply ‘take it or leave it’. Even at that, it is cheering that points of congruence are emerging and these may be explored for the benefit of all.
Congruence
The points of congruence indicated in the literature appears to be in the areas of social integration, reconciliation and advocacy for widening access to education and training. Globalisation has induced this tendency. Globalized economies and the vigorous pursuit of the development of the knowledge-based economy have partly been induced by changes in immigration patterns as skilled labour is expected to be highly mobile, dynamic and flexible.
A more relaxed movement of social capital should imply the emergence of global citizenry with all its heterogeneity. When this is the case, previously homogenous populations are wittingly ‘dislocated’ and to create social stability deliberate efforts need to be made to bring about the integration of diverse population groups. The literature is also replete with concerns for advocacy for the integration of the formal and informal learning, especially in the contexts of indigenous learning systems in Africa. This is featured in the arguments for accreditation of prior learning and allowable oscillation between school-based and out-of-school based learning.
The scholarship on both sides is also advocating the reconciliation of different spheres of life. This advocacy seems to be based on the premise that it is not useful for us to continue to cultivate the structuralization of life ages. Rather, there are calls for the establishment of intergenerational relationship programs across the globe.
The discourse in the North and South has supported the widening of access to learning as social justice. They castigate unequal access based on nuances of religion, culture, ethnicity, gender, education, life age, social economic status and legal and illegal confinements. On both sides, globalisation is seemingly being castigated although there is hardly any agreement among the scholars. Protagonists of globalisation argue that the emergence of globally flexibilized economy, for weal or for woe, has simply helped in midwifing economically and financially pauparised persons. They argue that under post-fordism, individuals are mesmerized and whipped into historical and economic objects with no voice as a result of deregularised and monetised education policies. Systems everywhere are adjudged to be dismissing individual needs and aspirations in an era of competitiveness. For such persons, it is said that lifelong learning only needs to mediate and provide flexibilised local labour markets.
In spite of the critical view scholars share about globalisation, they seem to agree that lifelong learning should help nations to strengthen their human resource base. It is also argued that organizations ought to be learning orientated in a rapidly changing world ( Sambrook and Stewart, 1999)
There is agreement that lifelong learning should be conceptualized holistically, inclusively and as an inter-disciplinary learning in which traditional subjects like history, economics, sociology, psychology and philosophy are intersected with the transgressive disciplinary pursuits in empowerment, women’s studies, studies on the left or queer studies and socio-cultural studies.
Suggestions
Bown (1983) has proposed that Southern ideas and practices might illuminate Northern approaches to lifelong learning and vice versa. We propose that there is need for collaboration, cooperation and solidarity in diversity in common causes like overcoming the global large-scale underfunding and under recognition of our profession. We could come up strongly together against the perpetrators of socio-economic inequalities even as we work for individual development and secure livelihoods.
Based on the realization that the South is more limited in making available resources for research, material development, personnel development, knowledge generation and publications, it seems reasonable for the North to make more deliberate efforts to accommodate views originating in the South while at the same time deliberately introducing special subscription rates for Southern subscribers to Northern journals and publications.
Conclusion
The paper has attempted to distill differences and convergence in lifelong learning discourses between the North and the South. It has been suggested that in spite of the divergences in the scholarship, collaboration and cooperation would be needed as a way of promoting global harmony. Scholars should move out of what may be termed as ‘academic containers’, with the North remaining the bigger and better container that can better generate knowledge that the South should ‘buy’. If that imbalance remains, we should be heading for a crisis. That is the crisis of speaking in different tongues with the dominance of non-interpretation, which is an exercise in futility. Indeed, lifelong learning scholars should become more generative in terms of becoming gifted learners-open to new and dynamic ideas, flexible, anticipatory, efficient, responsive to change and ever engaged in self-transformation.
References
Alheit, P. and Davidson, B. (2002), ‘The ‘double face’ of lifelong learning: two analytical perspectives on a silent revolution,’ NIACE abstract, Vol. 34, No. 1, Spring, 02.html, accessed 17/04/03.
Aspin, D. N. and Chapman, J. D. (2001), ‘Lifelong learning: concepts, theories and values’, Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of SCUTREA, University of East London.
Beck, J, Samerski, S. and Illich, I. (1999), ‘The conditional human,’ European Conference on Lifelong Learning, University of Bremen, accessed 17/04/03.
Bown, L. (1983), ‘Adult education in the Third World’, in: Tight, M. (ed.), Adult learning andeducation. Education for adults, Vol. 1, Beckenham:Croom Helm.
Chapman, J. D. and Aspin, D. N. (2000), ‘Lifelong learning: concepts and conceptions.’ International journal of lifelong education, Vol. 19, No 1, Jan-Feb.
Clark, T. (2000), ‘Lifelong learning: contested ground,’ Adult Learners Week 2000 ConferenceAgenda for the Future, Australia.
Collis, B. and Mooenen, J. (2002), ‘Flexible learning in a digital world’, Open learning, Vol. 17, No. 3, pp.217-230.
Courtenay, B.C., Merriam, S. B. and Baumgartner, L.M. (2001), ‘Witches’ ways of knowing: the role of adult learning in joining social groups’, Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference ofSCUTREA, University of East London.
Cruikshank, J. (2002), Lifelong learning or re-training for life: scapegoating the worker,’ Studies in the education of adults, Vol. 34, No. 2, October.
Edwards, R. Ranson, S. and Strain, M. (2002), ‘Reflexivity: towards a theory of lifelong learning,’ International Journal of Lifelong Education, Vol. 21, Number 6, November-December, pp. 525-537
European Regional Conference (2002), ‘Lifelong learning in pursuit of EFA goals and CONFITEA V Agenda’, European Regional Conference, Bulgaria, accessed 17/04/03.