The auto-industry, the financial sector and the construction industry; in these three sectors alone, millions of people have already lost their jobs as a result of the on-going financial crisis. And we may just have seen the beginning of a long and hard recession so far.

Arne Carlsen, Director of Internationalisation at the Danish School of Education, Aarhus University, believes that lifelong learning should be the politicians' response to the challenges we face. "When jobs disappear, reskilling is called for at all levels. The increasing instability and the tectonic shifts in the economy highlights the need for an increased attention to innovation and entrepreneurship as means to ensure the continued coherence of nations," says Arne Carlsen, who is the founder and chairman of the Asian-European university collaboration on lifelong learning, the 'ASEM Education and Research Hub for Lifelong Learning'.

Inspired by the financial crisis, Denmark has suggested that the ASEM collaboration should focus even more on lifelong learning. In fact, one result of the crisis is that lifelong learning is now at a crossroads, according to Arne Carlsen. If the funding for lifelong learning were to disappear, the crisis could worsen significantly!

"Should politicians cut down on lifelong learning, the people will suffer for it. If, on the other hand, we were to focus on human resources and lifelong learning as remedies for the current situation, we would be much better off once the crisis fades out, simply because the employees will be much better qualified in the future," says Arne Carlsen.

Reskilling of the workforce
The current troubled situation has put a strain on a number of industries, not least the auto industry, which suddenly faces two new paradigms; an economical downturn and a new interest in the environmental impact of automobiles. This calls for new competencies in the workforce.

"Many people, including President Obama, have suggested that the crisis provides us an opportunity to introduce fundamental changes, not least to reduce our dependency on oil and gasoline. For green technology to really take root, the millions of people who have lost their jobs must be offered education so they can acquire the competencies that will be in demand."

In other words, we need lifelong learning at all levels, according to Arne Carlsen.

"The LLL-system must provide general as well as technical and vocational training at various levels, ranging from remedy of basic skills needs to advanced courses at tertiary level and preparatory courses that give access to tertiary education in the mainstream system," Mr. Carlsen says.

Arne Carlsen believes that reskilling of the work force is a win-win situation for the government, the employees and for the employers. But who will pay for lifelong learning at a time when tax revenues decrease so much that several countries are on the edge of bankruptcy, private companies see their income evaporate and employees lose their jobs?

"The desire to support employee learning is greatest when the organisations have a positive cash flow. Often, when income starts to decline, training is the first thing to feel budget cuts. This is why I would advice the politicians to establish partnerships between the public authorities, the unions and the employers," says Arne Carlsen, in recognition of the fact that smaller companies in particular will find education a tough burden. "Some industries have ground completely to a halt. This severely limits the educational options."

A European answer
Lifelong learning entails facilitation of people's competence development in order to increase their worth in the labour market and for the organisations. The question is whether it is particularly likely that, for instance, an Eastern European country that is or has been close to economic meltdown will spend their last money on lifelong learning?

"In these countries in particular, the governments have to provide the best possible opportunities for the population to adapt. But this can not be addressed on a national level alone; it is a European problem that calls for a European answer. We need the EU to step up and outline a solution. Lifelong learning is one of the EU's primary focus areas in the attempt to generate economical growth. This should remain so in the years ahead."

The European-Asian collaboration about lifelong learning in ASEM demonstrates, according to Arne Carlsen, that lifelong learning is a field where the potential for synergy on an international scale is vast. One example of how we learn from each other is Europe's EQF, or 'European Qualification Framework for Lifelong Learning', which the Asian partners are very interested in learning from when they produce their own system for transfer of merit.

"The EQF is a system to describe an individual's competencies, which are aimed to make it easier for the individual to apply for jobs or education in other countries. The prerequisite for such a system is a shared understanding of the basic concepts, so that comparisons are possible across national borders. The system makes it possible for, say, a Swedish employer to determine exactly what a nurse learned during his/her education in Greece."

Increased worker mobility
The possibility of direct comparisons radically increases worker mobility, which is why the Asian countries have such an interest in the EQF, Arne Carlsen explains.

"Without something akin to the EQF, it is close to impossible to assess the contents and level of a given education. This is problematic now, because more and more organisations expand their international commitments and employers need to accurately determine the precise qualifications of applicants from abroad. If the Asian countries introduce a system that is compatible with the EQF, it will be that much easier for people in Asia to come to Europe for work and education, just as Europeans will find it easier to apply for work and/or education in Asian countries."

Arne Carlsen points out that lifelong learning comprises a wide range of adult education; post-vocational training, further education, workplace learning, and recognition of informal learning.

In Asia, we see a huge interest in informal learning. How can we ascribe merit for competencies that were acquired outside the formal education system?

"It is widely recognised in many Asian countries that the formal educational system can only provide part of the competencies people need. This is why they are keen to recognise the competencies people acquire elsewhere, through work or in their own homes. Examples could be management experience, which can come from work life of course, but also from volunteer work."

France is front-runner
As to recognition of real competencies, the competencies people have, but may not have a certificate for, France leads the pack, but runners up include Spain, Norway, Sweden and Denmark, Arne Carlsen explains.

"France is not often talked about as a front-runner in adult education, but France has come to realise the need for more people to acquire further education. To that end, and because there is a shortage of young applicants, they try to motivate adults and middle-aged people to enter the universities. A recent law, for instance, mandated that all universities must maintain a merit committee to assess the merit of applicants' work experience and decide which courses applicants may skip."

On the other hand, Europe could learn a lot from the entrepreneurial spirit in many Asian countries.

"The Asian societies have developed by leaps and bounds by being very focused on new business opportunities and on the development of new small businesses, that have since grown in size. This is not least due to a willingness to grasp the opportunities that arise. Entrepreneurship is a basic skill that we would like to promote in our part of the world, to make people take their career into own their hands, so to speak. In certain Danish universities, they are actively promoting a spirit of entrepreneurship, which is new here, but has been a part of Asian culture for a long time."

By Jakob Albrecht
quarterly@dpu.dk

Arne Carlsen
Arne Carlsen is the Director for International Affairs at the Danish School of Education, Aarhus University. He is the founding chairman of ASEM Education and Research Hub for Lifelong Learning.

"If we were to focus on human resources and lifelong learning as remedies for the current situation, we would be much better off once the crisis fades."

The ASEM Education and Research Hub for Lifelong Learning is an umbrella organisation for comparative research and research-based policy recommendations in Lifelong Learning between Asia and Europe. It functions as a platform for dialogue between policy and research, with an Advisory Board with representatives of ministries, a forum for management representatives of currently 34 universities from 24 countries, and five research networks. The results are presented at an annual international conference and in conference proceedings and publications as well as at its website www.dpu.dk/asem.

It was founded in 2005 with Arne Carlsen as founding chairman as an official ASEM initiative, supported by ASEF – Asia Europe Foundation, and the ASEM LLL Secretariat is located at the Danish School of Education, Aarhus University.

 The Hub is currently working to expand the partnership to include all 47 member countries, the EU-Commission and ASEAN Secretariat. The Hub is organised into five networks that carries out comparative, evidence-based research:

1 Development of ICT skills, e-learning in Lifelong Learning. Coordinated by Korea National Open University, Korea.

2 Competence development as Workplace Learning. Coordinated by the Danish School of Education, Aarhus University, Denmark.

3 Professionalisation of Lifelong Learning and the infrastructure of Lifelong Learning with a special emphasis on teacher training. Coordinated by the German Institute of Adult Education, Duisburg/ Essen University, Germany.

 4 National strategies of Lifelong Learning with regard to citizens' motivation and barriers against continuing education and training. Coordinated by the National Centre for Education Development Research, Ministry of Education, China.

5 ASEM Core Competences Research Group. Coordinated by Seoul National University, Korea. Read more about the Hub at www.dpu.dk/asem