Promoting Lifelong Learning Among Adult Learners on Distance Education Programs in Developing Countries: Challenges and Strategies

This is a critical engagement chapter that makes a case for fostering lifelong learning mindset amongst adult learners on distance education (DE) mode of learning, particularly in the developing countries. The chapter theorizes lifelong learning by arguing that when adult learners are supported to nurture a lifelong learning mindset, it would energize them to learn throughout their lifespan to become innovative, creative and useful to themselves, workplaces, communities and the larger global economy. The 21st century requires people to be lifelong learners in order to be successful at the workplace. The chapter also critically examines the concepts of self-directed learning being promoted in the developing countries. It further probes into challenges facing adult learners in their lifelong learning drive and proposes strategies to surmount them. The implications for adult education are stated. The chapter recommends that governments and higher education institutions (HEIs) in the developing countries collaborate more, and provide one laptop to each adult learner in order to successfully drive the digitalization process currently ongoing in developing counties to a higher notch. This strategy, when successfully promoted amongst young adults, should lead them to embrace selfdirected learning. In so doing, the developing countries could leverage the digital skills young adults’ have acquired to leap-frog the development of their economies and become learning societies.