EDUCATION MATTERS:AONTAS, the National Adult Education Association, will this year celebrate its 40th birthday. It is a good time. therefore, to reflect on the evolution of adult education in Ireland and upon the contribution of this organisation.

In the same year AONTAS was founded, 1969, Peter Drucker published his seminal work, The Age of Discontinuity. In this book, Drucker suggested that the world was undergoing a massive discontinuity in which the lessons of history would be a poor guide to the future. This discontinuity he attributed to a number of processes, such as globalisation, inter-culturalism, technology and the growth of knowledge.

Ireland was not immune from the forces described by Drucker. Aontas emerged out of the flux and optimism created in part by these forces. The generation which had been at the helm of the State since its foundation was finally giving way. The seismic impact of the mass media, particularly of television, was unfolding rapidly. Meanwhile the waning influence of the Catholic Church was already becoming apparent. The emergence of the women’s movement, along with a vibrant civil rights and antiwar culture in Western democracies, were all part of a fulcrum and dynamic of change which would profoundly shape the character of a fledgling adult education movement in Ireland.

The commitment to change became the defining feature of Irish adult education. Over the years it developed a wide-ranging critique around issues such as educational exclusion and under- achievement. It pushed out education policy on issues such as access and the accreditation of learning, and was to the fore in introducing an approach to teaching and learning that emphasised the value of personal experience, dialogue between the teacher and the taught, and the celebration of the multiple intelligences of the learner.

While the wider policy context in Ireland has been reluctant to embrace a well-funded and systematic approach to adult education, there are nonetheless significant instances of achievement in the sector in which Aontas played a pivotal role. These include the development of a high level of political awareness and concern with the adult literacy problem, that now receives significant State funding.

The concern with second- chance education has led to the development of programmes such as the Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS) and the Back to Education Initiative and a wide range of initiatives at local community level.

With regard to higher education, the position of mature students has moved from one in which there was widespread institutional neglect, if not indeed hostility, in the 1970s to a situation today in which there is a national goal of 15 per cent mature student entry, a target that many institutions are already exceeding.

So while there is a case for a more coherent and broad-based policy agenda in the area, it is also important to note these very significant achievements. These combined with the establishment of the National Framework of Qualifications in 2003 mean that adults who wish to return to education, have not only the opportunity to do so but can also ensure the accreditation of this learning and further progression along the ladder of qualifications on the Framework.

Regardless of anyone’s reasons, the voluntary nature of adult learning and the fact that it frequently marks significant change in the direction and focus of the person’s life, accord it a character and a quality which is quite different from that found in any other education sector.

In an exams-driven educational environment, adult education provides an alternative experience and demonstrates the possibilities and the joy of learning which is learner-centred, self-directed and self-motivated.

Tom Collins is head of education at NUI Maynooth