Lifelong learning is “[…] all learning activity undertaken throughout life, with the aim of improving knowledge, skills and competence, within a personal, civic, social and/or employment- related perspective.”
(European Commission on Education and Training, 2006.

This definition embraces a wide array of learning settings, methods and goals. Lifelong learning spans the whole of life, from the pre-school years through into retirement; it comprises both theoretical knowledge as well as practical skills, it encompasses the acquisition, improvement and extension, in whatever form, of skills of all descriptions.

• Motivation: The training course would like to inspire interest and motivation for lifelong learning in the participant.


• Human rights: Participants shall become sensitized for their right to education and equal access to educational offerings.


• Recognising own opportunities: Participants will be made aware of the opportunities available to them to further their education and change their life.


• Taking personal responsibility: Participants will no longer feel they are guilty and victims of society; they will learn not to accept this role if they have been assigned it by others.


• Recognising own resources and strengths: Participants are to recognise their existing resources and strengths and develop ideas as to how they can enhance them and acquire new ones.


• Acquiring skills: Participants will actively upgrade their skills and be given the opportunity to experiment with new skills and behaviours in the protected environment of the training course.


• Self-worth and self-efficacy: The training course aspires to support participants’ sense of self-worth and instil in them the feeling of self-efficacy which is a fundamental precondition for the remainder of the learning process.


• Empowerment for self-regulated learning: Participants will be empowered to plan and implement their own individual learning process independently and on their own authority.


• Equal access to educational offerings: Participants will be helped to find equal access to formal and informal educational offerings.

The trainer should respect the participants’ values. It is his task to forge a link between the value of lifelong learning and participants’ values and previous experience and not to foist his own moral concepts on them.

The training course can follow particular principles to meet participants’ needs and to ensure a positive and productive atmosphere.

• Trust:

  It is very important for the participants to feel accepted and to develop trust in the trainer and training.



• Acceptance and good atmosphere:

  A good atmosphere within the group and mutual acceptance between participants are essential for staging a successful training course, especially when we are working with target groups who are familiar with rejection and social exclusion in their day-to-day lives.



• Take account of participants’ needs:

  The training course should take account of the participants’ needs and specific characteristics