Adult education in Portugal: different scenarios and distinct ways of searching for learning and development

Abstract

This paper follows on from the authors' participation in a project aiming at the characterisation of the practices developed in several European countries called 'Developing Local Learning Centres and Learning Partnerships as Part of Member States Targets for Reaching the Lisbon Goals in the Field of Education and Training. A Study of the Current Situation' (Leiden University, 2005). We now aim to go further as regards the characterisation of the contexts and practices described at the time, seeking to clarify certain issues regarding the history of the organisations involved, the education and training policies either tacitly or explicitly endorsed, the organisational structures adopted and the preferred principles and forms of action. We shall start by pointing out some aspects of adult education policies which have been adopted in the past three decades in Portugal and on the main features and goals of the research; the discussion of the main results make up another part of the paper, which concludes with a review of the main aspects examined.