This study explores how migrant students navigate participation in educational settings at a Swedish Folk High School. Drawing on the theory of Communities of Practice (CoP), the research examines how learners engage with the three modes of belonging-mutual engagement, joint enterprise, and shared repertoire-and how these modes influence their participation in a learning community. Using ethnographic methods, including shadowing of four students, and interviews with four students and five teachers, the study reveals that participation is not only about acquiring academic knowledge but also about negotiating legitimacy, identity, and access to shared practices. While some students align with the expectations of the learning community, they also engage in more fluid, quasi-community dynamics, where roles and expertise are negotiated rather than fixed. Language barriers, differing educational expectations, and cultural norms present both opportunities and challenges for inclusion. The findings underscore the need for inclusive pedagogical practices that recognise diverse learner trajectories and support participation. Understanding migrant students' challenges requires teachers to reflect on how their own norms shape educational expectations and interactions.

The rock ‘n’ roll generation has retired, and this raises questions about whether their educational needs differ from the generations before them. This paper presents a study of a course called ‘Graffiti for Seniors.’ The course had nine participants, all women, which constituted two groups: (A) people who are artists or artisans and (B) people who are curious about graffiti as an expression and culture in general. The methods used was participant observation and interviews. When the data had been gathered, Howard McClusky’s theory of educational needs guided the analysis, as this theory offers a diversity of alternative needs compared to later theories. The material was reviewed to find expressions related to the theory’s five dimensions. We conclude that the most prominent needs are coping needs and expressive needs. Coping needs address dealing with society’s ideas about aging, but also about gender, and challenging these norms. Expressive needs demonstrate the importance of engaging in activities that are performed for their own sake and allowing individuals to express themselves. A limitation of this study is that it is performed in a single context, and therefore, future studies in other contexts using the same theory for analysis would contribute to a fuller understanding of how different courses meet various educational needs among older adult learners. A practical implication of the study is the insight that older adults can benefit from educational arenas where they enjoy the freedom of expression and where they can challenge and explore norms connected to gender and age.

This study focuses on learning in a hunting team–a context that is not explicitly organised for learning but requires both formal and informal learning to take place. The purpose is to explore the dynamics of how hunters learn to hunt. The study was conducted in a rural area in northern Sweden using a focus group method. The theoretical framework consists of a combination of situated learning and lifelong learning theories. Situated learning emphasises the contextual and social dimension of learning, while lifelong learning draws attention to a wider context and learning as a lifelong process. The findings reveal a movement from the hunter’s sense of free exploration at a young age, via their reflection on changes over time, to a more abstract orientation when transferring knowledge to others. To support the individual’s learning process, variation in content, interaction, and type of situation is required. The results of this study highlight the richness of the concept of ‘lifelong learning’, including the different modes of development that lifelong learning embraces, especially those that go beyond learning in formal educational contexts.

This paper presents a scoping review of relevant literature to characterise research on education in prisons. After reviewing 353 peer-reviewed articles spanning 10 years of research, we conclude that research on education in prisons in global research databases (i) is dominated by qualitative studies, (ii) is primarily focused on the English-speaking world, and (iii) shows a relatively strong representation of women. Eight research themes are presented in this paper, where we discuss what characterises research on education in prisons. Two main characteristics emerge: education in prisons as a phenomenon that needs to be justified, and education in prisons as a phenomenon that contributes to the imprisoned individual’s restoration. Finally, we offer suggestions for future research within this field.

Folk high school is often presented as an alternative to formal education in the Swedish adult education system. Despite the multitude of educational activities that folk high school offers, conceptions about its uniqueness prevail in society. This study identifies the perceptions that teachers hold regarding folk high school. We conducted eight focus group interviews with thirty teachers from five folk high schools. The material was analysed using ‘social representation theory’. The results reveal four relational categories that constitute the central elements of the teachers’ representations of folk high school, called links because they bind together different states: (i) ‘from isolation to participation’; (ii) ‘from loneliness to community’; (iii) ‘from not being ready to being ready for the next step’; and (iv) ‘from stress to well-being’. The teachers describe a transformative and participatory environment where education and learning contribute to social recognition. In particular, the importance of ‘seeing the whole person’ is brought to the forefront. Based on these results, one might ask why working at such an institution is perceived as unique, since, from a pedagogical perspective, the approach adopted by folk high school appears to be the natural and obvious way to provide education.

First paragraphs: Those of us who work in higher education have an important task to fulfil, namely, to promote lifelong learning. Consequently, it can be of benefit to understand the concept of ‘lifelong learning’ and the various dimensions it encompasses. Lifelong learning does not merely entail that we can or should engage in learning throughout our lives – it also involves continuously learning new knowledge and skills whether we actively choose to do so or not. As a result, those of us who work in the field of education and learning are tasked with an additional responsibility: to ensure that such learning is rewarding for the individual and contributes to the long-term development of society.

When lifelong learning is demanded in the context of higher education, this signifies a shift from viewing oneself as a post-secondary institution catering to young adults to acting as a partner in the individual’s lifelong learning journey. Establishing a lifelong relationship with an individual who is constantly evolving naturally entails increased complexity but also additional opportunities. As early as twenty years ago, the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education noted that lifelong learning was politically, organizationally, and attitudinally embedded in the Swedish higher education system. Notwithstanding this, the agency also noted that it was perhaps time for a deeper understanding of what lifelong learning truly entails. The difference now compared to then is the increase in the proportion of the population who hold higher education degrees, the increased demand in the job market for skilled labour, and changes in work methods based on technological advancements. While we can learn from past events, we must also be prepared to observe what is happening in society right now.

This essay introduces the concept of ‘lifelong learning’ and highlights different ways how the concept can be considered. To this end, I pose the following questions: What has lifelong learning entailed in different time periods? What ideologies guide the direction of learning? and How do different perspectives regarding learning relate to each other? Taken together, answers to these questions can contribute to deepening our understanding of lifelong learning in higher education and thereby enhancing our work with lifelong learning.

This chapter demonstrates that ‘lifelong learning’ is a concept which is used in different contexts and in different ways. Two intertwined perspectives of ‘lifelong learning’ are highlighted here: (i) ‘lifelong learning’ as policy; and (ii) ‘lifelong learning’ as theory. What they have in common is the assumption that learning takes place throughout the duration of a person’s life and that learning takes place in various contexts in a person’s everyday life. The meanings which have been associated with the concept of ‘lifelong learning’ can be differentiated via the perspectives mentioned above, but there is also an interplay between political intentions (as expressed in policy) and philosophy of pedagogy (as expressed in theoretical frameworks). While the ‘lifelong learning’ concept is most frequently occurring in policy work, it is primarily ‘lifelong learning’ as a philosophy of pedagogy which can provide us with important insight into the development of lifelong learning in a professional context and in society.

BACKGROUND: In 2020 the Swedish Government started a gradual raising of the retirement age, but employers have been silent on the issue. Little is known about whether and how they reflect on what it will mean for their organization, or whether they already have, or are going to, make arrangements in order to facilitate and motivate older workers to stay longer.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore and describe managers' experiences of older workers and age management in connection with the increase of the retirement age in Sweden.

METHODS: Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with fourteen managers from a broad set of organizations in the public and private sectors, and from the Middle and East of Sweden. The transcribed material was analysed in line with qualitative content analysis.

RESULTS: The analysis ended up in seven main categories with associated sub-categories: Older Workers, Retirement Ages, Transition Initiatives, Competence Transfer, Competence Development, Increased Retirement Ages, Knowledge Gaps.

CONCLUSION: Our findings reveal that there is an ambivalence in addressing the issue of age among the interviewed managers, what we have interpreted and labelled as "silent age discrimination", and it was shown that they do not have elaborated strategies for age management.

In intergenerational projects, learning a craft is an activity that may be of interest to people of different ages. This paper focuses on knitting as a craft. In most Western societies, knitting is often considered a craft for women, but on Taquile Island, Peru, it is the men who knit. This paper discusses knitting from an intergenerational perspective whilst focusing on gender and culture. To this aim, we introduce an intrinsic case study to examine the role of gender and culture in intergenerational learning. The data used in this study was collected during a visit to Taquile Island. In summary, the study’s findings reveal that (i) on Taquile, members of the community invest in maintaining cultural traditions in opposition to being swept along by (con)temporary social changes; (ii) knitting on Taquile is approached as a practical technique in contrast to Western culture where knitting is connected to the concept of ‘well-being’; and (iii) whilst gender structures may set frames for performance, the Taquile case demonstrates that what is typically considered ‘male’ or ‘female’ may vary.