Lifelong learning, quality assurance and recurrent
education in higher education in Sweden
Cecilia Bjursell, PhD
Professor of Education
Jönköping University, Sweden

1Encell – the national centre for lifelong learning 2

Encell develops and disseminates knowledge
about adult learning and lifelong learning.
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“The importance ofadult learning isreflected in the EUlevel target that at least
60 % of all adults
should be participatingin training every yearby 2030.” (Eurostat,2022)

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Adult participation in learning, % of population aged 25 to 64(European Commission Eurostat, 2021)5

The Swedish national system for lifelong learning
Doctoral Education
University Education
Learning inworking life

Higher Vocational
Education

Folk High Schools & Popular Adult Eduction
Upper SecondarySchool

Personaldevelopment

Adult Education

Elementary SchoolPreschool

6A sustainable infrastructure for adults lifelong learning

Analysis &prognosis

Comptence
mapping

Infrastructure
lifelong
learning

Finans

Flexiblelearning

Guidance
andmatching
Validation

Educationsystem

A report from Vinnova – Sweden´s Innovation Agency(Ramsten, Bjursell & Engström, 2021)

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Increased knowledge results andstrengthened security at school

The Ministryof Educationbudget 2023
- highlights

Good conditions for competence
supplyResearch to strengthen Sweden's
security situation
Continued investment in research
infrastructure and space operations

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VALIDATION – FOR COMPETENCEPROVISION AND LIFELONG LEARNINGSOU 2019:69
Published 13 January 2020
In this final report, the Validation
Delegation 2015–2019 submits
proposals and assessments so that acoherent, national and permanentsystem for validation can beintroduced so that more people canhave their skills mapped, assessed andrecognised.

9The validation delegation (2020) proposed:• A new, common, definition of validation.
• A new regulation with general provisions on validation.
• Increased clarity about validation within the university and universityof applied sciences.
• A national strategy for competence provision and lifelong learning.
• A council for validation under the leadership of the responsibleminister.
• Competence provision must be a basic task for the regions.
• State grant for further development of industry validation.
• Increased access to validation in komvux through an obligation forthe municipalities to offer students validation and increased clarity
about mapping, assessment and documentation during validation.

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New validation regulation: Increased uniformity
should improve the possibilities for validation
As part of the work to create a coherent, national and permanentsystem for validation, the government has decided on a completely
new validation regulation. The aim is to create a basis for common
understanding and uniformity regarding validation throughout theeducation and labor market area.
From 1 January 2023

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Legal council referral:
Validation for competence
provision and lifelong learningIn the legislative council referral, the government
submits proposals that aim for validation withinmunicipal adult education (komvux) to a greater
extent to meet the needs of the labor market
and of individuals. With improved validation, theopportunities to make use of the knowledge thatthe individual has previously acquired increases.
This contributes to a more efficient supply ofskills, a faster establishment on the labor market
and increased opportunities for adjustment
during working life.
From 1 January 2023

12Quality in higher education – current topics
Collaboration in research and education“The universities' task must include collaborating with the surrounding
society for mutual exchange and working to ensure that the knowledge
and competence available at the university benefits society.” (The
Swedish Higher Education Act 1992:1434)
Ethical review
If you are going to process special category data, or sensitive personaldata, in a research project, you must have an ethical approval from theSwedish Ethical Review Authority.
Academic freedom
Memorandum: Amendments to the Higher Education Act to promoteacademic freedom and clarify the role of higher education institutions
for lifelong learning (U2020/03053/UH

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1. Programme education
2. Continued education
3. Collaboration

CREATING A PLATFORM FOR RECURRENT EDUCATION IN HIGHER EDUCATION
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Lifelong learning

Formal learning

Non-formal learning

Informal learning

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PHILOSOPHY

POLICYEDUCATIONSYSTEM(Bjursell, 2020, Three perspectives on lifelong learning)17Basic principles in theories on lifelong learning:

Learning must be
understood assomething that occurs
in interaction
between theindividual and theenvironment.
Referens: Illeris (2016). Peter Jarvis and the understanding of adult learning,
International journal of lifelong education, Vol.36 (1-2), p.35-44.

Learning is basedon the individual'sidentity andunderstanding ofhimself.

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Lifelong learning
Lifelong education

Billett, 2018, Distinguishing lifelong learning from lifelong education, Journal of adult learning, knowledge and innovation, 2, 1, 1-7.

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Thank you!

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