Eureka! Institutional Repository

In recognition of the importance that Adult Education has in the modern Society of Knowledge for the personal development of the individual, with the prospect of self-realization, consolidation of their abilities for meaningful participation in political life and the cultivation of skills to enhance their competitiveness in the labor market, it is essential to constantly expand Adult Education to ensure the provision of its benefits to as wide a population of adults as possible. A pre-requisite for achieving this goal, is that the processes of Lifelong Learning should correspond to the interests of prospective adult students and satisfy their expectations of improvement in their processes. This raises questions concerning the nature of the needs and motivations which drive adults to participate in Lifelong Learning programs, knowledge of which will contribute to the design, organization and realization of qualitative programs of Adult Education, which are adaptive to suit students’ demands. It is these questions that the present study attempts to address, through an investigation of the self-reported experiences of eight educators who took part in educational activities, with a view to gaining insights into the way in which they experienced and interpreted their educational needs and motivations for learning and were encouraged to follow certain programs for their own personal satisfaction. The findings of the study show that their conscious decision to participate in such programs was determined by more than one reason, which focus on the goal of gaining current knowledge as educators and developing skills which they can apply directly to their professional field for the acquisition of material, ethical and symbolic rewards. These are, however, differences from person to person concerning the order of importance these reasons hold, as well as individual and cultural characteristics, the roles everyone has undertaken and the social environments in which each one fulfils them by engaging in various social activities.