Includes bibliographical references and index.

Part I. The emergence of the learning society -- The emerging idea / Linda Merricks -- Social, economic and political contexts / Stephen McNair -- The changing educational scene / Peter Jarvis -- Part II. Learning and the learning society -- From education policy to lifelong learning strategies / Colin Griffin -- The learning society / Colin Griffin and Bob Brownhill -- Lifelong learning / Bob Brownhill -- Part III. The mechanics of the learning society -- Paying for the age of learning / Stephen McNair -- Work-related learning / Paul Tosey and Stephen McNair -- Facilitating access to learning : educational and vocational guidance / Julia Preece -- Part IV. Implications of the learning society -- Implications of the learning society for education beyond school / Linda Merricks -- The school in the age of learning / John Holford and Gill Nicholls -- Corporations and professions / Peter Jarvis and Paul Tosey -- Implications for the delivery of learning materials / John Holford and Tom Black -- Implications for including the socially excluded in the learning age / Julia Preece -- Part V. Reflections on the age of learning -- The public recognition of learning; Questioning the learning society / Peter Jarvis-- Civil society and citizenship in a learning age / John Holford -- Future directions for the learning society / Peter Jarvis and Julia Preece.

Paying particular attention to the way new learning phenomena have emerged, this multidisciplinary analysis of learning in contemporary society analyses the meaning and the place of those strands that make up modern education.