ABSTRACT
Thus far we have seen how globalization is creating rapid social change and the knowledge society. However, it was clear in the previous chapter that a greater emphasis is now being placed on the process of learning knowledge than on teaching it. Traditionally, universities have taught it; in the UK university academics have frequently been referred to as 'university teachers', in the same way as schoolteachers are teachers.They have rarely been referred to as facilitators of learning or, as we have also heard, learning technicians. Indeed, many books about teaching actually spend little time or space on the learning process. Even so, the resistance among academics in universities until just recently to be trained to teach is indicative of the fact that both teaching and learning were considered to be just natural processes that anyone could do if they had the content knowledge. Many programmes on teaching have not been too concerned about how people learn or how knowledge of this should affect the way in which teaching is conducted. Now this is changing. Significantly, this is also the case with company training; in both the focus is now on learning. This has led to ideas about lifelong learning, which we will return to below.
