Abstract
ABSTRACT Despite UNESCO’s Learning Cities agenda, which argues for the mobilisation of resources to promote education across all sectors and environments, there is little evaluative research on Learning City engagement which is both naturalistic and empirically rigorous. The research on informal adult learning in urban contexts is particularly sparse. This paper provides a case study of informal learning and lifewide literacies amongst Glaswegian adults using three distinct approaches to data collection: a household survey capturing rich data on learning attitudes, behaviours, and literacies; GPS trails that track mobility around the city; and the capture of naturally occurring social media. The work operationalises Learning City indicators, and explores domains beyond education, some of which have not previously been considered in surveys of adult learning, for example, physical mobilities and transportation patterns. We use theoretical concepts of social identity and capital to situate inclusion within explanatory frameworks of marginalisation in less tangible domains of informal learning using multi-stranded data. A triangulated analysis of city-wide participation in lifewide learning reveals a demographic picture of groups marginalised from learning opportunities and practices. We conclude with a call for new approaches to exploring learning participation which offer novel methods to evidence informal learning and lifewide literacies.
Highlights
Despite UNESCO’s Learning Cities agenda, which argues for the mobilisation of resources to promote education across all sectors and environments, there is little evaluative research on Learning City engagement which is both naturalistic and empirically rigorous
As the guiding framework for this paper, UNESCO’s Global Learning Cities Network (GLCN), which argues for the mobilisation of resources to promote education across all sectors and environments (UNESCO, 2013), harnessing lifelong learning to promote more equitable and inclusive societies in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (2015)
Attitudes towards having a ‘sense of belonging’ to the local area and ‘feeling safe walking alone at night’ are two predictors that we have found to be important for both adult learning engagement and general health, as predicted by Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1979) notions of in-group affiliation associated with greater self-esteem and group participation
Summary
The present work analyses data from the integrated Multimedia City Data Project iMCD, an element of the work of the Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC), a major investment of the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The project’s four major data strands comprise an open ‘data product’ developed by our team for use by academics, policy practitioners, and the public alike to access and analyse, and include: (1) a large-scale household survey; (2) GPS trails around the city; (3) social media data capture; and (4) life-logging camera images taken automatically (these will be discussed further below) These linked datasets are currently housed, as open data, alongside other large datasets within UBDC’s archive (such as satellite, mobile, and cycling app data). Comprehensive international studies of adult competence, such as the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC; OECD, 2016), and earlier comparative analyses of the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS; data by Desjardins, 2003) use a narrower range of defined literacies and fewer linked variables related to urban life (e.g. travel and civic engagement)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
