Lifelong Learning in the European Union and Turkey

---

Tezin Türü: Yüksek Lisans

Tezin Yürütüldüğü Kurum: Marmara Üniversitesi, Avrupa Araştırmaları Enstitüsü, Avrupa Birliği Siyaseti ve Uluslararası İlişkiler Anabilim Dalı (İngilizce), Türkiye

Tezin Onay Tarihi: 2019

Tezin Dili: İngilizce

Öğrenci: ORİTA BEBASA

Danışman: Armağan Emre Çakır

Özet:

This study explores the main drivers of the EU's and Turkey's lifelong learning policies and programmes. On the EU's front, it analyzes how neoliberal economic policies induce lifelong learning policy and mechanisms; on Turkey's front, it examines how Europeanization influences Turkey's lifelong learning agenda. The market of employment is heavily influenced by two converging factors: Neoliberalism and the neoliberal economic policies and the rapidly changing technology and information systems. These two factors are challenging the states, businesses and individuals, unprecedentedly, at different levels. Companies are facing the challenge and trying to strive in a knowledge economy. The very nature of the contemporary competition makes the success of companies more reliant on the quality of the work force they are able to employ and retain. The people, on the other hand are feeling increasingly anxious under the uncertainties introduced by a rapidly changing work environment. Careers are no more linear and steady. Not only existing functions and positions but entire professions may be said to be at risk. States, on the other hand, are pressurized in the sense that they are left between the necessity of cutting a fine balance between preserving the competitive edge of their economies in the knowledge economy, a job complicated by neoliberal forces and the need to preserve prosperity and trust of their people. It might be argued that lifelong learning policies and practices of the European Union emerge in order to alleviate the consequences of the neoliberal policies and the impact of the negative externalities of the technological change felt by their citizens; similarly, within the neoliberal context, Turkey bases its lifelong learning policies and infrastructure on the EU and introduces lifelong learning policies aligned with those of the European example.