Learning networks and communication skills

The increase in student numbers in further and higher education over the last decade has been dramatic, placing greater pressures on academic staff in terms of contact hours. At the same time public funding of universities has decreased. Furthermore, the current pace of technological innovation and change and the fact that there are fewer jobs for life with clear pathways for progression mean that more of us need to be engaged in learning throughout our lives in order to remain competitive in the job-market. That is the reality of lifelong learning.