Today’s global knowledge economy requires individuals and companies alike to quickly adapt to new tools and strategies. To remain competitive, both must continually seek out the latest advancements and developments, and upgrade their skillsets accordingly. In the United States, however, support for ongoing education lags far behind other developed nations, creating a crippling skills gap between the workforce and industries in the US and its global competitors.In a country that has been multiple steps ahead of everyone else since its birth, how did this happen? Why are other countries, previously inferior when it came to technological advancements, suddenly faring markedly better? What keeps our nation’s vast network of corporate training, workforce development, and K-12 and college education so fragmented and inefficient? In the tells-it-like-it-is Learning for Life, readers will learn about:• Why America’s existing educational models are failing employees and employers• The shift in content knowledge toward new ways of thinking and working• Policies and programs that are working in the US and abroad• Recommendations for overhauling our education and training infrastructure and building partnerships between providers and employersThe stakes are too important for America to continue falling behind in its education. But the good news is, the pathways to get us back to the top are there ahead of us. Learning for Life points the way forward.

United by the belief that the most significant factor in shaping the minds of young people is the cultural setting in which learning takes place, the twenty eminent contributors to this volume present new thinking on education across the boundaries of school, home, work and community.

This book offers a collection of architecture and interiors that support progressive models of acquiring knowledge. It features new interpretations of kindergartens, schools, universities, libraries and educational centres, along with architecturally innovative offices, conference rooms and laboratories.

A visionary guide for the future of learning and work Long Life Learning: Preparing for Jobs That Don’t Even Exist Yet offers readers a fascinating glimpse into a near-future where careers last 100 years, and education lasts a lifetime. The book makes the case that learners of the future are going to repeatedly seek out educational opportunities throughout the course of their working lives — which will no longer have a beginning, middle, and end. Long Life Learning focuses on the disruptive and burgeoning innovations that are laying the foundation for a new learning model that includes clear navigation, wraparound and funding supports, targeted education, and clear connections to more transparent hiring processes. Written by the former chief innovation officer of Strada Education Network’s Institute for the Future of Work, the book examines: How will a dramatically extended lifespan affect our careers? How will more time in the workforce shape our educational demands? Will a four-year degree earned at the start of a 100-year career adequately prepare us for the challenges ahead? Perfect for anyone with an interest in the future of education and Clayton Christensen’s theories of disruptive innovation, Long Life Learning provides an invaluable glimpse into a future that many of us have not even begun to imagine.

Building on her enormously popular book, Bringing Reggio Emilia Home, Louise Cadwell helps American educators understand what it means to use ideas from the Reggio Approach in their classrooms. In new and dynamic ways, Cadwell once again takes readers inside the day-to-day practice of a group of early childhood educators. This time she describes the growth and evolution of the work in the St. Louis Reggio Collaborative over the past 10 years.

This brand new text breaks the mould of books on the subject of play currently on the market. It explores, debates and further develops the theory of play, relating cutting-edge theory to examples of practice, taken from a broad range of multi-disciplinary perspectives. Each author brings their own perspective to the subject, based on rich and diverse experience, examining play-based activities from a wide variety of settings: the classroom, the playground, the home and local community. Each chapter is illustrated throughout with observation notes, case studies, interviews and discussions, encouraging you not only to critically evaluate current research but to reflect on ways in which you could develop and improve your own practice. Perspectives on Play will be an invaluable resource for any student studying within childhood studies, playwork programmes or training to teach at early years or primary level. The book is also ideal for early years, primary and play practitioners.

I don't know how to do that yet, but I will learn. The purpose of Learning Life is to empower learning. The book takes a holistic approach to the goals of academic and personal achievement, integrating cross-disciplinary understandings from the fields of neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, and ancient mind-body traditions, to support greater life mastery. Learning is a process of going from not knowing to knowing, from not being able to do to being able to do. Learning Life provides a specific strategy to turn possibilities into realities. Written with humor, based on sound research and best practices, the book shows how to make the process of learning and growth more efficient, more effective, and more fun. As with more conventional works on achievement, this book covers information on academic skills, time management, financial planning, and related topics. More importantly, however, it integrates unique elements, rooted in evidence-based research, to enhance learner self-efficacy and positive expectancy for success (the belief that you can succeed if you try). The book builds on three foundation practices - establishing clear goals, building mindful awareness, and focusing on quality. These foundations are a central aspect of the text, an approach to learning developed over years of working with many students in diverse contexts. The text also emphasizes self-reflection, problem solving, use of data and feedback, and making constructive change in all areas of life. It is about building an effective life. Ultimately the information and skills are applied in an active research format, based on a learning-by-doing orientation, which focuses on a personal change process related to academic/life success. Taken together the book's 18 chapters provide the basis for effective learning, improved life skills, and targeted applications in the pursuit of educational objectives, better health, career goals, improved relationships, and a meaningful life. The book is engaging, readable, evidence-based, classroom tested, and effective. It is an invaluable resource for anyone who wants to build a successful life, live with greater happiness, and cultivate even more gifts to give to the world.