The emergence of ‘knowledge-based economy (KBE)' has had a substantial impact on the filed of education. Since the advent of KBE, many assert: 1) traditional education per se would become a knowledge business; 2) learning is more likely a part of work rather than being separated. In addition, in KBE, creativity is vital to sustaining competitive edge of a state as well as an individual. As the life cycle of knowledge is shortened, education becomes aquintessential source for creation and innovation of knowledge. Furthermore, the premise that knowledge is characterized as ‘flow', no longer ‘stock', indicates that school has to foster and nurture a ‘knowledge explorer'.
Over the past decades, the efforts to imbue a paradigm shift in schooling have been made to accompany with KBE. International organizations such as World Back and Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have laid out and launched a series of policies and projects that cultivate and allocate human resources and social capital. We have grown up with the understanding, as seen in the early activities of United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), that the ideal of lifelong education goes beyond curriculum development, class system, and so on. Rather, lifelong education aims at recognizing the active, clientele-oriented perspective of learning, cutting the traditional, provider-oriented perspective.
As their world changes, higher education institutions(HEs) are under increasing pressure to change their existing system and to embrace the new notion of KBE. HEs in principle are at the forefront of KBE. The ideal type of HE should provide models for KBE to emulate and elaborate such as learning organization. However, some criticize that there are many societal and organizational obstacles that prohibit HEs to adapt to and pro-act systemically in the ever changing environment. This study draws attention to the changing roles, functions, and utilities of HEs. Based upon literature review and case studies, in order to further lifelong education, this study presents guidelines as follow: 1) HEs value diversity, openness, and accessibility, 2) HEs extend and diffuse the notion of 'learning organization', 3) HEs embrace entrepreneurship and encourage collaborative connection of School-to-Work, 4) HEs shift their educational perspectives from pedagogy to andragogy.
In order to successfully implement the aforementioned guidelines, this study suggests as follow:
1) introducing ‘weekend class' for adult learners, 2) facilitating 'neighbor campus that HEs provide its educational services based on local needs and demands, 3) extending financial aid for adult learners, 4) connecting training and development programs at workplace with license/diploma, 5) promoting ‘family support' programs at workplace, 6) adapting the idea of lifelong education to traditional schooling.