Lifelong learning is now a very common term in our society. As a phrase, it rolls off the tongue as something inherently good and worthy. However, as we scratch the surface of the meaning of lifelong learning, we can see that it can mean different things for different people and as a term it is often misunderstood.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) defines 4 pillars of Lifelong learning. They are; learning to know, learning to do, learning to be and learning to live together. They are lifelong in that it is encouraged that we seek to develop these pillars across our whole life. The clear gap in this these 4 pillars is that it does not indicate the what we are knowing or the why we are knowing it. The definition lacks direction or a goal (telos).

Here at GPCC our telos, our big goal is to be a College that is ‘educating for wisdom’. As our own Doctor Dowson articulates, our distinctive is that, in Christ and through the Holy Spirit Christians have special access to all the treasures of wisdom, understanding and knowledge. Hence, Christian Education – at GPCC - is in a privileged position with respect to the getting of wisdom.

The getting of wisdom is very much a lifelong endeavour, so in our learner profile we define lifelong learning as; We are designed for on-going discovery of ourselves, others, the world and the Creator.

The aim of lifelong learning is clearly a great one, the next question is around the how of lifelong learning. How does one become a lifelong learner and what are the skills that are required? There is huge list of what people believe is required and a growing abundance of documents and definition.

Here at GPCC we are beginning a journey of shaping lifelong learning around several factors. They are around our environment to act, our will to act and our power to act.

The environment to act refers to the College and it being a place of rich learning challenges and opportunities.

The will to act refers to a student mindset and disposition toward learning. Broadly it is about whether students embrace opportunities to act and have a growth mindset, or if they tend to avoid opportunities to act and have self-limiting or fixed mindsets.

Finally, there is the power to act. This refers to the skills students need to meet the learning challenges before them. This is not simply the ability to show grit or determination. Rather it refers to a set of skills such as thinking about thinking (metacognition), thinking flexibly, responding with wonderment and awe, applying past knowledge to new situations and managing impulsivity, to name a few. These skills can be taught and improved over time and will lead to the lifelong virtues of humility, persistence and wisdom.

Joel van Bentum
Principal