be a readiness. It is very difficult often to judge that when you have only ever worked in a particular area.
It seems the issue facing those of us concerned with adult learning in Wales is that it takes a while for the evidence to penetrate, and with each new minister wishing to ‘make an impact’ quickly, the desire for quick and popular wins is inevitable. The challenge has never been greater. The political landscape of Wales is likely to change radically over the coming years and by the time of the next Assembly elections in 2011, there will be a new government in Westminster, whoever wins the election. Perhaps even more
significantly, many
Assembly Members who have been in Cardiff Bay since the founding of the National Assembly for Wales are retiring, or moving on to new challenges. The next term of the National Assembly will also be the last in which Wales receives European funding, which currently underpins huge aspects of the Assembly Government’s policies (including education, learning and skills). With new challenges, there are also new opportunities. Wales still has a fledgling civil society, and those of us interested in adult learning have the opportunity to forge new partnerships and alliances. We must continue to work with policymakers in government and across the political spectrum, recognising that the electoral system in Wales is seldom likely
to deliver majority government. We also need to make better use of what Rhodri Morgan calls the ‘devolution dividend’, that is the ability of one country being able to learn from another, using difference in a positive way. If themes such as transparency, engage- ment, collaboration and social justice are to remain the founding principles of devolved governance in Wales we must emphasise where the reality of delivery differs from the rhetoric. Perhaps by reasserting those founding principles, particularly social justice, we can get inside the zone of proximal development of Welsh policymakers.
Cerys Furlong is Programme Director, NIACE Dysgu Cymru
APRIL 2010 ADULTS LEARNING 11
Richard Olivier
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