Factors effecting lifelong learning according to faculty: Anadolu University case

Today, the rapid production of information which increases the momentum of changing in all areas of life, leads to increase in human' need of learning. This situation necessitated that learning be continued lifelong. Lifelong learning approach, besides being important for individuals of all ages, is an obligation for academicians in order to keep up with constantly evolving and changing times and follow the developments in their fields to keep themselves up to date in professional sense. Education faculties where teachers are trained have important role to make lifelong learning sense generalize in population. In carrying out this mission, it is necessary to study the current level of lifelong characteristics of faculty members in education faculties to give more effective support and to make them more active in lifelong learning. The purpose of the current study is to investigate faculty members' thoughts and characteristics regarding lifelong learning. The research has been designed as exploratory sequential mix design. Within the scope of mix research design, qualitative phase of the study designed with phenomenology, quantitative phase of the study designed with survey research. At the qualitative phase of this study, research sampling consisted of 65 academicians who are professors, associate professors, asistant professors and research assitants from 17 faculties of Anadolu University in fall term of 2014-2015 education year. These participants have been selected using purposive sampling method according to the proportional distribution of faculty members in the universe of study. At the quantitative phase of current study, the entire universe of study have been reached and no sampling method has not been used. So the participants of this phase of research is consisted of 235 academicians who are professors, associate professors, asistant professors and research assitants from Education Faculty of Anadolu University in spring term of 2014-2015 education year. At the qualitative phase of current research, researcher designed semi-structured interview form and written-interview form to collect qualitative data. Collected data was analyzed using content analysis. Based on the themes and codes in which analysis result achieved, factors which effect faculty members' lifelong learning characteristics are determined. At the quantitative phase of study, in line with the qualitative findings obtained in the first stage, a questionnaire form which has items about the factors which effect faculty members's lifelong learning abilities, developed by researcher. At the end of the qualitative phase of study, it was found that faculty members participated in professional activities, social activities and personal development activities as lifelong learning activities. Hovewer, academicians stated that they encounter some problems to participate in lifelong learning activities. It is found that these problems have personal, professional, institutional, social aspects and also they are originated from the structure of academic system, technology, bureaucracy and inadequate facilities. Faculty members stated that lifelong learning is important for them in personal, professional and social ways. However, the participants identified the different aspects of lifelong learning. The participants of this research stated that both individual and environmental factors are effective on faculty members' lifelong learning characteristics. Among individual factors, personal, economic, professional and cultural characteristics of faculty members were determined as effective factors in lifelong learning. Within the scope of environmental factors, the structure of academic system, institution, academic discipline, family, environment, community, financial resources, goverment management, information and communication technologies and media factors have been perceived effective factors in lifelong learning. At the end of the quantitative phase of study, it is found that lifelong learning questionnaire scores of participants vary according to their departments, age ranges, years of seniority, genders and academic titles. In addition, it is found that academicians of education faculty mainly participate in scientific and teaching activities in lifelong learning. These activities are also followed by sports activities, social activities, administrative activities and personal development activities respectively. At the end of the study, severel suggestions were put forward for implementation for higher education institutions and researchers Key Words: Lifelong Learning, Faculty Members, Academicians, Effective Factors in Life Long Learning