Author(s):
Correia, Ana Maria Ramalho 
; Sarmento, Anabela Mesquita Teixeira
Date: 2003
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.22/560
Origin: Repositório Científico do Instituto Politécnico do Porto
Subject(s): LIHE project; Higher education
Description
Project LIHE: the Portuguese Case. ESREA Fourth Access Network
Conference – “Equity, Access and Participation: Research, Policy and Practice”. Edinburgh (Scotland),
11 – 13 December, 2003. The promotion of a knowledge-based society needs, on one hand, technological
infrastructure and, on the other hand, a workforce with the necessary skills,
knowledge and competences, supported by a well-structured initial education and
by a continuous learning program. In the last years, Universities have opened
their doors to all citizens, regardless of their status or origin, if they have the
capacity to benefit from the educational services on offer. This strategy has
allowed mature students to enter (or re-enter) the formal higher education
system. Although these students may possess a richness of experience, they can
also have difficulty in adapting to the pedagogical approaches of learning and
teaching and their attitudes and problems are not necessarily the same as those
of traditional students. It is in this context that the project LIHE – Learning in
Higher Education emerges. In this paper, the background of the project and the
most relevant literature for the subject are briefly described. It is followed by a
presentation of the project aims, objectives and methodological approaches. The
Portuguese case is introduced, together with the results of questionnaires and
interviews. Some preliminary conclusions are outlined. Finally, avenues of future
research are discussed
