ABSTRACT
Since the m id 1980s , the no t ion o f learnin g has become increasingl y i m p o r-
tant to pol icy debate the w o r ld over . T h is has been tru e at vi r tual ly al l levels of
po l i cy-making . A t the supranationa l level , th e Europea n U n i o n declare d
1996 t o be 'Europea n Yea r o f L i fe long Learning ' and issued a major W h i t e
Paper entitle d Teaching and Learning: Towards the Learning Society. T he U n i t ed
K i n g d o m governmen t issue d its o wn Lifetime Learning-A Consultation Docu-
ment at m u ch the same t ime. In the commerc ial and business sector , manage -
ment literatur e ha s given increasing emphasis t o the importance o f learning
(eg Senge 1990) . F or example, m u ch o f the literatur e on total quali ty manage -
ment, i nc lud in g that associate d w i t h I S O 900 0 (BS5750) , emphasizes feed -
back system s an d 'organizational learning' .
