That’s the gap. And at the EAEA Annual Conference in Leipzig on June 4th, a group of educators, learners, and policy actors came together to do something about it, in a workshop facilitated by Angeliki Giannakopoulou, EAEA and Dearbhail Lawless, AONTAS.
The workshop, part of the ENHANCE Erasmus+ project, focused on more than showcasing good practice. It became a working space where that unspoken imbalance—the distance between learning about empowerment and actually redistributing power—was brought to the surface.
Participants quickly identified how learners’ voices are often filtered through institutional priorities. Even when space is made to “listen,” decisions are still taken elsewhere. As one participant put it, “We ask for opinions, then go on with the same plans.” The real challenge is not to make learners speak more,but to ensure they co-create the systems that govern their learning.
Throughout the session, participants from across Europe shared practices where learners had become decision-makers—sometimes accidentally, sometimes deliberately. Cooking classes that turned into peer-led learning spaces. Migrant groups shaping their own language learning curricula. Learner ambassadors who had moved from the classroom to the boardroom. Self-organised political manifestations where silence and voice are performing interlinked. What connected these stories was a simple principle: when learners are treated as knowledge-holders, systems change.
Jason, a learner and educator from the UK, brought this message home. “I see the importance of reaching out as the core of what we need as learners”, he said. “We need spaces where people can actually listen to the learners, see the potential, recommend next steps and learning paths.”
He advocated for Recognition of Prior Learning not as a bureaucratic tool, but as a justice issue. “Formal education still belongs to the elite,” he noted, “and that has to change. Education should bring communities together, not keep people out.”
By the end of the workshop, the participants, using the ENHANCE Methodology, designed a roadmap of concrete actions that had taken shape—not as a policy drafted in Brussels, but as one built with coloured markers, shared commitments, and deep reflection. Participants committed to:
- Leading direct democratic approaches of adult learning institutions
- Establishing peer-led learning models, where teachers and learners co-create content
- Normalising feedback mechanisms that lead to actual change, not just consultation
- Ensuring safe, relational learning spaces that foster trust and solidarity
- Resourcing long-term learner engagement through outreach, not just short-term participation
The participants then created a set of videos of their commitment to the voice of the learner, which will soon be published by the ENHANCE consortium. Personal commitment is important, diverse and context-specific, but in its essence is the heart of action!
What was built that day isn’t just a workshop outcome – it’s a living part of the ENHANCE journey, which aims to amplify adult learners’ voices at every level: local, organisational, national, and European. The commitments made in Leipzig feed directly into ENHANCE’s roadmap for policy and practice, offering a model for how learner agency can move from idea to implementation.
In a time when adult education can provide an outlet for collective action and grassroots change, this workshop served as a reminder: the most radical thing we can do is make space – and give it away.
Explore the ENHANCE roadmap and access tools to support learner voice via this link.
In accordance with GDPR, we have obtained written consent from all participants for the use of their photos.
Text: Angeliki GiannakopoulouPhotos: Angeliki Giannakopoulou, EAEA