Adult Education: Priority Areas for Investment and Development

In Ireland a key policy framework for adult and community education was published in the White paper on Adult Education, Learning for Life 2000. The paper is based on three key principles, Equality, Interculturalism and Lifelong Learning as a systemic approach. These core principles underpin policy development and funding:-

A systemic Approach recognises that the interfaces between the different levels of education provision, and the quality of early learning have a critical influence on learners motivation and ability to access and progress in adult education and training. This requires that educational policies must be designed to embrace the life cycle, reflect the multiplicity of learning sites, both formal and informal and provide for appropriate supports such as guidance, counselling and childcare, and for mechanisms to assess learning independent of the context in which it occurs.

Equality of access, participation and outcome for participants in adult learning must be a core principle, with pro-active strategies to erase barriers arising from differences of socio-economic status, gender, ethnicity and disability. Targeting investment at those most at risk is a key priority in promoting an inclusive society.

The need to frame policy and practice in the context of serving a diverse population with the development of curricula, training, materials, modes of delivery and assessment which reflect this diversity must be the norm. this involves not only combating racism and ensuring participation of immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers in education but also the inclusion of minority groups such as travellers, people with disabilities, older adults, women, isolated rural men for example.

Key Messages

·         Measures to improve levels of education and training among adults with a view to growing the economy and creating a skilled labour force should be supported

·         Measures to promote adult education and training in support of an inclusive and cohesive society and the fostering of active citizenship should be supported

·         Spending on adult education as a percentage of the overall education budget, should be increased from its current level of approximately 2% to at least 10% going forward, to reflect the scale and impact of the sector

Coordination and Direction of Adult Education

Political and executive leadership is required to drive and develop the adult education agenda coherently. Coordinating structures are needed to ensure the development of adult education in line with the changing needs of society and the economy. Therefore:

· A centralised unit or council at national level, which would oversee and coordinate developments in adult education, is urgently needed. This Council would foster inter-agency work and collaboration among provider organisations in a diverse sector. In Ireland such a body, the National Adult Learning Council (NALC), was set up in 2002 but subsequently suspended. This has created an enormous gap in the leadership and direction of adult education. As a result of the lack of co-ordinating structures programmes have developed in a parallel rather than in an integrated way resulting in a lack of coherent policy development and cross-departmental communication and implementation of policies

· Local coordinating structures are also required to oversee developments in adult education at local level and to engage all relevant stakeholders

Professional Development and Adult Education

The White Paper recognised the need for staff and career development within adult education. Mechanisms to achieve progress in this area were recommended. These included
· An inter-agency working group to examine the issue of qualifications for practitioners in the adult education sector and to address any training needs
· A forum for practitioners in adult education, to encourage peer support and the sharing of good practice and innovation in the field

Neither of these structures has been established, and action should be taken to ensure that these or similar structures are introduced in the immediate future. This will facilitate the ongoing development of a professional and efficient body of adult education practitioners.

Work-based Learning

Work-based learning initiatives need to be expanded as a priority. As we strive to create a learning economy, with ever more highly skilled jobs, more and more individuals need to access education opportunities through their work. In the context of full-employment:

· A funding model for the support of workers into education and training should be developed. That model should involve cooperation between the state, employers, trade unions and the individuals themselves, as all four parties will be ultimate beneficiaries

· Currently adults who study in higher education on part-time or modular basis have to pay full fees while traditional full time students do not, Parity of esteem need to be given to part-time learners who are almost always adults. Waiving fees for this group means they could access learning while, at the same time, remaining active in the workforce

· Ireland is one of the only countries in the EU 15 where paid educational leave is not a statutory entitlement. Leave is at the discretion of employers. This situation should be changed to further encourage employees to take up educational opportunities. Employers and the economy as a whole would benefit from this approach in the medium to long term

Adult Literacy

The 1997 International Literacy Survey found that 500,000 Irish adults had the lowest level of literacy, about 25% of our adult population. Investment in a National Adult Literacy Programme has since increased substantially. However according to the National Adult Literacy Agency, the Literacy Programme reaches only about 6% of the overall target group. AONTAS recommends that-

· A review of the National Adult Literacy Programme should be carried out to assess the impact of spending to date and assess current literacy needs among the adult population

· Resources to the Adult Literacy Programme should be substantially increased

· Due to our recent in-migration levels, Ireland s literacy service now copes with large numbers of non-nationals seeking to learn the English language. Spending on ESOL, or English for Speakers of Other Languages, now accounts for a large proportion of the Adult Literacy budget. Yet no additional funding has been allocated to the National Adult Literacy Programme to support this work and so the budget is spread more and more thinly. ESOL provision, critical to supporting both the Irish economy and society, must be properly developed and resourced in the immediate future

Education in the Community

Many adult education opportunities at local level are provided by community and voluntary groups. These groups offer supportive, non-formal routes back into education and the workforce to the most disadvantaged and poorly educated in society. AONTAS estimates that 30,000 to 40,000 people participate in community-based education initiatives. In the interests of supporting this valuable work and allowing it to expand and develop, we seek:

· Multi-annual funding for community development groups and other voluntary education groups, to encourage stability for learners and facilitate longer-term planning

· Integration of supports for adult learners into all programme funds allocated to local groups e.g. childcare and transport costs. These costs pose considerable barriers to potential learners and are not currently incorporated into all education programme funds

· Dedicated funding for women s community education, in recognition of its unique role in promoting three agendas; namely lifelong learning, social inclusion and gender equality

Inayatullah
President PACADE
From Pakistan

I have seen the observations relating to the last part of the CONFINTEA Seminar. My general comments are as follows:

As legislation about literacy and adult education is seldom effectively implemented for various reasons including lack of political will and low priority, it should be constructive for someone conversant with the subject to identify successful cases in some of the developing countries so that lessons learnt are applied with modification keeping in view the local realities. Compulsory primary education for instance can be spread expeditiously if some how is successfully backed by appropriate legislation. For various reasons including the difficulty in penalizing parents such legislation failed to achieve the desired results. As for financing adult literacy / adult education, while plans are prepared and even approved by the government, the allocations fall seriously short of the requirements.

There is need for persistent advocacy exercises using interalia, the electronic media to keep on influencing the decision makers and leading stakeholders. There is even the need for holding meetings and discussions on the apparently obvious themes of WHY ADULT LITERACY AND ADULT LEARNING? It is also desirable to take steps for capacity building of professionals involved in organizing literacy programmes as also those imparting literacy at local levels. In this connection there is a definite need for giving orientation to adult education trainers as pointed out by Mr. Bhola in his contribution.

Thanking you for the opportunity.

High Regards,

Yours sincerely

Programme