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There is often an assumption that adult learning can be all things to all people, that it can play a role that encompasses skills development for employment, re-skilling to face changing economic contexts, and enhancing social inclusion. More...

The challenge of effectively engaging disadvantaged individuals and groups in adult learning receives considerable attention. This reflects policy priorities around enhancing social inclusion and widening access to learning. For example, promoting equity and inclusion through supporting those facing disadvantage to access learning is an important feature of the European Commission’s new Erasmus + programme. More...

There are a number of ‘carrots and sticks’ one could use as an incentive for adults to start a learning trajectory, but before discussing some of them, first we need to understand what barriers adults face. If you understand the barriers, you can take measures to remove them and then adults will ‘automatically’ walk into the first learning institute they come across. This can sometimes be the line of reasoning applied by policy makers. More...

Whilst all Member States provide incentives to increase adult learning in the workplace, their application and focus varies greatly. The most common financial incentives for individuals are vouchers, loans, and tax incentives. Whilst loans are less popular in adult learning, vouchers are used more widely, reflecting a trend towards building a demand-led approach. More...

The quality of teaching and therefore of teachers is one of the most important factors shaping the quality of adult learning but it may also be one of the most intractable. In the last few years several reports have crystallised the issues at European level. More...

Many people might think that basic skills must be very “basic” to teach, mightn’t they? But actually teaching basic skills to adults is one of the most challenging areas of adult teaching. Those who teach basic skills to adults are often confronted with learners that have a ‘big distance’ to education and learning and are facing big challenges in being re-engaged with any learning processes. The learning progress and achievement of adults who lack basic skills is closely linked to the competences of teachers, who are not only teaching a subject, but also need to stimulate learners to learn, to empathize, to empower them and to increase self-esteem. More...

When thinking about what constitutes a quality learning environment for adults, it is useful to start with asking, what makes adult learning different from the learning of young people? 
Picture yourself as a young pupil in school and compare that with how you would like to be treated as an adult learner: as an adult, most probably you won’t accept the teacher reading from a textbook, or ask you whether you did your homework or follow the same pace as all your fellow pupils. More...

Digital technologies have the potential to have a major impact on curricula, pedagogy and assessment. The most dramatic inroads have arguably been made in higher education but possibilities exist to benefit from their use right across the diverse terrain of adult education. At the same time they raise important issues related to quality which need to be brought to the surface. More...

In launching the ‘Opening up Education’ initiative in September 2013, the Commission ambitiously stated that "open technology-based education will soon be a 'must have', not just a 'good-to-have', for all ages."
Initiatives linked to Opening up Education will be funded with support from Erasmus+, the EU programme for education, training, youth and sport, and Horizon 2020, the new research and innovation programme, as well as the EU structural funds. More...

Using digital technologies to support learning is increasingly common. From open access online courses to particular learning tools, technology is changing the way we learn and gain access to knowledge. 
Amongst commentators, the use of technology to support the engagement of disadvantaged or socially excluded learners is widely discussed. However, its use raises some issues that are sometimes downplayed or ignored. More...