ACE connects!: building pathways to education, employment and community engagement: ACE Longitudinal Study - 2005 survey: final report

This report presents the key findings of the second stage of a three year longitudinal study of learners in adult and community education (ACE), commissioned by the Victorian Department of Education & Training on behalf of the Adult, Community and Further Education (ACFE) Board. The first stage (report indexed at TD/TNC 83.120), undertaken in 2004, surveyed a cross-section of 3,047 ACE participants to establish demographic data, employment status, educational background, their expectations and rationale for being in ACE, the quality of their learning experience, and aspirations for the future. The proposed outcomes of the longitudinal study include the: identification of learners in ACE and their pathways over a three year period to training, further education and employment as a result of their participation in ACE; identification of groups of learners not as yet reached, and suggested strategies for encouraging their engagement with the ACE sector; identification of the ACE contribution to community-building through learning and a measure of this benefit; suggested strategies for expanding the community benefit of ACE through partnerships, capacity building and innovative approaches to program delivery; identification of the distinctive characteristics of ACE that lead to successful outcomes for learners; and identification of any systemic barriers that may limit the capacity of ACE to reach groups of learners not as yet reached and strategies for addressing these barriers. The second stage involved follow-up telephone interviews with 846 participants surveyed in the first stage, approximately one year after the initial contact. This represented 63 per cent of original participants who had agreed to be re-contacted in 2005. Study and work pathways undertaken by the cohort from 2004 to 2005 are a clear indication of the capacity of the ACE sector to engage learners and connect them to further study, employment and engagement in their local community. The longer-term impact of their experiences in the ACE sector will be further explored during the third stage when the cohort is surveyed in 2006. Ninety-five per cent of the 2005 survey cohort have agreed to participate in this final stage.

The report from the third stage of the study is indexed at TD/TNC 87.575.

This report presents the key findings of the second stage of a three year longitudinal study of learners in adult and community education (ACE), commissioned by the Victorian Department of Education & Training on behalf of the Adult, Community and Further Education (ACFE) Board. The first stage (report indexed at TD/TNC 83.120), undertaken in 2004, surveyed a cross-section of 3,047 ACE participants to establish demographic data, employment status, educational background, their expectations and rationale for being in ACE, the quality of their learning experience, and aspirations for ...  [+] Show more