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This report presents the findings of the 2001 National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) survey on adult participation in learning. It shows, that for the first time in 20 years, there has been a marked increase in participation. The survey provides information on participation, trends in participation and future intentions to learn by gender, social class, age, employment and region as well as access to the Internet. Show less

This report continues a series of surveys on adult participation in learning in the UK. Drawing on the responses of 5000 adults aged 17 and over, the report identifies key indicators of participation in learning. It provides information on how adults spend their leisure time; what adults are learning about; their sources of information about learning, the location and length of learning; the role of qualifications; motivations and outcomes of learning; barriers to learning; and the information divide. The 2002 survey reveals a high degree of stability with the surveys undertaken in 1996 (report indexed at TD/TNC 63.411) and in 1999 (report indexed at TD/TNC 65.101). It confirms that the UK still has an enormous job to do to involve all its citizens in the learning society and that the learning divide between the learning-rich and the learning-poor continues to exist. Trend data is provided to show how patterns of participation have changed over time as well as offering a benchmark against which future changes can be measured.

Volume two provides a collection of essays on issues raised by the survey. Show less

Used appropriately, ICT has the potential to engage learners and to make the learning experience more interesting and motivating. This guide is aimed at organisers and practitioners working in adult and community learning, but its applicability extends to other sites of adult learning. It looks at how ICT can be used to reach adults who might not normally engage in formal learning courses. Examples are given of how courses can be enhanced by the use of ICT and thus appeal to a wider range of audiences by, for example, using hobbies and interests as a 'hook' into learning. Case studies from recent ICT initiatives focussing on widening participation illustrate practical steps in utilising ICT to draw in new learners.

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This collection of essays examines some of the issues arising from the NIACE Adult Learners’ Survey 2002. Drawing on the responses of 5000 adults aged 17 and over, the survey identifies key indicators of participation in learning in the UK. The survey data is reported in ‘Adult learning and social division: a persistent pattern: volume 1’ (indexed at TD/TNC 74.137). The essays are: Research agendas: present and future / Naomi Sargant; Participating in adult learning: comparing the sources and applying the results / Steve Leman; The benefits of learning / Tom Schuller; Social capital and lifelong learning: survey findings on the relationship between sociability and participation / John Field; Lifelong learning trajectories in Wales: results of the NIACE Adult Learners’ Survey 2002 / Stephen Gorard; Changing and persisting patterns: the public and lifelong learning in Scotland / Maria Slowey; Learning in adult life in Northern Ireland: the turning of the tide? / John Field; Match or mismatch: do the findings reflect the qualitative evidence? / Veronica McGivney. Show less

This issue was published during the 18th Adult Learners’ Week and celebrates the achievements of some of the learners that received awards. Two projects, winners of group awards, and an individual award winner are highlighted. The issue also reflects on the outcomes of the 2009 NIACE survey of adult participation in learning. Articles about the award winners are: ‘Adult learning matters’ by Rachel Thomson (p. 8-10), which points out that the original funding proposal for Adult Learners’ Week emphasised the need to overcome the indifference towards education and training of many adults in the UK but that, 18 years on, campaigns such as these still have a critical role to play in engaging more and different adults; ‘There’s light at the end of the tunnel’ (p. 11-13) describes how a volunteer program run jointly by the Manchester Museum and Imperial War Museum North, provides learners with skills, confidence and experience they can transfer into their lives and future employment; ‘Suddenly, I had a little bit of hope’ by Lucy Bryson (p. 14-17) tells of a young woman’s involvement in a project that builds trust and responsibility in young people by teaching them to work with animals and how it has transformed her life; ‘It opens doors you thought were closed’ (p. 18-21) describes a decade of work by Liverpool University’s Go Higher program, which helps adults with few or no formal qualifications gain access to university level study. Other articles are: ‘If at first you don’t succeed …’ by Alan Tuckett and Fiona Aldridge (p. 22-25) in which the results of the 2009 NIACE survey of adult participation in learning are examined. Adult participation in learning has clear benefits, to individuals, to communities and to the economy, but, with the learning gap between the educational haves and have-nots widening, it remains a minority activity among adults in the UK; ‘A question of priorities’ by Ian Ground (p. 26-27) discusses the closure of university public programs across England, a direct result of a government decision to withdraw funding from students studying for a qualification at an equivalent or lower level than one they already have, and suggesting that this signifies the end of lifelong learning as an object of mainstream government policy; ‘Getting our hands on history’ by Cherry Heinrich and Cynthia Brown (p. 28-29) outlines how a class of adult learners researched and wrote the history of the Leicester branch of the Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) to mark its 100th anniversary; ‘Never too old?’ by Jay Derrick (p. 30-31) writes that, although policy objectives for older people are well aligned across government agencies, in practice their needs are almost always overshadowed by those of other groups. Show less

This publication reports on a UK national survey of adult participation in formal and informal education, looking at regional, class and gender differences in take-up and demand of post-school education. The survey, undertaken in 1990, compares participation rates in London with the rest of the country and tests the question, 'Does public investment in adult learning foster a learning culture?' Some of the survey findings are: one in 10 adults are engaged in some form of studying; more men than women were engaged in current or recent study; the overall proportion studying now or recently has increased since 1980, with the proportion of men studying increasing more than that of women; younger adults dominate the formal system, both in education and training; there are significant disparities in participation in different regions of the country; the major factor affecting participation is social class; in Inner London, participation is higher among unskilled manual workers, but lower among skilled manual workers; women are particularly dependent on local, part-time learning opportunities and have traditionally been the greatest users of adult education, often as a means of re-entry to vocational opportunities; educational institutions remain the main venue for adult students, although there is increased interest and willingness to engage in home-based learning; the increase in the use of open learning for training in industry is motivated not just by the economy and effectiveness of its delivery, but by the flexibility it provides to learners and employers; people as learners do not easily differentiate between what is vocational and what is non-vocational; and finance is the main barrier to participation. Includes references and appendices. Show less

This report presents the findings of the 2002 National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) adult learning survey undertaken to coincide with Adult Learners’ Week 2002. The survey involved interviews with 4896 adults over the age of 17 years throughout the United Kingdom (UK). The findings indicate that participation has declined since 2001 although there is an overall trend of rising participation over the last six years. Young people participate in greater numbers than older people and those in employment are more likely to have access to learning than those who are unemployed. Adults in professional and managerial groups are more likely to participate in learning activities than the poorest, least skilled and retired. Although some progress has been made to close the gap between the ‘learning-haves’ and the ‘learning-have-nots’, the findings suggest that there is a need for sustained policies to stimulate the demand for learning if a learning society for all citizens is to be created. The report provides tables containing survey outcomes for participation in learning, future intentions of participation, participation in learning by region and nation, by age group, gender and social class, by employment status, the terminal age of education, access to the Internet, what people study and where people go for advice on their learning activities. Show less

This report evaluates 283 projects funded through the Basic Skills and ESOL (English for speakers of other languages) in Local Communities Initiatives in the UK. The aims of the evaluation were to highlight and disseminate examples of good practice, particularly related to the delivery of basic skills and ESOL learning opportunities; to see whether and how projects have encouraged adults with literacy and numeracy and ESOL needs to engage with basic skills provision; and to analyse the opportunities for learners to contribute to the development and evaluation of the projects in which they took part. The results of the study showed that over 12,500 learners were recruited, of whom most were new learners, and that the majority of learners felt that they had made progress and increased their confidence in learning. Of the projects that were most successful, it was found that effective partnerships between providers and local community groups was a key factor in success. A range of recommendations is given on topics such as provision for asylum seekers, the continuing encouragement of learners, and the need for flexible funding arrangements. Show less

This year's [National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (England and Wales)] NIACE adult participation survey shows a sea change. After years of falling numbers, and an ever-widening gulf between the learning-rich and the learning-poor, there has been an upturn in the proportion of adults engaged in learning and in the number expecting to take part in the future. Current or recent adult participation in learning has risen to the highest level for a decade. Whilst this survey maps the continuing divide between people who have enjoyed the benefits of a good initial education and those who left education with little to show, there is evidence of a significant shift, most strikingly for working-class adults, and those who have had least benefit from learning to date. Is this the beginning of the Learning Revolution heralded in the government White Paper of last year? At the very least there has been a statistically significant shift in participation in learning of some kind, formal or informal, online or in the classroom or the workbench; there has also been a shift in people's plans to take up learning. As long as the learning divide persists this cannot be the Revolution; but it is definitely a change for the better. This survey continues the series documenting adult participation in learning in the UK. Using responses of around 5,000 adults, it offers key findings, breaking down trends in participation and future intentions to learn by gender, socio-economic class, age, employment and the regions. It provides up-to-date data as well as a valuable means for comparison over time. For the first time it includes a section on attitudes to learning.

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This research report presents the findings of a survey of embedded information, advice and guidance (IAG) provision by providers to adults in three sub-sectors: further education (FE), adult and community learning (ACL) and work-based learning (WBL). In addition to recommending actions to various interested parties, the report contains case studies of good practice from each of the three sectors.

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