Job profiles in German adult education are manifold, and the requirements for engaging in professional activity are only minimally regulated by the state. It is primarily the providers in adult education who decide on access to the professional field and influence the historical development of job profiles. The article presents findings from a…

Literature on returns to education and labour market outcomes has been increasingly focusing on skill missmatch with regard to migrants' integration and adaptation processes. Researchers have studied the efficacy of official validation of prior skills as well as participation in training and vocational programmes as valid resources to expand…

This book examines access, lifelong learning and education for all, which have been policy preoccupations in all countries for more than half a century, but have been overlaid and pushed aside by the development of mass higher education. The authors examine what has been achieved, what lessons have been learnt and what still remains to be done,…

The process of migration to a new country brings with it a host of challenges, and therefore also learning needs. Some countries have systems in place to facilitate the transition of migrants into society, often including adult education programs. Those programs, however, cannot be effective if blithely designed in ignorance of the…

Apprenticeships for adults are one of the policy solutions to the need for supporting adults willing to train, while broadening the skills base of the working population across Europe. According to Cedefop estimates, there are around 128 million adults with potential for upskilling or reskilling in the European Union (EU). EU Member States have…

Concise, clear and comprehensive snapshots of vocational education and training systems in EU, Iceland and Norway: this is what the Cedefop Spotlight on VET series offers. Building on individual country Spotlights, this publication provides an overview of VET systems with their distinctive qualities, such as main accession and progression routes…

Vocational education and training (VET) in Germany is based on close cooperation between the State, companies and social partners. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is responsible for general VET policy issues and has a coordinating role for all training occupations. The BMBF works closely with the Federal Institute for…

In this paper, the authors seek to disentangle what they see as contradictory uses of the term "professionalisation" with reference to adult educator development and training (AEDT). They set out to distinguish "professionalisation" from "professionalism," and to identify the locus of control of AEDT in Germany, the…

This report is the result of an explorative study, carried out at a time when interest in apprenticeship for adults was on the rise and research and evidence on the topic was scarce and fragmented. It has explored the topic from a conceptual and theoretical point of view, reviewing relevant existing research. It has also considered a practical…

Lifelong learning is becoming increasingly important in today's societies. Individuals need to develop their skills through training in order to be successfully integrated in the labor market. We use data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies to investigate gender differences in training across 12 countries. We…

In Germany and Denmark, the systems of further education and career guidance are well developed, offering a wide range of services and learning opportunities for targeted, specific and also general skills development. Based on an empirical study with mid-career individuals in both countries, the article investigates how the different systems…

Adult education institutions face a variety of challenges in "migration societies". This paper first analyses the marginal adoption of the topic by researchers in a German-speaking context and points out the dominance of a target group approach in the past. To open up alternative perspectives, I will discuss challenges for adult…

Understanding today's Vocational Education and Training (VET) systems requires a comprehension of the rise and development, i.e. of the foundations of topical VET. This book provides a comparative view of its development in Europe. The contributions of renowned authors give insight into conceptual questions, cases, and challenges in this field.

This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the link between age and proficiency in information-processing skills, based on information drawn from the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC). The data reveal significant age-related differences in proficiencies, strongly suggesting that proficiency tends to "naturally" decline with age. Age…

"Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators" is the authoritative source for information on the state of education around the world. It provides data on the structure, finances and performance of education systems in the 35 OECD and a number of partner countries. With more than 100 charts and tables, Education at a Glance 2018 imparts key…