Albert Tuijnman’s research while affiliated with Stockholm University and other places

This paper brings together some key concepts and proposes a conceptual framework for understanding and evaluating determinants of learning outcomes. The framework facilitates the process of theorizing and hypothesizing on the relationships and processes concerning lifelong learning as well as their antecedents and consequences. The specific aims are to outline a general approach for evaluating learning outcomes, identify data gaps within this approach, and discuss some of the implications for research and development. Along with more specific frameworks, this general approach can be used to guide policy relevant research in education. In particular, it can be used to inform efforts aimed at establishing a coherent information system on the impact of lifelong learning on both economy and society.

Judging by their literacy proficiency scores, Nordic countries stand out from others. Their consistently high scores are intriguing and make their populations interesting benchmarks for other countries that participated in the International Adult Literacy Survey. This article addresses the question of whether there are any specific ‘Nordic’ ways of planning and implementing adult education policies. Are there any features that define a common approach to adult education, one that sets the Nordic countries apart from other advanced regions in Europe and North America?Beyond the general pattern, specific sub-groups of the population are explored, and especially the groups ‘at-risk’, i.e. those that score low on literacy proficiency scales, have the least education, are old or unemployed. All Nordic countries are included in the analysis: Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden participated in the original IALS survey, whereas Iceland collected comparable data on adult education participation in a separate survey.That Nordic countries have a comparatively high level of participation in adult education is a fact that leaves no room for discussion. However, if not only the rate of participation but also volume is considered then the Nordic countries appear more similar to others. What sets the Nordic countries apart is the level of public support for adult education for the low-skilled population. More generally, it would seem that public support for disadvantaged groups is the main defining characteristic of Nordic countries.

The purpose of this paper is to describe some of the challenges that research and statistical systems are faced with in the education sector as a consequence of the decision taken by the economically advanced countries to adopt a lifelong learning framework and strategy in response to the move towards the new global economy. Market failures currently stand in the way of realising lifelong learning for all. Implementing lifelong learning is widely seen as one element of a policy strategy aimed at facilitating the transition to the new economy, while easing some of the pressure this transition is expected to bring for individual citizens and communities. Lack of information of various kinds is the root cause of market failure. Governments therefore have an interest in improving the knowledge base of education, training and learning, so that better investment and training choices can be made. The assessment and validation of skills acquired outside of the school setting are elements of a strategy to improve the quality of information supply. Much work has already been done on the conceptualisation and measurement of skills and competencies during the last decade. But so far the progress has been insufficient to satisfy the requirements. Research work on the assessment of different adult skills therefore needs to be given strong support. Given the scope and volume of the learning activities that occur in sectors where the education authorities normally exercise little control or responsibility for management, it is clear that the information infrastructure for lifelong learning needs to be diverse, yet inclusive. Because of this inclusive perspective, a variety of avenues to data collection must be followed. Multiple indicators organised in a multilevel framework are required for the monitoring of progress towards the implementation of lifelong learning for all. But given the current state of play of the social sciences, and in particular of survey practice and indicator measurement, the time when a holistic and comprehensive framework of lifelong learning indicators can be proposed lies far in the future.

The aim of the Handbook is to present readily accessible, but scholarly sources of information about educational research in the Asia-Pacific region. The scale and scope of the Handbook is such that the articles included in it provide substantive contributions to knowledge and understanding of education in the Asia region. In so doing, the articles present the problems and issues facing education in the region and the findings of research conducted within the region that contribute to the resolution of these problems and issues. Moreover, since new problems and issues are constantly arising, the articles in the Handbook also indicate the likely directions of future developments. The different articles within the Handbook seek to conceptualize the problems in each specific content area under review, provide an integration of the research conducted within that area, the theoretical basis of the research the practical implications of the research and the contribution of the research towards the resolution of the problems identified. Thus, the articles do not involve the reporting of newly conducted research, but rather require a synthesis of the research undertaken in a particular area, with reference to the research methods employed and the theoretical frameworks on which the research is based. In general, the articles do not advocate a single point of view, but rather, present alternative points of view and comment on the debate and disagreements associated with the conduct and findings of the research. Furthermore, it should be noted, that the Handbook is not concerned with research methodology, and only considers the methods employed in inquiry in so far as the particular methods of research contribute to the effective investigation of problems and issues that have arisen in the conduct and provision of education at different levels within the region.

Drawing on material from IRE as well as other sources, this article describes how the notion of lifelong education came into prominence in the educational world in the late 1960s, how it related to the concepts of formal, non-formal and informal education, and how it contrasted with the idea of recurrent eduction, as promoted by the OECD. The author goes on to discuss the emergence of the broader and more holistic concept of lifelong learning and the various ways in which it is understood. The article shows how IRE and its host institute have played an important part in the debate on these issues.

Avtor v prispevku podrobneje prikazuje razvoj in nastanek mednarodne raziskave o pismenosti odraslih. Navede sodelujoce države, stevilo respondentov v posameznih drzavah in v mednarodnem merilu, katerih podlaga so bile opravljene raziskave v letih 1994, 1996 in 1998.

The International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) was a 22-country study conducted between 1994 and 1998. In every country nationally representative samples of adults aged 16-65 were interviewed and assessed at home. The goals of the survey were to create comparable literacy profiles across national, linguistic and cultural boundaries and to study the factors that influence literacy proficiency. One factor in particular was singled out for attention, namely the role of adult education and training in improving literacy skills and wider labor market outcomes. The monograph series includes studies by literacy scholars and experts drawing on the IALS database. This particular monograph was funded by the United States Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education, Division of Adult Education and Literacy. Other studies in the series were funded primarily by Human Resources Development Canada and Statistics Canada. Today the capacity of labor markets, firms and individuals to adjust to change, improve productivity and capitalize on technological innovation depends in large measure on the skills of the adult population. Improving the stock of skills available to the economy through investment in adult education and workplace learning is therefore an issue of considerable strategic importance. This monograph presents 15 international indicators that allow readers to compare the volume of adult education participation in North America with that of other advanced industrialized nations. The data offer a comparative snapshot of the total adult education effort as well as the social distribution of adult education opportunities in the mid to late 1990s. The findings generally suggest that both Canada and the United States have mature adult education and training markets. However, the findings also indicate that there are major differences among countries in who gets trained, and how much. On most measures North America finds itself in an average position, ahead of emerging economies but behind the Nordic countries.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors explaining differences between schools in the extent to which computers are used by subject teachers as a means of enhancing instruction and optimizing student learning. A conceptual model of key factors in educational reform and innovation is developed on the basis of theory and previous research. The parameters in this model are estimated using the linear structural relations approach and data collected for the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) study of computers in education in two countries, Japan and the United States. The results show that, in both Japan and the United States, internal innovation assistance, teacher competence and a strategy for monitoring and problem coping are associated with the outcome variable, the degree of computer use in lower secondary schools. In Japan three other variables are also positively related to this outcome: perceptions of the school leadership concerning the relevance of computer use, whether the school has developed an explicit policy for implementation, and whether the school provides opportunities for staff development. Less variation among the predictor variables is found in the United States compared with Japan. The explanation may be that many schools in Japan are still working on the introduction of the innovation, whereas most schools in the United States have reached the stage of institutionalization.

Whole issue. Incl. abstracts. Article by George Psacharopoulos, p. 581-590