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In this article, terms and the state of research on adult numeracy are compiled in a systematic way. The findings and theories are selected according to their relation to the German-language discourse of adult education and at the same time embedded in a historical context as well as in international discourse. Many recent findings confirm Jean Lave’s approach in that numeracy differs from school mathematics in the high relevance of rules of thumb and estimates as well as in less formal procedu…
Numeracy practices are always dependent on the social context in which they emerge. These contexts, however, are unstable because of a range of technological and socio-political changes. How does this instability affect people’s agency in the world? After reviewing key approaches to numeracy practices research, we distil key findings from recent numeracy studies. We introduce the concept of the numerate environment to examine the context in which opportunities, supports and demands present them…
While belief research has become an integral part of the educational research agenda, it has been uneven. One neglected area is the beliefs of adult education teachers. Focusing on five such teachers working in adult basic education and teaching numeracy in Switzerland, this exploratory study uses different data to describe their beliefs about numeracy and its teaching. It is shown that this group holds clearly different views from other groups of adult teachers and it is argued that extending …
The high mortality rate among Lesotho’s younger generation, caused by disruptions such as chronic illnesses and other socio-economic and cultural changes, has led older adults to become caregivers. This paper reports on the experiences of older adults regarding their caregiving role during times of disruption. It further reveals how older adults have learned about their role as caregivers. Adult learning theories were reviewed and used to interpret the results of the study. The interpretive par…
The support of food and move literacy in learning groups mainly aims for a benefit in terms of a health-promoting and sustainable lifestyle. The general education system has developed differentiated education plans containing basic contents and competences on these topics. In adult education comprehensive health education addresses aspects of food- as well as move literacy. In the context of literacy and basic education, however, there are only a few learning opportunities that focus on nutriti…
Like a fabric made of different threads, adult education waives multiple places and reveals different paces whose influences may be complementary, contradictory and antagonistic with each other. The spaces and times that shape people’s life are rarely static or constant. They evolve and fluctuate. Every day, throughout their existence, people have to learn to adjust, coordinate and move through material, natural, social and symbolic environments that keep evolving. The aim of this paper is to e…
So far, time and space have been addressed in separate discourses without considering the connections between the categories. An integrative perspective on the regulation of participation in further education promise social space perspective. Against the background of the demand for the interweaving of discourses of time and space, the paper deals with the question of which temporal relationships can be found in social space regulators of participation in further education. First of all, the ca…
The form of social integration of space and time determines the understanding of learning, personality and subjectification. In modernity, organizations form individuals through systematic observation. For this purpose, semiotic techniques of dynamization of persons—calculation, measurement, visualization, rechaotisation—are developed and used pedagogically. Their digitization leads to the autonomization of presentational control and management practices, which operate without organizations as …
In this paper, the authors examine the setting of and working with boundaries between everyday work and innovation development, based on an empirical analysis of an innovation lab in the social economy. The lab allows intrapreneurs to learn and use entrepreneurial practices to foster social innovation. The process of boundaries setting can be made clear by the spatial structuring of performative practice, the constitution of symbolic spaces, the rhythm of divergence and convergence as well as a…
The article deals with the question how learning is made possible in time and space in university continuing education. The analysis focuses on the phases of on-site study and self-study, which are regarded as two forms of dealing with time and space in university continuing education. Both formats present specific challenges for the students, showing that the quality of learning time and learning spaces plays a key role in participation. In addition, times and places for on-site study and self…
