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Professionalization in Europe This contribution deals with the state of professionalization in adult education on the level of single member states in the European Union. Concerning this the DIE has brought into being a research group, in which further education researchers from Sweden, Denmark, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Italy, France and Portugal are represented. The inputs for the constituent assembly of the research group and the first discussions of the initia…
The opening up of higher education and the development of higher education insti-tutions as institutionalized and organized settings for lifelong learning has been focused in educational policy and scientific discourse for more than ten years. Consequently, research at the interface between further education and higher education research at international, European and national levels has been intensified in order to disclose framework conditions, forms and challenges regarding current and expec…
In the last years the issue of adult literacy has gained international and national importance – not least due to the comparative surveys IALS, ALL, and PIAAC, conducted by the OECD. The result was a series of developments in education policy, in particular regarding the promotion and financing of adult literacy programmes. Based on country reports, the present article provides internationally comparative insight into the discussion regarding the promotion and financing of adult literacy progra…
Indivisible but Limited. Inclusion in View of Severe and Multiple Disabilities in the Light of the Danish Experiences “Indivisibility“ is given the upmost priority in the discussion about inclusion. Does “indivisible” also imply “unlimited”? The author sees limitations to the right of inclusive adult education. Acknowledging these limitations is a prerequisite for developing successful forms of inclusion. Not attracting a sufficient number of “non-disabled” participants is a limitation of p…
This report from England is part of a research project entitled Literacy/Basic Education – State of the Art from a historical and systematic Perspective in terms of Transferability. It focuses on the way adult (il)literacy has been approached, dealt with, discussed and analysed both politically and scientifically in England. It provides a historical overview on government strategy papers and outlines central ideas in theoretical discussions regarding literacy and literacy practices. However, in…
This article sheds light on cooperation between different educational fields as seen from the point of view of experts in education. The authors present the initial findings from the group discussions of a DFG project which started recently. These findings cast doubt on whether cooperation can succeed when different occupational groups know so little about one another within and outside their educational sectors. It remains to be seen whether future data expected from the project confirms the c…
Normative Patterns of Biography and Contradictory Experiences as Resources in Women’s Educational Biographies As part of a research project on discontinuities in female educational and professional careers, this essay focusses on conflicting expectations women experience – conflicts between set normative social standards and biographies on the one hand, and the different individual plans and perspectives on the other hand. Group discussions among the participants of a Women’s Studies Program…
International stimuli. More than 25 years of literacy and basic education A look back at the history of literacy discussions as a debate starting in the 1970s and heavily influenced by international organisations. The urgency of the subject is demonstrated at the start by international figures on the extent of illiteracy. The author sees today’s questions and issues as rooted in the 1980s and 1990s; in his overview of the German government's current funding focus he points out that there is…
More lower rungs for the ladder. A proposal for new literacy levels This article asks whether international models can be applied as a means of finding well-differentiated literacy levels to map skills acquired during the literacy process. To this effect, the article examines the American “component approach”, the English “entry levels” and the “lower rungs approach”. One result is that the article leans towards the means of educational diagnosis known as “formative assessment”. Based on thi…
“Validpack” – new tool to validate the skills of adult educators The article describes how, as part of a European project, a validation tool has been developed to validate skills in adult education teaching. Validating adult educators' skills may be one step in the discussion concerning the professionalisation of adult education. There is a description of the aims of the tool, the competence framework it is based on, and the individual steps in the process. So that it can also be of advanta…
