System und Systemsteuerung in der Erwachsenenbildung

This assumption does not seem plausible at first glance, but rather absurd instead. The regular manifestation of modern age as a knowledge-based society on the one hand as well as the consensual acceptance of the appeal for lifelong learning on the other hand, create the opposite of an image in which the pedagogical aspect of continuing education has been lost.
The author argues that learners are increasingly left unsupported, lifelong learning has become more fiction than reality and continuing education is used as a tool for economic purposes and objectives following the criterion: “It must pay off!”
The report outlines broadly the main line of development in continuing education within Germany to highlight the politically and economically based development towards a post-educational society. Also, the micro-structural elements of discourse complementary to the micro-perspective are pointed out using findings of the research project: “Continuing Education in Life” (HBLP 1980-2011/12).

Education reports are a core element of the new governance model in the educational system: they provide data to support political decision-makers in evidence-based governance. For that purpose, indicators are developed to monitor context, input, processes and outcomes of educational efforts. This article analyzes actual report segments on further education in various report systems with respect to the picture of these dimensions of further education. The applicability of the existing indicators of further education for output-oriented governance as well as potential for improvements is discussed.

In adult education as an almost deregulated educational sector, governance happens indirectly via support programs and educational initiatives. Money plays a central role as a medium of governance and is also used to promote quality management systems. Quality management itself unrolls a governing capacity in the adult education system: in doing so, different models stress different starting points for quality development. This paper responds to the question which factors influence the development of quality in adult education organizations and their educational offers, and how far these factors are addressed by different systems of quality management. Thus capabilities and limitations of these systems emerge.

Contemporary discourses in the context of educational governance mostly ignore the field of adult education. Discussions focus on global or national level, the significance of municipalities in managing education systems is widely overseen. This paper picks up the concept of governance to identify the structure and processes of managing adult education on municipality level. On the basis of two model examples the practical implementation of adult education governance will be illustrated, which also bring up some questions for further research within the field of governing adult education on municipality level.

Recent empirical data show that 7.5 million adults in Germany do not reach a minimum level of reading and writing skills and, therefore, are classified as functional illiterates. However, the social and educational background of this part of the population differs considerably from wide-spread perceptions of the target group as it is represented in courses for illiterates in adult education. While the latter normally showed heavy learning problems at school, the wider group normally passed school more or less successfully. Their handicap in reading and writing does imply some restrictions in work and everyday life, but less so than case studies of “typical” illiterates would suggest. Results call for reconsidering established perceptions and programs.