Adult Learning in Canada

Jina Paima

Source: www.evolllution.com

Presentation outline

What is adult education?

Who are typical adult learners?
Purpose of adult learning.
Participating in adult education.
Statistics

Participation barriers.
Adult learning and K-12 education.
Learning Pathways

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Role of adult learners in society?

E-learning/In-class learning: benefits and challenges.
Future of adult literacy.
Future of adult learning.
Conclusion.
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What is adult education?

Adult education is the process of upgrading and acquiring
innovative knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values in society.
Canadians engagement in adult learning has a great impact
on social and economic success. Adult learning can occur
throughout some peoples lifetime in various settings such
as formal and informal. Human beings have the capability
of learning from birth throughout their life. Informally we
learn every day through our experiences and formally
children learn in school and adults in workplace, community
colleges, folk high schools, universities, libraries, and
lifelong learning centers.
Source: A Report on Adult Education and Training in Canada: Learning a Living

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Who are typical adult

learners?

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Age 25 and older

Do or dont have high school diploma
Employed full-time
Enroll in part-time studies
Have taken college courses
New Immigrant
Delay enrollment
Have dependent children or parents
Single parent
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Purpose of learning

Unemployed due to lack of skills

Require professional development
Personal interest
Want to gain independence
Find or change jobs due to shift in
technology , health problems, etc.
Salary increase
Obtain mandatory employment training
Upgrading skill and knowledge
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Participating in adult education

Many Canadian adults do not have the required skills

and/or knowledge necessary to participate in adult
education:
Canadian statistic:

5.8 million aged 25 years and over do not have a high-school

diploma or higher credentials
9 million aged 16 to 65 years have literacy skills below the level
considered as necessary to live and work in todays society
approximately 200,000 young adults did not finish or dropped
out of high-school. In comparison to young women counterpart
more men are dropping out of school.
(Myers, 2006)
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High school graduates and dropouts

age 20 to 24 2001 - 2010
Year

Graduates

Dropout

2000/2001

9.0

20.1

2001/2002

10.2

20.6

2002/2003

9.5

19.9

2003/2004

10.8

18.7

2004/2005

9.5

19.5

2005/2006

8.9

16.7

2006/2007

8.3

15.9

2007/2008

8.4

18.0

2008/2009

10.0

21.3

2009/2010

11.9

23.2

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey.

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Without high school diploma & not in

school
age 20 to 24
1990/1993
Province

percen thousand
t
s

percent

Newfoundland
and Labrador

10.0

19.9

2.2

7.4

Prince Edward
Island

1.8

18.9

0.9

8.9

11.9

17.8

5.2

8.6

8.6

15.4

3.8

8.1

Quebec

84.2

17.4

55.5

11.7

Ontario

114.3

14.8

68.6

7.8

Manitoba

12.4

16.0

9.1

11.4

Saskatchewan

10.4

16.2

6.7

9.4

Alberta

30.7

15.7

28.3

10.4

British
Columbia

31.5

13.3

19.1

6.2

Nova Scotia
New Brunswick

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thousan
ds

2007/2010

Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey.

Participation barriers
Lack of time (work or family

Minimal employer support

no or few job training
opportunities
work conflict

responsibilities)

Lack of childcare

not all institutions offer

childcare services; if they
do, it is expensive with long
waiting lists.

Lack of qualifications
no prerequisites
language barriers

Lack of Confidence

Institutional factors

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fees
lack of evening courses
inconvenient time
entrance requirements
limited course offerings
lack of information

away from education causes lack

of confidence and incompetence

High cost of living

cant cover living expenses and

education cost

Health issues

Adult learning and K-12

education
Children and adolescent
follow:
traditional pathway
compulsory education
structured platform
subject-centered
teacher makes the decision
for the learners
grading system

Adults follow:
very complex pathway
self-directed
ready to learn
task motivated
goal-oriented
bring work-related
experiences and knowledge
problem-centered

Knowles, 1980

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Adult Learning Pathway

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Source: Ontario Education.

K-12 Learning Pathway

Elementary
school
Eight years

Secondary school
Four Years

Ontario
Secondary
Diploma

Universities

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Colleges of
Applied Arts &
Technology

Skills
Training
program

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Other
program of
study

Employment

Source: Ontario Education

Role of adult learners in

society
Role of adults partaking in continuous
learning:
growth in economy
higher standard of living
low rate of unemployment
higher education rate
better status job
lower poverty rate
can assist children to meet their educational
goals
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E-Learning
Some benefits and challenges of elearning:
Challenges:
annoy & frustration
confusion
isolation
technophobia
problem managing time
lack of immediate feedback
increased preparation time
higher rate of dropout

Benefits:
flexibility
convenience
balance work, education
and family obligations

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In-class Learning
Some benefits and challenges of in-class
learning:
Benefits:
Challenges:
face-to-face learning
travelling time and
cost
immediate feedback
inconvenient time
full-time work
no back-up if you
missed lecture
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Future of Adult Litracy

Source: The Conference Board of Canada, Profiting from Literacy Creating a Sustainable Workplace Literacy Program,
December 2005.
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Future of Adult Learning

Adult education programs should be made learner-friendly
for the participants to clearly find their pathways through
the system:

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improve the learning opportunities

provide information on labour market trends
access to face-to-face mentoring and counselling services
develop a better advance standing and skills recognition system
greater cohesion in teaching styles and learning environments
better data and research on learning pathways
provide awareness on adult education
build an improved occupational and skill standards
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Future of Adult Learning

Adult education programs should promote:

suitability in terms of minimum education prerequisites and skills

overall level of funding for particular course and program areas
innovative programs
integrate programs to meet the need of adult learners
flexible admission to post-secondary education
information and communication technology
social and economical need of adults
development of user-friendly website using simple language for
adult to easily navigate

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Conclusion
By looking at the purpose and role of adult
education in Canada, it is clear that adult
education is a complex structure of learning;
therefore, it is critical that an effective
mechanism should be promoted by both
government and institutions in order to build a
better future for adult learners.

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References
(2001). A Report on Adult Education and Training in Canada. Learning a Living.
Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Human Resources Development Canada.
(2002). Thematic Review on Adult Learning. Canada Background Report.
OECD. http://www.oecd.org/oecd/pages/home/displaygeneral/0,3380,ENdocument-592-17-no-21-17182-592-no-no,FF.html
Gilmore, J. (2010). Trends in Dropout Rate and the Labour Market Outcomes
of Young Dropouts. Ottawa, ON: Statistic Canada.
Kerr, A. (2011). Adult Learners in Ontario Postsecondary Institutions. Toronto:
Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario.
Knowles, M. S. (1980). The modern practice of adult education: From
pedagogy to andragogy. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall/Cambridge.
Myers, K. (2006). Too Many Left Behind: Canadas Adult Education and
Training System. Ottawa, ON: Canadian Policy Research Network.
Wynne, K. (2005). Letter from the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of
Education. Strengthening Our Adult Education System: Ontario Education.
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