Gearing up for the fourth Global Report on Adult Learning and Education

The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) regularly publishes a Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE) in order to monitor developments in adult learning and education (ALE) in UNESCO Member States. GRALE 4, due in 2019, will continue to shed light on participation in ALE and provide possible ways to address any shortcomings.

GRALE 4 will look at progress in developing ALE provision in UNESCO Member States; this will include analyses of policy development, governance and funding mechanisms as well as quality assurance, all of which are embedded in the Belém Framework for Action, which records the commitments of Member States to promote ALE. The report will particularly explore how the concept of ‘participation’ in ALE has developed in Member States and examine how it is influenced and measured across different regions in the context of the Education 2030 Agenda. This includes identifying change in participation rates in general, but also in the provision of ALE opportunities for specific participant groups, such as the unemployed, migrants or people with special learning needs. Finally, the fourth edition of GRALE will examine how Member States make use of the 2015 Recommendation of Adult Learning and Education (RALE) to improve ALE. 

Data collection to inform GRALE 4 has now begun, with Member States asked to identify a contact person for national reporting by the end of February. These nominated persons will collaborate with UIL, in consultation with all relevant national stakeholders, to provide reporting via an online survey by the end of May 2018. UIL is therefore confident that all relevant stakeholders will work together and support Member State contact persons to provide reliable national reports, to support GRALE 4 reporting and improve ALE provision and development in UNESCO Member States.

UIL considers cross-sectorial engagement fundamental not only in providing sufficient ALE opportunities, but also in monitoring participation.