Vocational education and training - VET

This report has been prepared for DG EAC to provide a focused review of the literature published since 2018 on the provision of digital skills to adults in Europe. The review looks at the provision of medium-level digital skills by taking into consideration courses or programmes that are either work-based or provided in a non-formal and informal context and are targeted at adults of working age. The analysis focuses on understanding what aspects are addressed by policies relating to the development of digital skills among adults, what thematic areas and target groups are covered by the existing provision of digital skills, and how current provision addresses the needs identified.

Canada can learn both from its past experience and from New Zealand to create a better future for us all

As the nature of work changes, some workers are caught in the cross hairs of ongoing disruptions in the skills required. As economies rejig to provide the human capital of the next generation, the current working-age population
becomes anxious about its job prospects.

In this study authors Torben Drewes and Tyler Meredith find that although investments in education undertaken earlier in life generally provide a higher payoff, returns to education and training appear to remain positive up to age 40. This suggests a considerable portion of Canada’s labour force might benefit from improved access to learning later in life, including the 1 in 7 working-age adults who report having insufficient qualifications for their current job, and the 1 in 5 who lack basic literacy and numeracy skills.