• Participation in Adult Education
• Characteristics of Participation in Adult Education
• Receipt of Employer Support for Participation
• Reasons for Participation
• Work-Related Informal Learning
• Summary
• References

This is the first full report using data from the Adult Education and Lifelong Learning Survey of the 2001 National Household Education Surveys Program (AELL-NHES:2001) on the educational activities of adults in the United States. The NHES:2001 was a random digit dial (RDD) telephone survey of the civilian, noninstitutionalized population of the 50 states and the District of Columbia conducted from January 2 through April 14 of 2001. For the Adult Education and Lifelong Learning Survey, the population of interest included civilian, noninstitutionalized persons age 16 and older who were not enrolled in elementary or secondary school at the time of the interview.

Adult education is a diverse arena defined in a variety of ways (Cross 1984; Elias and Merriam 1984; Knowles 1980; Merriam and Caffarella 1999; Peters, Javis, and Associates 1991). Some regard adult education as noncompulsory or voluntary learning activities constituting a continuous learning process throughout life (Belanger and Tuijnman 1997). Others include required activities in their definitions because a fairly large proportion of adults are required to participate in work-related adult education for continuing professional development purposes (Cervero 1989). Yet another way of defining adult education includes not only formal coursework or training, but also informal educational activities (that is, those that do not involve an instructor). The AELL-NHES:2001 incorporates a broad approach to the range of activities that may be considered adult education. This approach distinguishes voluntary and required educational activities that are formal, as defined by the presence of an instructor, from activities that are informal.

In the AELL-NHES:2001, respondents were asked about both formal and informal learning activities in which they may have participated during the 12-month period prior to the interview. The seven types of formal learning activities included English as a Second Language (ESL), basic skills education, college or university degree programs, vocational or technical diploma programs, apprenticeship programs, work-related courses, and personal interest courses. Work-related informal learning activities included supervised training or mentoring, self-paced study using books or video tapes, self-paced study using computers, attending "brown-bag" or informal presentations, attending conferences or conventions, and reading professional journals or magazines.

This report provides a broad overview of the extent to which adults participate in educational activities and their educational experiences in such activities. Major topics include participation rates overall and in various types of formal educational activities; characteristics of participating adults; educational experiences in college or university degree programs on a part-time basis, work-related courses, and personal interest courses; reasons for participation in work-related courses; characteristics of participants who received employer support; and characteristics of participants in work-related informal learning activities. Because there is variation in the nature and purpose of various adult education activities, this analysis examines individual types of activities in addition to adult education overall.

The research questions addressed in this report are listed below along with a brief summary of the findings from the AELL-NHES:2001.

To what extent do adults participate in educational activities, and how is participation in educational activities related to characteristics of adults?

The two previous NHES adult education surveys conducted during the 1990s (i.e., AE-NHES:1995 and AE-NHES:1999), which excluded informal work-related training, found increasing rates of participation in formal adult education, from 40 percent in 1995 to 45 percent in 1999 (Kim et al. 1995; Kim and Creighton 2000; Creighton and Hudson 2002) (figure A). In 2001, the overall participation rate in formal adult education during the 12-month period prior to the interview was 46 percent (table A). About 92 million adults participated in one or more types of formal educational activities during this period.

Adult education participation rates were higher among the population age 50 and younger. The rates of participation for the three younger age groups (ages 16-30, 31-40, and 41-50) were 53 to 55 percent, compared to 41 and 22 percent for the two older age groups (ages 51-65 and 66 and older) (table A).

Merriam and Caffarella (1999) noted that women have had a higher rate of participation than men since 1978. The AELL findings are consistent with this observation; females were more likely than males to participate in an educational activity (49 percent versus 43 percent) (table A).

The prior educational attainment of adults was positively associated with participation in educational activities. Among those who had not completed high school, 22 percent par-ticipated in educational activities during the 12-month period prior to the interview, whereas 34 percent of those with a high school diploma or equivalent, 58 percent of those with some college education, and 66 percent of those with a bachelor's degree or more education did so (table A).

The overall participation rate among adults who were never married (52 percent) was higher than the rate among adults who were married (47 percent), unmarried and living with a partner (43 percent), and separated, divorced, or widowed (38 percent) (table A).

Participation rates in adult education also varied by the employment status and occupation of adults. Those adults who had worked for pay or income during the 12 months prior to the survey were more likely to participate in educational activities (54 percent) than those who had not worked (25 percent). Adults in professional or managerial occupations had a higher rate of participation in adult education activities (71 percent) than those in other occupations (i.e., service, sales, or support occupations and those employed in the trades) (55 percent and 34 percent, respectively), and adults in service and sales occupations had a higher participation rate than those in the trades (table A).

Adults who had an occupational or legal requirement to take continuing education were more likely to participate in educational activities than those who did not have such a requirement (64 percent versus 40 percent) (table A).

Household income was positively related to the participation of adults in educational activities. Adults in households with incomes over $50,000 were more likely to participate in educational activities (56 to 59 percent) than those in households with incomes of $50,000 or less (28 to 48 percent). Participation rates in adult education activities also increased at every household income level up to $50,000 (table A).

Adults who had children under the age of 10 in their households were more likely to participate in adult education activities than their counterparts. In 2001, 52 percent of adults with children under 10 in their households participated compared with 44 percent of adults without children under age 10.

A logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine whether the relationships between individual personal characteristics and participation observed in the bivariate analyses remain when these characteristics are examined simultaneously. The regression analysis yielded findings generally consistent with the bivariate analyses for age, sex, race/ethnicity, employment/occupation, income, and prior educational attainment. Bivariate findings by the presence of children under age 10 in the household were not observed when the other characteristics of adults were taken into account. Somewhat different findings were observed by marital status; specifically, never-married adults were not more likely to participate than married adults or those who were separated, divorced, or widowed.

Figure A. Participation rates in adult education activities: 1995, 1999, and 2001

¹Includes those who participated in a college or university degree or certificate program or in a vocational/technical diploma or degree program on a part-time basis during the previous 12 months.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Adult Education and Lifelong Learning Survey of the National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES), 2001; Adult Education Survey of the NHES, 1999; and Adult Education Survey of the NHES, 1995. (Originally published as figure 1 on p. 11 of the complete report from which this is excerpted.)

In what specific types of educational activities do adults participate and what characteristics of adults are associated with participation in specific types of educational activities?

Approximately 4 percent of adults were enrolled part time in college or university degree or certificate programs in the previous 12 months. Several characteristics were found to be related to participation in college degree or certificate programs. Participants tended to be less than 30 years of age, had never married, had worked in the past 12 months, had continuing education requirements for their occupations, had at least a high school education, or worked at professional or managerial occupations or service, sales, or support occupations (table A).²

Thirty percent of adults participated in work-related courses during the 12 months prior to the interview. Several characteristics examined in this study were found to be associated with participation in work-related courses. Participants tended to be of White, non-Hispanic race/ethnicity;³ have some education after high school; work in a professional or managerial occupation; have continuing education requirements for their occupations; be age 31 to 50; or have children under 10 years old in the households (table A).

About one in five adults (21 percent) participated in personal interest courses. Participants tended to be female, had completed some college or more education, worked in professional or managerial occupations, had continuing education requirements for their occupations, and had never been married (table A).

Compared to the other adult education activities, a smaller percentage of adults participated in ESL, basic skills education, vocational or technical diploma or degree programs, and apprenticeship programs (4 to 30 percent compared to 1 percent) (table A).

Table A. Number of adults and rates of participation in selected adult education activities, by selected demographic, educational, and occupational characteristics: 2000–01

The diversity of adult education is reflected not only in the various types of educational activities in which adults participate, but also in important features of their participation. Characteristics of participation in educational activities collected in the AELL-NHES:2001 included credit and instructional hours, instructional providers, personal expenses for participation, the use of automated technology as an instructional tool, and keeping or obtaining a certificate or license.

How much time do adults spend in educational activities?

Participation in college or university degree programs varied considerably in terms of the number of credit hours taken. Forty-five percent of adults who participated in college or university degree programs on a part-time basis took 11 credit hours or less in the previous 12 months, 26 percent took 12 to 18 credit hours, and 7 percent took 31 credit hours or more during the year (table B).⁴

There was wide variability in the amount of time that adults spent in work-related courses. Twenty-eight percent of adults spent 10 hours or less in such courses, 25 percent spent 11 to 25 hours, 23 percent spent 26 to 50 hours, and 24 percent spent 51 hours or more. The amount of time that adults spent in personal interest courses also varied considerably. Twenty-five percent of participating adults spent 10 hours or less and 33 percent spent 51 hours or more in such courses during the year (table B).

To what extent do adults participate in educational activities provided by various institutions or organizations?

More adults took work-related courses provided by business and industry (49 percent) than any other provider type. Twenty percent of adults took work-related courses from postsecondary institutions (2-year and 4-year colleges, and postsecondary vocational/technical schools), 20 percent from professional organizations, and 15 percent from government agencies (local, state, or federal) (table B).

Participants in personal interest courses also received instruction from a wide variety of providers. Fifty percent of participants took personal interest courses from "other" types of providers, examples of which include community centers, public libraries, private organizations, and religious organizations. Twenty percent of adults took personal interest courses from postsecondary institutions and 17 percent from business or industry (table B).

To what extent do adults use their own resources to pay for participation in educational activities?

Information about personal expenses for participation in educational activities, such as tuition and fees and costs for books or other materials, was collected in the AELL-NHES:2001. Twenty-five percent of the participants in college or university degree programs reported no personal expenses for their programs, 34 percent spent $1 to $1,000, 23 percent spent $1,001 to $3,000, and 18 percent spent more than $3,000 (table B).

A large majority of participants in work-related courses (73 percent) reported that they had not spent any of their own or their families' money to pay for the courses. Twenty percent reported that they spent $1 to $500 for all of their work-related courses and 6 percent reported spending more than $500. Forty percent of participants in personal interest courses reported paying none of their own money to take courses, 48 percent spent $1 to $500, and 12 percent spent more than $500 over the previous 12 months (table B).

To what extent do adults participate in educational activities where technologies are used as an instructional method?

The AELL-NHES:2001 data indicate that adult education providers are turning to emerging technologies to increase the flexibility and accessibility of their programs. For college or university instruction, the use of computers was reported by more participants (57 percent) than any other automated technology, followed by the use of the Internet or World Wide Web (32 percent), and television, video, or radio (26 percent) (table B).

The use of automated technology for instruction in work-related courses was also reported by many participants. The types of technology most often reported were television, video, or radio, reported by 54 percent of participating adults, and computer instruction, reported by 53 percent (table B).

About one-third (32 percent) of participants in personal interest courses reported the use of television, video, or radio as an instructional mode and 19 percent reported the use of computers for instruction (table B).

To what extent do adults participate in educational activities in order to obtain or to maintain a certificate or license?

About half of the adults participating in college or university degree programs on a part-time basis or both part-time and full-time bases reported that they did so to obtain or to maintain a state, industry, or company certificate or license (48 percent). Among those adults who took work-related courses, 38 percent reported taking courses to obtain or to maintain a state, industry, or company certificate or license (table B).

Table B. Number and percent of adults reporting selected educational characteristics in college or university degree programs, work-related courses, and personal interest courses: 2000–01

In the AELL-NHES:2001, information was collected on employer support for participation, including provision of instruction, offering courses or classes at the workplace, providing courses or classes during paid work hours, and paying for or reimbursing educational expenses. A question about employer requirements for taking courses or classes also was included.

To what extent do adults report employer support and incentives for participation in educational activities?

Sixty-eight percent of employed adults who participated in educational activities received some type of employer support (table C). Several characteristics examined in this study were found to be associated with receipt of employer support: being White adults; having higher prior educational attainment; being of a marital status other than never married;⁵ working in a professional or managerial occupation; working for a large employer (i.e., 500 or more employees); having a higher household income;⁶ or being required to participate in continuing professional education (table D).

A logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine whether the relationships observed in the bivariate analysis are also observed when they are examined simultaneously. The results of the regression analysis were consistent with the bivariate analyses for marital status, prior educational attainment, occupation, employer size, continuing education requirement, race/ethnicity, and household income.

Table C. Number of adult education participants who worked in the previous 12 months and the percent who received any employer support for participating, by selected demographic, educational, and occupational characteristics: 2000–01

For what reasons do adults participate in work-related courses?

The most frequently reported reasons for participation in work-related courses were maintaining or improving skills or knowledge (95 percent) and learning new skills or methods (84 percent).⁷ Sixty-two percent of participants reported being required to take courses by an employer or due to professional certification requirements, legal requirements, and so on.

Informal learning is regarded as a major source of the acquisition of new knowledge and skills in the workplace (Bruce, Aring, and Brand 1998). In the AELL-NHES:2001 survey, respondents were asked about their participation in a variety of work-related informal learning, including supervised training or mentoring; self-paced study using manuals, videos, or a computer; attending informal presentations; attending conferences; or reading professional journals or magazines. With the exception of supervised training or mentoring, respondents were asked about each type of informal learning regardless of whether they were working in the 12 months prior to the interview.

To what extent do adults participate in work-related informal learning activities?

Nearly two-thirds of adults (about 125 million) reported participating in work-related informal learning activities in the 12 months prior to the interview. Those adults with some college or more education, those in professional or managerial occupations, and those with higher household incomes were generally more likely to participate in work-related informal learning activities (table E).

Education, employment and occupation, and household income were consistently associated with participation in adult education. Prior educational attainment is positively associated with overall participation and with participation in the two most common forms of formal learning-work-related courses and personal interest courses-and with participation in work-related informal learning activities. In addition, having worked in the previous 12 months and having a professional or managerial occupation are characteristics associated with participation overall, in work-related courses, in personal interest courses, and in work-related informal learning. Also, higher levels of household income are associated with overall adult education participation, and participation in work-related courses, personal interest courses, and work-related informal learning.

The characteristics of educational activities in which adults participate are associated with the type of adult education activity in which they engage. The participation of adults in educational activities encompasses a variety of providers, with business and industry being a leading provider of instruction for work-related courses. Intensity of participation (e.g., number of courses and hours of instruction) varies considerably among all education types. The use of automated technology in instruction is quite common in college or university degree programs, work-related courses, and, to a lesser extent, personal interest courses.

Table E. Number of adults and rates of participation in selected work-related informal learning activities, by selected demographic, educational, and occupational characteristics: 2000–01

Belanger, P., and Tuijnman, A. (1997). New Patterns of Adult Learning: A Six-Country Comparative Study. New York: Elsevier Science Inc.

Bruce, L., Aring, M., and Brand, B. (1998). Informal Learning: The New Frontier of Employee & Organizational Development. Economic Development Review, 15(4): 12-18.

Cervero, R.M. (1989). Continuing Education for the Professions. In S.B. Merriam and P.M. Cunningham (Eds.), Handbook of Adult and Continuing Education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Creighton, S., and Hudson, L. (2002). Participation Trends and Patterns in Adult Education: 1991 to 1999 (NCES 2002-119). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Cross, K.P. (1984). Adults as Learners. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Elias, J.L., and Merriam, S.B. (1984). Philosophical Foundation of Adult Education. Marabar, FL: Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company.

Kim, K., Collins, M.A., Stowe, P., and Chandler, K. (1995). Forty Percent of Adults Participate in Adult Education Activities: 1994-95 (NCES 95-823). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Kim, K., and Creighton, S. (2000). Participation in Adult Education in the United States: 1998-99 (NCES 2000-027). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Knowles, M.S. (1980). The Modern Practice of Adult Education: From Pedagogy to Andragogy. New York: Cambridge.

Merriam, S.B., and Caffarella, R.S. (1999). Learning in Adulthood. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Peters, J., Javis, P., and Associates. (1991). Adult Education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

¹Part-time participation in postsecondary programs is considered to be adult education in this analysis, and those who were enrolled in postsecondary programs on a part-time basis in the previous 12 months are included as participants. Those who were full-time postsecondary students may also have participated on a part-time basis at some point in the previous 12 months and, if so, are included as participants due to their part-time participation. Thus, reports of participation in postsecondary programs include those who participated on a part-time basis and those who participated on both part-time and full-time bases in the previous 12 months. Full-time postsecondary students may also have participated in adult education activities such as English as a Second Language, work-related courses, or personal interest courses in addition to their full-time college or vocational programs and, if so, are included as participants.

²Readers should note that each of the characteristics noted is individually associated with participation; the intent is not to suggest that the combination of these individual characteristics constitute typical characteristics of participants.

³For the remainder of this report, the descriptor "White" is used for ease of presentation.

⁴Participants include those who participated in college programs on a part-time basis (an estimated 886,384 adults) as well as those who participated on both part-time and full-time bases in the previous 12 months (an estimated 1,981,794 adults). An additional estimated 6,798,999 adults participated in college programs on a full-time basis only and are not included as adult education participants in college programs here. It is not possible to differentiate credit hours taken on a part-time basis or a full-time basis for those who participated in both statuses in the previous 12 months.

⁵Adults in the marital statuses of (1) currently married, (2) separated, divorced, or widowed, and (3) living with a partner were more likely to report receipt of employer support for adult education participation than those who had never been married.

⁶Those with household incomes of $50,000 or more were more likely to participate than those with household incomes under $35,000.

⁷Some participants gave more than one reason, so percents sum to more than 100.