• Introduction
• National Household Education Survey
• What Is "Adult Education"?
• Participation in One or More Types of Adult Education
• Relationship Between Participation in Adult Education and Highest Level of Education
• Summary
• References

Participation in adult education has grown steadily over the past 3 decades, increasing to 46 percent in 1999 (Hill 1987; Kim et al. 1995; Korb, Chandler, and West 1991). The participants engaged in some form of instruction or educational activity to acquire the knowledge, information, and skills necessary to succeed in the workforce, learn basic skills, earn credentials, or otherwise enrich their lives.

To put this phenomenon in context, it is useful to compare the numbers of adult education participants in 1991 and 1999 with persons enrolled in institutions of higher education at the same points in time. In 1991, an estimated 58 million adults in the United States had participated in adult education activities, including part-time credential programs, in the preceding 12 months; by 1999, this number had grown to an estimated 90 million adults. By comparison, there were an estimated 14 million persons enrolled in U.S. institutions of higher education in 1991, and projections indicate that this enrollment will increase to 15 million persons in 1999 (Gerald and Hussar 1998) (figure 1). Thus, participation in adult education was approximately four times the enrollment in higher education in 1991, and six times the higher education enrollment in 1999. Further, the increase in the number of adult education participants over this time period is about twice the number of all persons enrolled in higher education at either time point.

Findings from the National Household Education Survey (NHES:1991, NHES:1995, and NHES:1999) show that adult education is prevalent and increasing in contemporary American society. The 46 percent participation rate for the 12-month period prior to the 1999 interview (table 1) is higher than the reported participation rates in 1991 and 1995 (32 percent and 40 percent, respectively) (Kim et al. 1995). On the other hand, enrollment in higher education has remained relatively constant at 7.6 percent to 7.9 percent of the adult population (Gerald and Hussar 1998).

This report contains the first release of information from the "Adult Education Interview" of NHES:1999 on the educational activities of adults in the United States from early 1998 to early 1999. The report focuses on the growth in participation in adult education activities and the extent to which participation is related to educational attainment. This analysis corroborates findings from previous studies showing that when an overall measure of participation is used, higher levels of participation are associated with higher levels of educational attainment (Courtney 1992; Cross 1984; Darkenwald and Merriam 1982; Kim et al. 1995; Merriam and Caffarella 1991). However, when participation is broken out into six component types and these are studied individually, the relationship between highest level of education and participation in adult education disappears (Kim et al. 1995). The relationship found in earlier studies may be driven by the fact that much of adult education is work related, and those with higher education are the most likely to take work-related courses.

NHES:1999 was a random-digit-dialed (RDD) telephone survey of the civilian, noninstitutionalized population of the 50 states and the District of Columbia conducted from January 3 through April 3 of 1999. For the "Adult Education Interview," the population of interest was civilian, noninstitutionalized adults age 16 and older who were not enrolled in elementary or secondary school at the time of the interview.

NHES:1999 was a random-digit-dialed (RDD) telephone survey of the civilian, noninstitutionalized population of the 50 states and the District of Columbia conducted from January 3 through April 3 of 1999. For the "Adult Education Interview," the population of interest was civilian, noninstitutionalized adults age 16 and older who were not enrolled in elementary or secondary school at the time of the interview.

Figure 1.-Number of participants in adult education and higher education: 1991, 1995, and 1999

Table 1.-Percent of civilian, noninstitutionalized adults, 16 years of age or older, who participated in one or more types of adult education activities during the 12 months prior to the interview, by highest level of education attained: 1999

Adult education is a diverse arena defined in a variety of ways (Cross 1984; Elias and Merriam 1984; Knowles 1980; Merriam and Caffarella 1991; Peters et al. 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 definition 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, but also informal educational activities. In those definitions, informal educational activities are those that do not involve an instructor.

NHES:1999 incorporates a broad approach, originally devised for use in NHES:1995 (Kim et al. 1995), to the range of activities that may be considered adult education. These include voluntary and required educational activities that are formal, as defined by the presence of an instructor. Informal learning activities are excluded. In NHES:1995 and NHES:1999,¹ respondents were asked about six types of adult education in the following order:

• English as a Second Language (ESL)² -classes for adults whose main language is not English to develop the English language skills necessary to pursue further education, to enter or advance in the job market, to enrich their personal and family lives, or to better adapt to American society.
• Adult basic education (ABE), General Educational Development (GED) preparation classes, and adult high school programs³ -programs or classes to help adults improve basic reading, writing, and math skills or prepare for a high school diploma or its equivalent.
• Credential programs-formal postsecondary programs leading to a college or university degree, a postsecondary vocational or technical diploma, or other education certificates related to qualifications for jobs.
• Apprenticeship programs-formal, on-the-job training and other related instruction leading to a journeyman status in a skilled trade or craft.
• Work-related courses-those related to a job or career other than postsecondary credential programs or apprenticeship programs, whether or not respondents had a job when they took the courses. Some examples are courses taken at work, courses taken elsewhere that relate to a job or career, or courses for a license or certification for a job.
• Personal development courses-various types of educational activities that have an instructor and are not included in the categories described above. Examples include courses related to health, hobbies or sports, foreign languages, dance or music, and Bible study.

Table 1 shows the percentages of adults who participated in adult education activities in the 12 months prior to the NHES:1999 interview, overall and by highest level of educational attainment. Of the six types of activities, adults were most likely to participate in work-related courses and personal development courses (23 percent for each). Other types of educational activities may have entrance criteria or be targeted to certain specific populations. About 9 percent of adults participated in credential programs, about 2 percent in ABE/GED classes, about 2 percent in apprenticeship programs, and about 1 percent in ESL classes. The sum of the percentages for each type of adult education (60 percent) is greater than the overall participation rate (46 percent) because some adults participated in more than one type of adult education.⁵

Table 2.-Percent of civilian, noninstitutionalized adults, 16 years of age or older, who participated in one type or multiple types of adult education activities during the 12 months prior to the interview, by highest level of education attained: 1999

While some adults participated in only one type of adult education activity during the 12-month period prior to the interview, others participated in two or more types. Table 2 shows the distribution of adult education activities, classified so that each adult appears in only one category. About one adult in three (34 percent) participated in only one type of adult education, and about one in eight (12 percent) participated in two or more types of activities.

Among participants in one type of educational activity, the most common activities were again work-related courses and personal development courses (both 13 percent). In addition, 6 percent of adults participated in both of these types of activities and none of the other types. Participation in these two activities, separately and in combination with each other only, accounts for 32 percent of adults, about two-thirds of the 46 percent overall participation rate. About 4 percent of adults participated in credential programs only, and about 2 percent or less participated in each of the other individual activities or combinations of activities.

As shown in table 1, the overall participation rate increases with each level of education. During the 12 months prior to the 1999 interview, the overall participation rate for adults with less than a high school diploma was 22 percent as compared to 37 percent for those with a high school diploma; 52 percent for those with some college, an associate's degree, or a vocational/technical diploma; and 62 percent for those with a bachelor's degree or higher.

Table 1 also shows that different patterns of participation are observed when examining the relationship between educational attainment and participation in the six types of adult education separately. Participation rates in work-related and personal development courses, which dominate the activities reported, increase across levels of education from very low rates among those without a high school diploma to much higher rates among those with more education. Noticeably, the participation rate in work-related courses was about nine times higher for adults with a bachelor's degree or higher than for those with less than a high school diploma. However, those with less than a high school diploma participate more in ABE/GED and ESL classes than those with a high school diploma or higher. This result is consistent with the structure of the education system, where ABE/GED and ESL programs typically enroll those with lower education levels. Participation in credential programs also reflects the structure of the education system in that those with less than a high school diploma participate at very low levels; participation is highest among those with some college, an associate's degree, or a vocational/technical diploma; and participation tapers off for those who have already attained a bachelor's degree.

Table 2 and figure 2 examine whether the same relationships between levels of participation and educational attainment emerge when participation in one type of educational activity only is contrasted with participation in multiple types of activities. Comparing those with less than a high school diploma to those with a high school diploma or more education shows this to generally be the case. However, if those with less than a high school diploma are excluded, the only positive relationships that emerge between educational attainment and participation rates are in work-related courses or in work-related courses combined with other types of courses. Because work-related participation is such a large component of overall participation, it appears to be responsible for differences in overall participation and participation in multiple types of activities by educational attainment. Other studies suggest this relationship exists because employers tend to provide training for more educated employees (Vaughan 1989) and require more educated employees to participate in work-related education (Hudson 1999).

About 90 million adults (46 percent of adults) were engaged in one or more types of adult education in the 12-month period prior to the NHES:1999 interview. This represents a significant increase in participation compared to the rates observed in NHES:1991 and NHES:1995. Adults were most likely to participate in work-related courses and personal development courses. Participation rates overall and for these two most frequent types of educational activities were positively associated with adults' educational attainment. About 2 in 10 adults without a high school diploma participated in any educational activities, compared to more than 6 in 10 adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. However, the apparent direct relationship between participation in adult education and educational attainment, on closer examination, may result from a divide between those with less than a high school diploma and others, and from participation of more highly educated adults in work-related educational activities.

Figure 2.-Percent of adults age 16 and older participating in one type or multiple types of adult education activity, by highest level of education attained:1999

⁴ Most full-time postsecondary credential seekers are "traditional" college students who are 18 to 21 years old, although many are older (Snyder, Hoffman, and Geddes 1997). Full-time postsecondary credential-seeking is often regarded as traditional schooling rather than adult education. Some analysts, however, consider nontraditional credential seekers (e.g., adults over the traditional college age range) to be adult education participants.

⁵The difference between the sum of each type of adult education (60 percent) and the overall rate (46 percent) is 14 percent. As shown in table 2, 12 percent of adults participated in more than one type of activity. This apparent discrepancy (14 percent vs. 12 percent) is due to the summation of rounded percentages across the six categories of adult education.

Data sources: The NCES National Household Education Survey (NHES), "Adult Education Interview," 1991, 1995, and 1999; Projections of Education Statistics to 2008 (NCES 98-016). For technical information, see the complete report: Kim, K., and Creighton, S. (1999). Participation in Adult Education in the United States: 1998-99 (NCES 2000-027). For additional details on survey methodology, see Nolin, M.J., Montaquila, J., Lennon, J., Kleiner, B., and Kim, K. (forthcoming) . National Household Education Survey of 1999: Data File User's Manual, Volume I (NCES 2000-076). Nolin, M.J., Montaquila, J., Nicchitta, P., Kim, K., Kleiner, B., and Lennon, J. (forthcoming). National Household Education Survey of 1999: Methodology Report (NCES 2000-078). Author affiliations: K. Kim, Westat; S. Creighton, Education Statistics Services Institute (ESSI). For questions about content, contact Peter Stowe (peter_stowe@ed.gov). To obtain the complete report (NCES 2000-027), call the toll-free ED Pubs number (877-433-7827), visit the NCES Web Site (http://nces.ed.gov), or contact GPO (202-512-1800).