Time for the United States to Reskill? The Survey of Adult Skills, shows that our highest-skilled adults remain on par with those in other leading nations, but that, on average, American students are behind other nations in every other measure. The international rankings show that in literacy, numeracy, and problem solving in a technology-rich environment, the U.S. average performance is significantly lower than the international average. The data also show that the skill levels of U.S. adults have remained stable over two decades, and that our youngest learners are not improving their skill levels. In some other countries, young adults score well above older ones and also outpace their American peers. This shows that the disadvantages children face often persist into adulthood and learning gaps, fueled by opportunity gaps, exist among American adults.
Importantly,
the report findings shine a spotlight on a portion of our population
that has historically been overlooked and underserved: the large numbers
of adults with very low basic skills. Adults who have trouble reading,
doing math, solving problems, and using technology will find the doors
of the 21st-century workforce closed to them. The OECD report offers
general recommendations as to how the U.S. can be more strategic in our
reforms for the low-skilled adult learner population.
The
report offers seven broad policy recommendations for the U.S. to
consider. The first is to “take concerted action to improve basic skills
and tackle inequities affecting sub-populations with weak skills.” This
recommendation addresses the fact that there are significant weaknesses
in the skills of the U.S. population, particularly among identified
subgroups, where the long-term consequences of the achievement gap can
be seen in the adult population. For example, Hispanics and blacks are
three-to-four times more likely to have low literacy skills than whites.
While the achievement gap in K–12 schooling has been closing steadily,
it is not erased and the adult population’s skill profiles still bear
the signs of early inequities. The OECD calls on the United States to
coordinate and align federal, state, private and philanthropic efforts
to improve workforce development efforts and maximize the effectiveness
with which efforts reach the scale and efficacy required to make real
and lasting changes to the current skills profile.
The
second recommendation, to “strengthen initial schooling for all....”
also derives from the long-term effects of poor K–12 schooling, which
remain a drag on adults’ skill proficiencies. Current education reforms,
such as attention to early learning, dropout prevention, and adoption
of more rigorous standards, should be strengthened, accelerated, and
evaluated for their continued effectiveness in preparing students with
strong skills. The OECD points to the experiences of other countries,
such as Korea and Finland, that leveraged early PISA findings (an
international skills survey conducted among 15-year-olds) as a wake up
call to marshal education reforms that have yielded lasting
improvements. The reforms undertaken and the measures of their success
are described in a previous OECD report: Strong Performers and Successful Reformers in Education: Lessons from PISA for the United States.
“Ensure
effective and accessible education opportunities for young adults” is
the third recommendation. It echoes President Obama’s call for more
Americans to complete at least one year of postsecondary education and
training in order to succeed in the 21st century global economy. It also
reflects the efforts that are underway to reform high schools by making
career and technical pathways available to more students. The OECD
recognizes that although the pipeline to education exists, many
low-skilled and low-income youth and adults are not able to complete
their degrees or training programs. Reforms to college access, cost, and
developmental education are urgently needed.
“Link
efforts to improve basic skills to employability.” This fourth
recommendation draws on previous OECD work in career and technical
education, recognizing that the integration of basic skills and
work-based learning can be a powerful accelerator for disengaged or
low-skilled youth and adults. It opens what OECD calls a “virtuous
cycle” of synergistic learning and motivation. This recommendation
requires cooperation with employers and industry groups to embed work
experiences of all kinds into education pathways and to keep
job-specific skills updated in the curriculum.
“Adapt
to diversity,” the fifth recommendation, notes that within the U.S.
adult profile is a range of distinct sub-populations with a variety of
needs, including young immigrants with language barriers, disconnected
youths, adults with learning disabilities, and dislocated workers facing
digital literacy challenges. Accordingly, the adult low-skilled
population is not homogenous. The OECD recommends developing a range of
interventions specifically targeted to the needs and strengths of the
various learners and their capacities to engage in education and
training.
The
sixth recommendation, to “build awareness of the implications of weak
basic skills among adults, their links with other social factors…”
refers to those social factors linked to skills as revealed in this
survey. These include positive civic behaviors such as voting and
volunteering, as well as improving health status and prevention
behaviors. In the U.S., the correlation between poor health status and
low literacy, numeracy, and problem-solving skills is twice as strong as
the international average. In fact, U.S. adults with low skills are
four times more likely to report only “fair” or “poor” health. This
combination presents great challenges to both the individual and the
health providers to communicate and address the prevention, management,
and treatment of disease and unhealthy behaviors.
The
final recommendation, to “support action with evidence,” recognizes
that the U.S. capacity for research and evaluation is unsurpassed and
calls on the research community to pay more attention to the education
and training of low-skilled youths and adults to identify a repertoire
of effective, replicable, and scalable practices. To jumpstart this
focus, the OECD and the Educational Testing Service are co-sponsoring a
researcher training on the dataset and analysis tools this week
(registration is full). The Department has also committed to further
training opportunities for researchers. Future issues of OVAE Connection
will give information on how to participate in these opportunities.
Stay up to date with all the PIAAC-related publications, briefings, and events at www.piaacgateway.com.
The overview and main findings of the Survey of Adult Skills were released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). This direct assessment, part of the Program of International Assessment of Adult Competencies, (PIAAC),
was conducted with nationally representative samples in 23 countries,
among adults aged 16 through 65. Based on the survey, OVAE requested
OECD to prepare the report, Time for the United States to Reskill? What
the Survey of Adult Skills Says. This report analyzes data from the
survey and details the status of American adult competencies within our
economic, demographic, and social structures and makes policy
recommendations to boost adult skill levels.
No comments:
Post a Comment