Handbook on best practice methods for Basic skills trainings Best practice handbook | Seite 10
10
Brief summary of the situation in project countries, also regional focus
Italy
In Italy, the mean proficiency score of 16-65 year-olds in literacy, numeracy and digital
skills are significantly below the average of the OECD.
Many stakeholders mentioned that a relatively large share of Italian employees do not
have the skills needed to function at work, such as knowledge of a foreign language
(especially English), computer literacy, and the understanding of the basic requirements
of a business and work environment.
A major challenge is that only about 14% of low-skilled adults in Italy participate in
adult learning, a share lower in only two other OECD PIAAC countries. Millions of these
adults will be of working age for decades to come and will struggle to adapt to changes in the
economy and society.
The majority of low-skilled adults reported that they neither participated nor wanted
to participate in education or training, which may suggest that employers’ demand for, and
use of, adults’ skills may be too weak in certain Italian regions and sectors to motivate low-
skilled adults to further develop their skills. Among low - skilled adults who report
wanting to participate in adult learning, the most commonly cited barrier was a lack of time
due to work and family responsibilities.
Spain
Close to ten million adults in Spain have either a low level of literacy, digital skills or of
numeracy. Roughly two-thirds of these low - skilled adults will still be in the labor market ten
years from now and over one -third of them will still be working twenty years from now. In
practical terms, people with less than level 2 proficiency in literacy or numeracy have
difficulty with simple written information and struggle with basic quantitative reasoning
respectively.
Low skilled adults in Spain are not only less likely to participate in education and training
than their more highly skilled Spanish counterparts but also if compared to low skilled
adults in other OECD countries. This is despite the fact that Spain has a relatively
comprehensive and flexible adult education system and provides a wide variety of
measures to support adult education and training, including a number which specifically target
low skilled adults.
Norway
Data from the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) shows that on average, adults in Norway are
more proficient in literacy, numeracy and digital skills in technology-rich environments than
the average across all participating countries. However, a relatively large share of the
adult population in Norway has poor foundation skills. Looking to the future, perhaps of
greater concern is the finding that Norway’s young adults are below average in literacy and
are average in numeracy when compared with their peers in other countries.
Although PIAAS results are above the average, about 400 000 adults score at level one or
below in reading and almost 500 000 score at level one or below in numeracy. Immigrants,