Community Learning and Development in Scotland and internationally: literature review

Annex 3: International comparisons

This annex briefly summarises the CLD context and available information sources from a selection of international comparators.

Finland

An evidence review by the OECD (2020) finds that Finland's skills system is one of the most successful in the OECD, with some of the highest levels of literacy and numeracy in the OECD according to PIAAC (Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies). PIAAC results suggest that in Finland, there is less unmet demand for adult education among adults with lower literacy proficiency, compared to the OECD average (Desjardins 2020).

Youth work support is available across a wide age range. For example the Youth Act 2017 and the Youth Policy Program 2020-2023 include everyone aged under 29 years old as a young person for the purposes of youth work in Finland (Kiilakoski 2020). There are three main actors carrying out youth activities in Finland: youth organisations, municipal youth services, and parishes / churches (Gretschel et al 2023).

Finland has seen an increase in the non-literate population, mostly due to immigration. Support available includes family literacy programmes such as the Let’s Read Together network, offering language and literacy training for immigrant women in Finland, among other literacy interventions (Malessa 2018). As of 2018, literacy training and language studies in Finnish or Swedish are provided free of charge for immigrants when this learning is included in their integration plans (European Commission 2023a). Providers include adult education centres, folk high schools, learning centres and summer universities.

The Ministry of Education and Culture makes decisions on the amounts of government transfer for education funded through the system of central government transfers. The state covers approximately half of the expenses of liberal adult education institutions. The rest is covered by the students and the owners of the institutions. The state subsidy is determined by the Act on Liberal Adult Education 1998 (European Commission, 2024a).

Denmark

PIAAC results for Denmark suggest that adults with the lowest literacy proficiency are the most likely to receive employer support (Desjardins 2020). A similar finding was reported for Finland.

Preparatory adult education (abbreviated as FVU in Danish) supports adults who need basic literacy and numeracy skills. Courses are generally free and Adult Education Centres (VUC) are the main providers (Rasmussen 2018). FVU is primarily targeted at adults aged over 25 years old who wish to improve their basic skills in reading, spelling, writing, mathematics, digital task completion, and English language (European Commission 2024c).

The Danish Government Ministry of Children and Education funds or supports a wide range of non-formal adult education opportunities. This includes, for example, 74 ‘folk high schools’ across Denmark, which offer non-formal courses on a wide variety of activities and subjects. In 2014, the Ministry of Culture launched a national vision for non-formal general education, with a focus on the protection of minorities. The Act on Non-formal General Adult Education gave municipalities autonomy to decide how much of their budget to allocate for evenings schools, youth clubs, and other learning associations (European Commission 2023b).

Course completion remains a challenge outside mainstream education. Research has found that approximately half the students enrolling in vocational education and training in Denmark do not complete the programme (Aarkrog 2020). This compares to 81% of entrants into general upper secondary education completing their programme (OECD 2023).

Adult education and training programmes are offered at state-funded self-governing institutions, which have two sources of revenue for financing their education programmes: state grants, and their own income from income-generating activities, including tuition fees (European Commission 2024b).

New Zealand

PIAAC data for New Zealand indicates that adults with low literacy proficiency are more likely to participate in adult education, compared to the OECD average (Desjardins 2020). In New Zealand, even more so than in other OECD countries, higher proficiency in literacy and numeracy have a positive impact on labour force participation and wages (OECD 2016).

The Literacy and Communication and Maths Strategy 2022 (Government of New Zealand, 2022) describes a wide range of actions to support literacy and numeracy, including building a system of ‘safety nets’ for learners along the schooling pathway, and developing supports that recognise learner neurodiversity (e.g. dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyspraxia, gifted). The Workplace Literacy and Numeracy (WLN) Fund supports employees to develop their literacy and numeracy skills, including through employer-led funding.

A range of alternatives to mainstream schooling are available e.g. Steiner Schools, Montessori Schools, Catholic Schools, or Kura Kaupapa Mãori (Mãori language immersion schools). There is an increasing interest in alternative independent schools and learning programs in New Zealand, possibly indicating a growing dissatisfaction with mainstream schooling (Rudge 2021).

Canada

PIAAC data suggests that prevalence of non-formal adult learning opportunities is high in Canada, with 53% of adults participating in at least one type of non-formal adult education activity (Desjardins 2020).

The Literacy and Essential Skills Program supports stakeholders such as post-secondary institutions, employers, and labour market groups on a wide variety of projects. There is a focus on programs supporting individuals with low skills and facing multiple barriers to employment such as Indigenous people, youth and official language minority communities (Government of Canada, 2022).

The Canadian Government-funded 2023 Youth Employment and Skills Strategy Program focuses on youth facing multiple barriers. This program supports a flexible approach tailored to each individual, which may include e.g. mentorship, mental health counselling, coaching, and paid work experiences.

Support is also available through sub-national programs. For example the Canadian province of British Columbia offer a range of Adult Upgrading support including tuition-free Adult Basic Education and English Language Learning programs (OECD 2019a).

There is some limited evidence of gaps in provision. For example exploratory research using a small sample of 5 public libraries in Canadian cities has found that opportunities for numeracy programs in public libraries is very limited (Budac et al 2020). Evidence gaps leave this area inconclusive – for example qualitative meta-analysis has found a relatively weak knowledge base of numeracy coaching in Canada, with a paucity of research in this field (Liu, Li and Zhuoma 2023).

Funding for CLD across the comparator countries

There is limited recent information available regarding how CLD is financed in Finland, Denmark, New Zealand and Canada. Specific aspects of CLD – such as youth work and adult learning for example – may be defined and delivered in different ways, with considerable variation in the funding models and the statutory and/or policy foundations. Consequently, it is difficult to make any direct comparisons of how CLD is funded across countries. The table below provides indicative examples of how some CLD initiatives are funded across the comparator countries. These examples are for illustrative purposes only and should be interpreted with caution.

Examples of CLD finance across comparator countries