Reexamining Adult Education and Training Participation by Education, Literacy, Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in the United States

• In Event: Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies Studies of Adult Literacy and Education

Abstract

The research team examined the associations between adult education and training (AET) participation, educational attainment, literacy skills, gender, race, and ethnicity among the U.S. adult population aged 25- to 65-years old (n = 5,450). As more women and racial/ethnic minorities make educational and economic advancements, it is important to re-examine AET participation by gender, race, and ethnicity. We analyzed the 2012/2014 Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) public-use file and used binary logistic regression to examine the relationship between any, formal, and non-formal AET participation and education, literacy, gender, race, and ethnicity. Generally, education and literacy were consistently associated with all types of AET. Also, there were variations in AET participation by gender, race, and ethnicity.

Authors

• Wonmai Punksungka, George Mason University

• Takashi Yamashita, University of Maryland - Baltimore County

• Abigail Helsinger, Miami University

• Jenna W. Kramer, RAND Corporation

• Phyllis A. Cummins, Miami University (OH)

• Rita T. Karam, RAND Education