Poster #150 - Embedding Literacy and Numeracy in Workforce Training: Initial Evidence from Canada and Australia

• In Event: Friday Poster Reception

Abstract

Introduction / Background
Across many economies, policymakers increasingly emphasize “durable” skills—such as critical thinking, problem solving, and adaptability—as essential for workforce participation and economic resilience. Research shows that these skills do not develop independently; rather, they build on foundational competencies in literacy and numeracy that enable adults to interpret information, evaluate quantitative claims, and apply knowledge in novel and uncertain contexts (e.g., Hughes et al., 2025; Kirsch et. al., 2025; OECD, 2024). Despite this evidence, adult workforce systems often treat foundational skills as remedial prerequisites, addressed separately from job training or left outside workforce policy altogether.This study provides an analytic lens for better understanding how workforce systems integrate foundational skills and how policy variation emerges under federalist governance. By documenting how Canada and Australia use national frameworks to embed literacy and numeracy within workforce development, the study illuminates how economies prioritize these skills within policy design. These policies are distinct from the US, where responsibility for adult education and workforce development largely rests with states and may reflect responsiveness to local labor-market needs or signal the absence of coordinating architectures that support consistency, equity, and scale. 

Purpose / Research Question
This study explores how adult literacy and numeracy skills training is embedded within workforce development systems, including policy frameworks, program design, and curricular approaches, and what features appear to support that integration. 

Data
The analysis draws on publicly available policy documents, national frameworks, evaluation reports, and technical studies related to adult foundational skills and workforce development. Sources include federal agencies, research organizations, and system-level evaluations in Canada and Australia. 

Research Design and Methods
To explore how these insights are reflected in workforce policy and practice, we conducted a comparative scan of workforce development systems. We selected Canada and Australia as focal cases due to the prominence of national skills architectures and accessible public documentation. Through an iterative comparative approach, we extracted information on selected workforce programs, including policy considerations, instructional design, assessment practices, and reported outcomes. 

Results / Findings
In Canada, the Skills for Success framework established a national standard linking literacy and numeracy to transferable workplace skills, supported by federal investment and evaluation. Evidence from a randomized controlled trial demonstrates that short, workplace-embedded foundational skills training improves literacy, numeracy, job performance, retention, and earnings, particularly for workers with lower initial skill levels. In Australia, the National Foundation Skills Strategy provides a coordinated, learner-centered architecture spanning literacy, numeracy, digital, and employability skills, supported by national assessment frameworks and outcome reporting. Evaluation evidence indicates that integrating foundational skills alongside vocational education is associated with improved completion and employment outcomes.  

Conclusion / Implications
Together, these cases suggest that foundational skills can be effectively integrated into workforce training when supported by national frameworks, aligned assessment systems, employer engagement, and sustained public investment. For the U.S., the study highlights several policy features that may help inform state workforce policy and support more consistent interpretations of workforce system impacts on adult outcomes.

Authors

• Cheryl Silvia Lavigne, ETS
  Presenting Author

• Zhongxin Zheng, George Washington University
  Non-Presenting Co-Author

• Anita M. Sands, ETS Research Institute
  Non-Presenting Co-Author