Higher education opens doors to job enhancement and economic benefits to adult learners. Despite facing multiple barriers such as life-work-school time conflicts and financial constraints, adult learners continue to seek higher education and certifications. Rural employers also benefit from supporting degree completion or job-specific…

Newly elected Prime Minister Keir Starmer did not hold back at the launch of Skills England -- a new government agency -- in July 2024. The Labour Party's 2024 election manifesto had stated that Skills England would 'bring together business, training providers and unions with national and local government to ensure we have the highly trained…

Trade unions have a long history of providing learning for their members. After years of decline this flourished after the 1997-2010 Labour government introduced the Union Learning Fund and legal rights for union learning representatives. This article reviews that extraordinary renaissance and discusses how a new Labour government could learn the…

The paper brings together a range of debates on the left that address TVET's future in current context. At the heart of these debates rest two issues. The first addresses competing views of capital and the second focuses on the contradiction between the interests of capital and workers. The paper argues that capital is not all of a piece and that…

As the looming enrollment cliff approaches and more adult learners return to higher education, understanding the factors that affect their persistence and retention is vital for higher education institutions. Previous studies have shown that external factors influence post-traditional learners' pursuit of higher education. This program evaluation…

The concept of employability extends beyond initial occupational preparation into the ability to remain employable as, inevitably, occupational capacities and workplace requirements change frequently across working lives. Hence, the need to continually learn to remain occupationally current and respond to changing workplace requirements becomes…

Purpose: Employers often claim that the lack of employee competence is a limitation in their enterprises' success and viability. Consequently, employers are important stakeholders in considerations for workforce continuing education and training (CET) policies and practices. Hence, the authors undertook an exploratory investigation to understand…

Education and skills policy since the 1970s have exhorted employers to put themselves at the 'heart of the system', to engage voluntarily with colleges and other providers, in a range of roles and activities, some of which may be beyond their competence and experience. However, employers do have an important role to play, but that role should be…

Recent debate has highlighted the Important significance of social partnership in further education for developing new approaches to English vocational education and training (VET). There is international evidence of the contribution that well-established social partnerships between employers, unions and government can make to deliver VET…

This spotlight discusses the critical role of immigrants in the U.S. labor market and the importance of services that support their economic integration. Immigrants represent a significant and growing portion of the U.S. workforce and are essential for addressing labor market needs, especially in multilingual and diverse roles. The workforce…

Adult education, learning and skills providers are familiar with the longstanding national challenge of poor adult basic skills, and many providers use their Adult Education Budget funding to offer English and math classes for adults. In recent years, there has been a focus on supporting unemployed adults to achieve the good literacy and numeracy…

Recent trends in higher education indicate a steady increase in the number of adult and non-traditional learners returning to complete college degrees. Though higher education can provide numerous economic and career enhancement opportunities, adult learners experience several challenges when they return to college. The purpose of this qualitative…

Students, parents, and government leaders continue to question the value of higher education in general and of a liberal arts education in particular (Council of Independent Colleges, 2015; Fischer, 2022; Strauss, 2019). With students enrolling in liberal arts programs in significant numbers, and with the majority of those students now reflecting…

This book elaborates on the project of continuing education and training (CET), its purposes, practices and prospects for future models and approaches. As such, it also seeks to elaborate the needs for a means by which this important educational sector can achieve its goals both now, and in the near future. Often seen as a supplementary or…

As the UK's economy grows, in the context of global change, the needs of employers, employees and learners will also change. For the UK to prosper economically, compete internationally, and reduce economic disparities, the UK's skills base will need to be responsive and meet these changing needs. More flexible learning approaches have the…