ERIC ED594461: Recognition, Validation and Accreditation of Youth and Adult Basic Education as a Foundation of Lifelong Learning

2018·0.23 MB·English

by  ERIC

United Nations
Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization
RECOGNITION, VALIDATION and ACCREDITATION
of youth and adult basic education as a
foundation of lifelong learning
RECOGNITION, VALIDATION and ACCREDITATION
of youth and adult basic education as a
foundation of lifelong learning
Published in 2018 by the UNESCO Institute
for Lifelong Learning, Hamburg
© UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning
ISBN: 978-92-820-1229-1
This publication is available in Open Access
under the Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC-
BY-SA 3.0 IGO) license (http://creativecommons.
org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content
of this publication, the users accept to be bound
by the terms of use of the UNESCO Open Ac-
cess Repository (http://www.unesco.org/open-
access/terms-use-ccbysa-en)
The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning
(UIL) undertakes research, capacity-building,
networking and publication on lifelong learning
with a focus on adult and continuing education,
literacy and non-formal basic education.
Its publications are a valuable resource for
education researchers, planners, policy-makers
and practitioners.
While the programmes of UIL are established
along the lines laid down by the General
Conference of UNESCO, the publications
of the Institute are issued under its sole
responsibility. UNESCO is not responsible for
their contents. The points of view, selection
of facts and opinions expressed are those of
the authors and do not necessarily coincide
with official positions of UNESCO or UIL. The
designations employed and the presentation
of material in this publication do not imply
the expression of any opinion whatsoever on
the part of UNESCO or UIL concerning the
legal status of any country or territory, or its
authorities, or concerning the delimitations of
the frontiers of any country or territory.
Design by Christiane Marwecki
2
CONTENTS
Foreword 5
Acknowledgements 6
1 Introduction 7
1.1 Background 7
1.2 Project rationale and aims 8
1.3 Research questions 9
2 Principles 11
2.1 Lifelong learning 11
2.2 Formal, non-formal, and informal learning 11
2.3 Basic education 12
2.4 Competence and learning outcomes 12
2.5 The UNESCO principles for RVA 12
3 Policy 14
3.1 Driving forces and beneficiaries 14
3.2 Legislative frameworks 15
3.3 Qualifications frameworks 16
3.4 Access, targeting and responsiveness 17
3.5 Integration and stakeholdership 18
4 Practice 20
4.1 The RVA process and phases 20
4.2 Engagement and guidance 21
4.3 Recognition and documentation 21
4.4 Assessment and validation 22
4.5 Accreditation and certification 23
4.6 Progression and partnership 24
4.7 Quality and learner-centredness 25
5. Conclusions and key messages 26
5.1 Twelve conclusions 26
5.2 Key policy messages 27
5.3 Further research 28
Glossary 29
Bibliography 31
CONTENTS 3
FOREWORD

Basic education is not only a right of individuals; adults without basic education to complete such
it is essential if societies and economies are to processes successfully.
thrive and become sustainable in challenging
times. But how can this be achieved when so In 2015, UNESCO’s Section of Partnerships,
many people have never had an opportunity Cooperation and Research began a study1 on
to benefit from education and so many others the RVA of the outcomes of non-formal and
leave the initial phase of education without informal learning within the framework of
attaining the level of proficiency in literacy and ‘Rethinking Learning in a Complex World’, a
numeracy needed to participate fully in society? programme funded by the Swedish International
How can young people and adults acquire the Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). This
competences they need in order to cope with the programme aims to strengthen UNESCO’s
challenges life is certain to throw at them? The observatory function in education and to
scale of the problem is large yet qualifications contribute to the global debate on foundational
systems in many societies still limit their focus principles that can guide education policy and
to qualifications acquired formally. As a result, practice for the future. As part of this, UNESCO
a large part of individuals’ learning remains HQ and UIL established an international expert
unrecognized, in particular the learning of those working group to examine policies, systems
excluded from formal education. In addition, and practical approaches for the RVA of non-
many systems do not offer opportunities for formal and basic education. This was supported
young people and adults to re-engage in learning by a literature review and recent studies which
pathways that have been interrupted. This can focus on levels of basic education among youth
result in a significant loss of human potential. and adults required as a foundation for lifelong
learning.
The non-formal and informal learning of young
people and adults should be made visible and This report summarizes the research and
valued. Systems should be in place to ensure it discussion of the expert group, drawing on three
is recognized, assessed and accredited. This has meetings held by UNESCO in 2016, as well as
been acknowledged in a number of important a literature review. It focuses on three themes
policy documents, frameworks and guidelines, – principles, policy and practice – and provides
which set the scene for the current report. examples of how the issue is being approached
across the world. It offers 12 conclusions based
Since 2005, UNESCO has advocated the on the evidence gathered and proposes a number
importance of the recognition, validation of key messages for stakeholders in Member
and accreditation (RVA) of the outcomes of States. The aim is to support Member States to
non-formal and informal learning for youth improve and recalibrate their approaches to the
and adults (Singh, 2015). More recently, the RVA of non-formal and basic education so that
UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL), young people and adults who have already been
in partnership with UNESCO’s Section of let down by the formal education system are not
Partnerships, Cooperation and Research, has failed again.
undertaken a number of comprehensive analyses
of policy and practice in this area. These studies David Atchoarena
have highlighted the need to focus on the RVA Director, UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning
of youth and adult basic education. Globally, the
scale of need is enormous. But there remain
significant challenges in integrating RVA of the 1 This research project relates to Expected Result 11 of UNESCO’s
Medium-Term Plan for 2014–2017 (37 C/5): ‘The future education agenda
outcomes of non-formal and informal learning and global education policies are shaped drawing on UNESCO’s research
at the basic education level into existing RVA and foresight studies.’ It is also related to two results of UIL's Medium-
Term Strategy 2014–2021 under the Lifelong Learning Policies and
systems and in enabling young people and Strategies (LLPS) and Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) programmes.
4 FOREWORD
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This report is the result of a joint study The UNESCO staff who participated in, guided
initiated by UNESCO’s Section of Partnerships, and contributed to the expert group meetings:
Cooperation and Research, within the Division Borhene Chakroun, Katrien Daelman, Ulrike
for Education 2030 Support and Coordination Hanemann, Huong Le Thu, Maya Prince, Madhu
(ED/ESC/PCR), and the UNESCO Institute for Singh, Sobhi Tawil, Raúl Valdés-Cotera and
Lifelong Learning (UIL). We would like to thank Carlos Vargas Tamez.
all those who gave their time and expertise in
support of the project, in particular the following: Consultant Mark Ravenhall for his hard work
and expertise in developing the final draft of
The consultants in charge of drafting the the publication.
literature and policy reviews: Rudolf C. Duvekot
(lead coordinator), Guy Fortier and Jorge Jeria. The UNESCO staff, current and former, who
provided technical, logistical or administrative
The members of the expert group: Nourah Al assistance, including colleagues from UIL,
Hendasi, Malik Althuwaynee, Gabriel Aranguiz, UNESCO’s Section of Partnerships, Cooperation
Abdel Rahamane Baba-Moussa, Hamidou and Research, and UNESCO’s Section of Youth,
Boukary, Laura Brewer, Gina Ebner, Muhammad Literacy and Skills Development.
Hasbi Samto, Isabel Infante, Andrée Langevin,
Henrique Lopes, Veronica McKay, Sara Elena This report was prepared as part of the
Mendoza-Ortega, Francesca Operti, Magali ‘Rethinking Learning in a Complex World’
Robitaille, Edilene Rodrigues Vieira Aguiar, research programme coordinated by UNESCO’s
Sanjeev Roy, S.Y. Shah and Ernesto Villalba Garcia. Section of Partnerships, Cooperation and
Research, with generous funding from the
The participants who provided inputs to specific Swedish International Development Cooperation
country cases: Mohamed Alaoui, Nizar Ata, Dae Agency (SIDA).
Joong Kang, Bonnie Kennedy, Isabelle Levert-
Chiasson, Monia Mghirbi, Fjóla María Lárusdóttir,
Janine Voit and Saskia Weber Guisan.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 5
INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background The Recommendation on Adult Learning and
Education, adopted by the UNESCO General
Today’s complex and fast-changing world Conference in November 2015, establishes that
makes it necessary for individuals to acquire ‘learning outcomes from participation in non-
and develop competences (knowledge, skills formal and informal adult learning and education
and attitudes) through all forms of learning to should be recognized, validated and accredited
cope with the various challenges life presents. as having equivalent values to those granted
However, national qualifications systems by formal education (for example, through
in many societies still limit their focus to National Qualifications Frameworks) to allow for
qualifications acquired in formal educational continuing education and access to the labour
institutions. As a result, a large part of market, without facing discrimination barriers’
individuals’ learning remains unrecognized, (UNESCO and UIL, 2016, p. 13).
in particular the learning of those excluded
from formal education opportunities. Many Rethinking Education: Towards a global common
people’s motivation and confidence to continue good? posits that the recognition and validation
learning is not effectively encouraged; and, of knowledge and competences acquired
where such motivation exists, access is very through multiple learning pathways are part
often not enabled. This leads to a significant of a lifelong learning framework (UNESCO,
under-utilization of human talent and resources. 2015b). The report reinforces the critical role
The learning outcomes that young people and of lifelong and life-wide learning in adapting
adults acquire in the course of their lives in to new employment patterns and increased
non-formal and informal settings need to be labour market and geographical mobility. It
made visible, assessed and accredited, as has argues that the operationalization of open and
been recognized in a number of important policy flexible lifelong learning systems depends on
reports, frameworks and guidelines. mechanisms for the recognition, validation
and accreditation (RVA) of knowledge and
The Belém Framework for Action, adopted competencies across educational and working
by 144 delegations of UNESCO Member spaces. This is because the competences we
States in 2009, called on UNESCO ‘to develop need throughout life are continually changing,
guidelines on all learning outcomes, including which demands multiple learning pathways and
those acquired through non-formal and informal recognition that learning is a ‘continuum’ in
learning, so that these may be recognized and which formal education overlaps and interacts
validated’ (UIL, 2010, p. 9). with informal and non-formal forms of learning.
The subsequent UNESCO Guidelines for the Furthermore, the question of proficiency
Recognition, Validation and Accreditation of levels in literacy and numeracy and successful
the Outcomes of Non-formal and Informal completion of basic education has been
Learning (UIL, 2012) were developed through a highlighted in the Education 2030 Framework
participatory process involving consultation with for Action for the implementation of Sustainable
Member States in order to reflect their diverse Development Goal 4. This urges that ‘by 2030,
experiences and needs. These guidelines all young people and adults across the world
acknowledged the need to ‘provide special should have achieved relevant and recognized
support through flexible arrangements for early proficiency levels in functional literacy and
school-leavers, adults with special learning numeracy skills that are equivalent to levels
needs, people and workers with low levels of achieved at successful completion of basic
education and those excluded from the labour education’ (UNESCO, 2015a, p. 20).
market’ (UIL, 2012, p. 5).
INTRODUCTION 7
The current study builds on this work. It draws Globally, in 2015, there were an estimated
on the above-mentioned studies and an 781 million adults who could not read or write
extensive literature review to examine policies, a simple sentence. However, the level of need
systems and practical approaches to the RVA is not equally distributed across the world and
of non-formal and basic education. there is a correlation between literacy levels
and early school-leaving and lack of access to
basic education. The problem is most acute
1.2 Project rationale and aims in sub-Saharan Africa and South/West Asia
(UNESCO, 2015c). In Asia-Pacific, 456 million
The rationale for this work is three-fold. First, the adults remain without reading and writing skills
scale of need is significant and increasing in the (UIL, 2016). Elsewhere, a survey of adult literacy
context of globalization, a process characterized and education programmes conducted in Latin
by a blurring of boundaries between formal, America and the Caribbean by the UNESCO
non-formal and informal learning. Changes in the Institute for Statistics (UIS) in 2013 showed
global education landscape have meant ‘growing that, with a few exceptions (Cayman Islands,
recognition of the importance and relevance Trinidad and Tobago, Chile and Peru), in the
of learning outside formal institutions’ and a majority of the countries less than 40 per cent
move towards ‘mixed, diverse and complex of the adult population has completed secondary
learning landscapes in which formal, non-formal (basic) education (UIS, 2013).
and informal learning occur through a variety of
educational institutions and third-party providers’ The problem is acute, even in the Global North.
(UNESCO, 2015b, p. 48). This calls for ‘a more In Europe, for example, close to 70 million
fluid approach to learning as a continuum, youths and adults lack basic reading and writing
in which schooling and formal education skills.21 More cannot use numbers or digital tools
institutions interact more closely with other less properly in everyday life. Without these skills,
formalized educational experiences from early they are at high risk of poverty, unemployment
childhood throughout life’ (ibid.). and social exclusion. On average, around one-
quarter of Europeans in the 25–64 age group
Second, although there has been some progress do not have an upper-secondary education
in the development of RVA policy and practice qualification. In some countries, the share is
since 2009, much of the progress has been at over 40 per cent and as high as 57 per cent
higher and technical education levels. There is (European Commission, 2016).
an evident need for more work on recognizing
non-formal and informal learning, particularly at The OECD reports that low skills are found in
the basic education level. all countries across the globe, and that these
low skills pose serious problems for individuals
Third, this aspect of RVA is under-researched trying to cope with work and life in modern
and, consequently, not consistently well societies where demand for literacy skills is on
understood. This gap in our understanding the increase (OECD, 2013). These skills should
needs to be addressed, not least because it has not be thought of simply as those that cater
important messages for the development of directly to the needs of the labour market (what
effective, innovative whole-system approaches might be described, narrowly, as ‘employability’
to RVA (Singh, 2015, p. 3). skills). As the third Global Report on Adult
Learning and Education (GRALE 3) makes clear,
1.2.1 Rationale for the project adult learning and education that ‘meet personal,
social, political or cultural needs can be a key
Worldwide, hundreds of millions of young pathway to developing … employability and
people and adults have not had the opportunity productivity in the labour market’ (UIL, 2016,
to acquire foundational skills through sufficient p. 88). As GRALE 3 also notes, low levels of
basic schooling of adequate quality. Higher basic education and skills can be a barrier not
numbers still do not have a formally recognized
qualification, which limits their career chances at
work as well as their access to further education
2 The results from the second round of the PIAAC survey covering
opportunities (UNESCO, 2016). 33 countries (out of which seven are not from the Western Europe and
North America region) show similar trends: in almost all countries, a
sizable proportion of adults (18.5 per cent on average) have poor reading
skills and poor numeracy skills (22.7 per cent on average), and around
one in four adults has no or only limited experience with computers
(OECD, 2016).
8 INTRODUCTION
only to employment but also to self-fulfilment 1.2.2 Approach and aims
and full participation in social, civic and
community life (ibid., p. 107). The international expert group comprised
representatives from nine Member States across
Surveys indicate a discrepancy between five regions (Africa, Arab States, Asia-Pacific,
qualification level and actual competence, Europe-North America and Latin America-
as defined by the OECD. Many people with Caribbean), with staff from the UNESCO
low skills hold upper-secondary education Education Sector and UIL, and specialist
certificates. On the other hand, there are research consultants. The group met three times
also those with few formal qualifications in 2016 to:
who demonstrate higher competences. Such
surveys thus indicate a discrepancy between • analyse existing policies and strategies, as
qualification level and the competence measured reported in the relevant literature;
in a survey. Drawing consequences from these • review available research on existing
surveys, Schuetze and Casey (2006) argue that systems and approaches in different
mechanisms of assessment and recognition regions;
are necessary because we need to recognize • assess how RVA mechanisms for basic
life-wide learning and potential of learning rather education operate (trends, challenges and
than focusing simply on qualifications or the emerging practice);
reputation of certain institutions. ‘Therefore, • identify research gaps and areas of further
assessing and recognising knowledge that has research;
not been learned in and certified by the formal • synthesize findings and formulate
education system is a major conceptual as well preliminary policy recommendations.
as practical problem’ (Schuetze and Casey, 2006,
quoted in Singh, 2015, p. 19). The ultimate aim was to come up with an
approach that would enable disadvantaged
Almost three-quarters (71 per cent) of the young people and adults to have the learning,
139 Member States that responded to GRALE 3 competences and work experience they have
reported that they have a policy framework to acquired in various contexts made visible and
recognize, validate and accredit informal and recognized, starting from the lowest levels of
non-formal learning (UIL, 2016). Much of the basic education, through sensitive policies,
progress in developing approaches to RVA operational systems and support mechanisms.
in non-formal learning, however, had been
at tertiary level in vocational training and in
higher education. Since the publication of the 1.3 Research questions
2012 UNESCO Guidelines for the Recognition,
Validation and Accreditation of the Outcomes The following questions guided the research
of Non-formal and Informal Learning, there project. For the purposes of this report, they are
have been other significant reports that address organized under two thematic headings: policy
the need for more and better approaches and practice.
to RVA in education, though non-formal and
basic education have, overall, continued to Policy
be neglected (Singh, 2015). Nevertheless,
UNESCO felt that lessons could be learned • What are the driving forces behind a
from the progress made to date to develop growing interest in RVA policies and
strategies for RVA in basic education and to mechanisms? Who benefits? How well do
ensure its integration into existing systems. these policies respond to the (variety of)
The ultimate aim must be the development of needs of disadvantaged youth and adults?
coherent approaches which encompass formal • To what extent do existing national policies
and non-formal learning pathways at all levels of include provisions for the recognition,
education, so that these can be integrated into validation and accreditation of informal and
coherent systems. non-formal learning at a basic level?
• How can learning among the most
disadvantaged population groups be better
integrated into lifelong learning strategies?

INTRODUCTION 9
• How are RVA policies addressing the • What kind of qualifications and certificates
learning needs of out-of-school populations are provided to learners of non-formal basic
which have completed a basic literacy education programmes? What is their ‘value’
programme? in society and in the labour market, as well
as for the individual?
Practice • Which pedagogical approaches and tools
are used to establish equivalency between
• How does RVA work in practice? Which formal and non-formal pathways and how is
systems and mechanisms are in place? How quality of teaching and learning assured?
inclusive are their ways of operating? How • Which pedagogical approaches and support
can they be implemented on a larger scale? mechanisms in RVA can help non-literate and
• What lessons can be learned from the use ‘under-schooled’ young people and adults
of RVA in other sub-sectors? engage/re-engage in learning?
• How well do equivalency programmes • What role do career counselling and
function with regard to the provision of guidance services in RVA play in encouraging
recognized qualifications? How can they participation and retention among
make better use of RVA mechanisms? disadvantaged population groups, including
• How do RVA strategies enable progression those in rural areas?
in education and the attainment of • Are there any alternative approaches that
recognized qualifications? show how RVA can provide an effective
bottom-up approach to engaging learners at
the basic level in lifelong learning that (also)
leads to recognized certificates?
10 INTRODUCTION