Does Nonformal Education Matter? Nonformal Education, Immigration, and Skills in Canada

Abstract

This article examined the relationship between participation in adult nonformal education (NFE), defined as on-the-job training, attending private lessons, attending seminars, or distance learning, and Canadian immigrant respondents’ literacy and numeracy outcomes, using data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies Survey. We found that although participation in some forms of NFE was significantly related to higher literacy and numeracy scores, such relationship tended to be greater for first-generation immigrants than for nonimmigrant adults, even after controlling for their linguistic and formal educational background. Our findings suggested that first-generation immigrants in Canada might benefit the most from increased participation in NFE programs and targeted policies.

Exploring the Contributions of Non-Formal Education to the Development of Human Capital in Southern Nigeria

“…They found that soft-skills such as communication skills, numeracy, organizational planning skills, leadership and decision-making skills and competences were developed through youth involvement in non-formal education in youth organizations. Similarly, the finding lends credence to Krupar, Harvatek. And Byan (2017) that participation in non-formal education increased the scores of participants in areas such as literacy and numeracy skills.…”

PIAAC Numeracy Skills and Home Use Among Adult English Learners

“…Non-formal education may particularly benefit numeracy skills of immigrants (Krupar, Horvatek, & Byun, 2017). Having skills to process and communicate mathematical information is foundational to immigrants' full participation in society, argue Batalova and Fix (2015).…”

“…Initial PIAAC research indicates that immigrant adults tend to struggle with both literacy and numeracy compared with native-born adults (Batalova & Fix, 2015Krupar et al, 2017;Massing & Schneider, 2017;OECD, 2018). One in six U.S. adults are first-generation immigrants, compared with approximately 1 in 4 in Canada and 1 in 3 in Australia (Perry, 2017).…”

“…These covariates include educational attainment, parental education, and self-reported health status. Respondents' educational attainment is measured in three categories: less than high school (LHS), high school (HS), and postsecondary (PSE) levels (Krupar et al, 2017). Parent's highest education level is the higher of either mother's or father's education attainment, dummy coded (0) to less than high school (LHS) or high school or college degree (1); 26 adults did not know their parents' education attainment so are missing these data.…”

Μαθαίνοντας Την Ελληνική Ως Δεύτερη Γλώσσα Σε Μη-Τυπικές Μορφές Εκπαίδευσης

“…Η εκπαιδευτική διαδικασία στο πλαίσιο της μητυπικής εκπαίδευσης φαίνεται να είναι πιο αποτελεσματική • Ng & Shan, 2010• Gibb & Handon, 2010• Andersson & Fejes, 2010• Alfred, 2010• Jackson, 2010• Kim, 2010. Η συμμετοχή των μεταναστών/τριών-προσφύγων σε μορφές μη-τυπικής εκπαίδευσης σχετίζεται με την πιο συστηματική καλλιέργεια του γραμματισμού στο πλαίσιο των συγκεκριμένων δομών (Krupar, Horvatek & Byun, 2017 (Norton, 2000). (Shavard, 2014, σελ.…”