This brief highlights findings from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) in an effort to obtain a clear understanding of the ability of adults to undertake digital problem solving. This brief uses data gathered from a sample of 5,000 adults across different socio-demographic groups in the United States and compares it to international averages from 19 other countries to answer three specific study questions.
Adult Learning
Adult learners include those with little education who want to improve their literacy skills to help them transition to college, immigrants who want to learn English, students who have dropped out of school and want to get their secondary credential or take the high school equivalency tests, and adults seeking to improve their employment skills.
Adult Education Research and Technical Assistance Center (AERTAC)
The Adult Education Research and Technical Assistance Center (AERTAC) at AIR conducts research and provides technical assistance to states and local programs to improve the adult education system by promoting quality instruction and support services through better professional development, evaluation, strengthening accountability, and increasing the use of promising practices such as technology in instruction. Our projects help improve adult learners’ basic skills and English language ability to enable them to obtain secondary and postsecondary credentials, succeed in postsecondary education, and become more employable.