In 2022, 46.8% of persons aged 18-69 participated in some form of formal and/or non-formal education or training, the National Statistics Office (NSO) said.
“The Adult Education Survey (AES) aims to collect data on the participation of adults in various forms of education and training: formal, non-formal and informal. This cycle of the survey, conducted in 2023, references the year 2022, and is implemented nationally in accordance with EU regulations. The survey targets adults aged 18-69 residing in private households across Malta and Gozo. For this wave of the AES, the age group considered was extended since, during previous waves, the target population referred to adults aged 25-64.”
The NSO said that less than 25% sought information about learning possibilities during 2022 (24.3%). “This percentage was slightly higher for females, with 26.8% of females within that age group seeking information, compared to 22.1% of males. When broken down by age group, the percentage of persons seeking information on learning possibilities increased with younger age groups. The highest rate was among those aged 18-24, with 43.6% seeking information.”
In 2022, 18% received some kind of guidance regarding learning opportunities, the NSO said.
“The most common type of guidance involved counselling or advice, received by 14% of persons. Screening or evaluation of individual learning needs was less common, with 7.1% undergoing such guidance. The least common form of guidance was advice or help on the validation or recognition of skills, competences, or prior learning, experienced by 5.8%.”
Almost 60% of those seeking guidance on learning opportunities in 2022 did so through education or training institutions (59.2%), it said.
“Additionally, 37.5% sought guidance from employers or prospective employers, while 21.8% sought guidance from public employment services. 28% sought guidance through other institutions or organisations, with more than one type of institution or organization possibly being accessed. A large proportion of those seeking guidance did so through methods offering interaction with a person, such as face-to-face meetings, video conferencing applications, phone, or email (72.9%). Meanwhile, 44.1% sought guidance without human interaction, such as through bots or web robots and online automatic applications. Respondents could have chosen more than one type of interaction.”
Regarding participation rates in different forms of education and training, 46.8% participated in some form of formal and/or non-formal education or training during 2022. Specifically, 11.6% participated in formal education, with a higher participation rate among females (13.9%) compared to males (9.6%, it said). “Participation rates for non-formal education and training were relatively stable between the sexes, averaging 41.8%. The participation rate in informal education and training was 52.4% for females and 51.3% for males.”
“When examining participation in formal education, the highest rate was observed in the 18-24 age cohort, with 52.6% participating in formal education during the 12 months preceding the survey. Of those participating in formal education during 2022, 41.2% attended their tuition either completely online or mostly online, while the remaining 58.8% attended either completely on-site or mostly on-site.” Regarding the type of payment for formal educational activities, 40.8% were fully paid by the respondent, 16.2% were either fully or partially paid by someone else, and 43.1% were free activities, it said.
More than two-thirds of individuals enrolled in some form of formal educational activity during the 12 months preceding the survey reported personal benefits as an outcome of their most recent formal educational activity (68.4%). “Improved performance at their current job and the introduction of new tasks were chosen as outcomes by 57.8% and 50.7% of those enrolled in formal education, respectively. Additionally, 45.3% of individuals attending formal education reported getting a job or a new job as an outcome of their most recent formal activity, while 39.3% noted a higher salary or wage as an outcome of their most recent formal activity. Furthermore, 28.6% reported a job promotion as an outcome of their most recent formal activity.”
Participation rates for non-formal education varied according to age cohorts. Younger age groups reported higher participation rates, with 54.5% and 54.7% in the 18-24 and 25-34 age groups, respectively. In comparison, 42.6% of individuals aged 35-54 participated in non-formal education, while 27.5% of those aged 55-64 participated. Participation rates for non-formal education were also higher among the employed population, with 51.5% of employed individuals participating in non-formal education, it said.
The AES sought information about four types of non-formal educational activities: courses, workshops, guided on-the-job training, and lessons. “More than half of the individuals participating in non-formal education attended courses (55.4%), while 31.3% attended workshops or seminars. Additionally, 24.8% participated in guided on-the-job training, and 5.7% attended lessons. Individuals could have attended more than one type of non-formal education activity, it said.
“Of those who participated in formal or non-formal education, 68.1% did not want to participate in more educational activities, while 31.9% wanted to participate even more. This percentage was higher for females, with 34.2% of females who participated in formal or non-formal education wanting to participate more when compared with the 29.8% for males. Among those who did not participate in formal and non-formal education, the majority (81.8%) did not want to participate in any educational activity.”
“More than half of individuals aged 18-69 participated in some form of informal educational activity during 2022 (51.8%). The age cohort reporting the highest rates was the 18-24 age group, with 62% participating in such informal educational activities. This cohort was followed by the 25-34 age group, with a participation rate of 58.3% in informal education.”