Extract

Rubenson (2006) points out that there are numerous factors of inequality in adult education. They extend from individual characteristics of learners to characteristics related to institutions and a particular cultural context. Similar to a great majority of other countries the available evidence for Slovenia indicates that inequalities characteristic of youth education are also reproduced in the education of adults. People with better educational achievements profit most from education later in their lives. In this chapter we argue that the institutional environment is an important factor in the development of participation patterns of adult education in Slovenia. We especially wish to highlight the degree of openness (or lack) of the national education system with respect to the inclusion of adults who are traditionally underrepresented in formal and non-formal education. We focus on adults with less than upper secondary education, and on older age groups (older than 49 years). Access of adults to formal education is considered in particular. The chapter is primarily based on results of analyses performed in five sub-projects of the project Lifelong Learning 2010 (LLL2010).