Adult Education Survey: 2022
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.
Less than 25 per cent sought information about learning possibilities during 2022 (24.3 per cent). This percentage was slightly higher for females, with 26.8 per cent of females within that age group seeking information, compared to 22.1 per cent 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 per cent seeking information (Table 1, Chart 1).
Chart 1. Percentage of persons having sought information about learning possibilities
during the 12 months prior to the survey
No Data Found
Note: Age group 65-69 is to be used with caution as figures are under represented (between 20 and 49 sample observations).
In 2022, 18.0 per cent received some kind of guidance regarding learning opportunities. The most common type of guidance involved counselling or advice, received by 14.0 per cent of persons. Screening or evaluation of individual learning needs was less common, with 7.1 per cent 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 per cent (Table 2).
Almost 60 per cent of those seeking guidance on learning opportunities in 2022 did so through education or training institutions (59.2 per cent). Additionally, 37.5 per cent sought guidance from employers or prospective employers, while 21.8 per cent sought guidance from public employment services. 28.0 per cent sought guidance through other institutions or organisations, with more than one type of institution or organization possibly being accessed (Table 3). 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 per cent). Meanwhile, 44.1 per cent 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 (Table 4).
Regarding participation rates in different forms of education and training, 46.8 per cent participated in some form of formal and/or non-formal education or training during 2022. Specifically, 11.6 per cent participated in formal education, with a higher participation rate among females (13.9 per cent) compared to males (9.6 per cent). Participation rates for non-formal education and training were relatively stable between the sexes, averaging 41.8 per cent. The participation rate in informal education and training was 52.4 per cent for females and 51.3 per cent for males (Table 5, Chart 2).
Chart 2. Participation rates by sex
No Data Found
Notes:
1. Participation rate in formal/non-formal education is calculated based on persons who have participated in formal and/or non-formal education.
2. Participation rate in formal education is calculated based on persons who have participated in formal education.
3. Participation rate in non-formal education is calculated based on persons who have participated in non-formal education.
4. Participation rates are calculated based on the 18-69 age cohort.
When examining participation in formal education, the highest rate was observed in the 18-24 age cohort, with 52.6 per cent participating in formal education during the 12 months preceding the survey (Table 6). Of those participating in formal education during 2022, 41.2 per cent attended their tuition either completely online or mostly online, while the remaining 58.8 per cent attended either completely on-site or mostly on-site. Regarding the type of payment for formal educational activities, 40.8 per cent were fully paid by the respondent, 16.2 per cent were either fully or partially paid by someone else, and 43.1 per cent were free activities.
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 per cent). Improved performance at their current job and the introduction of new tasks were chosen as outcomes by 57.8 per cent and 50.7 per cent of those enrolled in formal education, respectively. Additionally, 45.3 per cent 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 per cent noted a higher salary or wage as an outcome of their most recent formal activity. Furthermore, 28.6 per cent reported a job promotion as an outcome of their most recent formal activity (Table 7, Chart 3).
Chart 3. Distribution of reported outcomes of the most recent formal education activity undertaken
No Data Found
Note: More than one type of outcome could have been chosen by the respondent.
Participation rates for non-formal education varied according to age cohorts. Younger age groups reported higher participation rates, with 54.5 per cent and 54.7 per cent in the 18-24 and 25-34 age groups, respectively. In comparison, 42.6 per cent of individuals aged 35-54 participated in non-formal education, while 27.5 per cent of those aged 55-64 participated. Participation rates for non-formal education were also higher among the employed population, with 51.5 per cent of employed individuals participating in non-formal education (Table 8).
The AES seeked 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 per cent), while 31.3 per cent attended workshops or seminars. Additionally, 24.8 per cent participated in guided on-the-job training, and 5.7 per cent attended lessons (Table 9, Chart 4). Individuals could have attended more than one type of non-formal education activity.
Chart 4. Participation in non-formal education by type of non-formal activity
No Data Found
Note: Persons could have attended more than one type of non-formal education activity.
Of those who participated in formal or non-formal education, 68.1 per cent did not want to participate in more educational activities, while 31.9 per cent wanted to participate even more. This percentage was higher for females, with 34.2 per cent of females who participated in formal or non-formal education wanting to participate more when compared with the 29.8 per cent for males. Among those who did not participate in formal and non-formal education, the majority (81.8 per cent) did not want to participate in any educational activity (Table 10).
Chart 5. Percentage of persons participating in informal education by type of activity
No Data Found
Note: Persons could have participated in more than one type of informal education activity.
More than half of individuals aged 18-69 participated in some form of informal educational activity during 2022 (51.8 per cent). The age cohort reporting the highest rates was the 18-24 age group, with 62.0 per cent participating in such informal educational activities. This cohort was followed by the 25-34 age group, with a participation rate of 58.3 per cent in informal education (Table 11).
The most popular form of informal learning was through the use of electronic devices, with 85.3 per cent of those participating in informal education. Additionally, 46.2 per cent participated in this form of educational activity by using printed material, 38.0 per cent through tuition provided by a family member or a friend, and 13.6 per cent through guided tours in museums, historical, or natural sites. Furthermore, 9.8 per cent attended learning centres or libraries. Individuals could have chosen more than one type of informal activity (Table 12, Chart 5). The majority of individuals participating in informal education were engaged in activities that were not job-related (62.0 per cent), while 38.0 per cent participated in informal activities that were job-related (Table 13).
Tables
Tables
Methodological Notes
1. Abbreviations:
AES Adult Education Survey
CAPI Computer assisted personal interview
CATI Computer assisted telephone interview
CVTS Continuing Vocational Training Survey
EC European Commission
EU European Union
EU-LFS Labour Force Survey
NSO National Statistics Office
PAPI Paper assisted personal interview
2. The Adult Education Survey (AES) is part of a system for collecting adult learning statistics in Europe, alongside the Labour Force Survey (EU-LFS) and the Continuing Vocational Training Survey (CVTS). While the LFS primarily focuses on the labour market, it also tracks trends in participation in formal and some types of non-formal education and training. Meanwhile, CVTS focuses on continuing vocational training within enterprises.
3. The Adult Education Survey (AES) is conducted by the National Statistics Office (NSO) in line with the European Commission (EC) Regulation No. 452/2008 concerning the production and development of statistics on education and lifelong learning and its implementing regulation (European Union (EU) Regulation No. 1175/2014). Furthermore, the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2019/1700, which establishes a common framework for European statistics on persons and households based on individual-level data collected from samples, set the framework for the modernisation of social statistics. Through this, EU data collections, such as the AES were streamlined. The implementation of this new framework affected the AES through the broadening of the age group of the target population, since during previous waves the target population referred to adults aged 25-64. In this regard, comparisons with the results of previous waves needs to be done taking into consideration the differing age groups.
4. This news release presents salient results from the fourth AES conducted by the NSO during 2023, making reference to year 2022. Previous cycles of this survey refer to the reference years of 2007, 2011 and 2016. Unless otherwise noted, all data presented in this publication pertains to reference year 2022.
● Adult education encompasses all organised educational activities, regardless of content, level, method, or formality, including apprenticeships, that extend or replace initial schooling. The aim is to help adults enhance their technical or professional skills, further their abilities, and broaden their knowledge, with goals such as completing formal education, acquiring new skills, or updating expertise in a specific area.
● Age is calculated in terms of completed years which refers to a person’s age at their last birthday prior to the data collection reference date, calculated as the time between birthdate and reference date in full years.
● Educational attainment level refers to the highest qualification which the respondent has already attained at the time of the survey. For the purpose of this news release these are classified as: at most lower secondary level, upper and post-secondary level or tertiary level. This classification is based on a more condensed version of the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED).
● Formal education refers to be education that is institutionalised and intentional which is provided through public or recognised private organisations that form a country’s formal education system. These programs are typically acknowledged by national or equivalent education authorities, and formal education generally includes initial education, vocational training, special needs education, and parts of adult education.
● Labour status refers to the main economic status which is defined as the self-perceived main economic activity status of the respondent. It is classified as follows:
Employed – Persons who are employed on a full-time or part-time basis, self-employed or family workers;
Unemployed – Persons who are actively seeking some form of employment;
Retired – Persons who are in retirement or early retirement, or gave up business,
Other inactive – Persons who are students, in training with unpaid work experience, permanently unable to work due to disability or illness, fulfilling domestic tasks and any other inactive person not previously mentioned.
● Non-formal education and training is a type of education which is structured and provided by an organisation, intended to improve skills, knowledge, and competencies as a complement to formal education. It is generally short-term, often in the form of workshops/seminars, courses or private lessons and includes guided-on-the-job training. Typically, this does not lead to recognised formal qualifications.
● Informal education involves activities intentionally pursued for educational purposes but lacks the structure and organisation found in other types of education. For the purpose of this survey the following types of informal learning activities were identified:
– Learning through tutoring/instruction from a family member, friend or colleague;
– Learning through the use of printed material, such as books, professional magazines, etc.;
– Learning through the use of electronic devices;
– Guided tours in museums, historical or natural sites; and
– Visiting learning centres or libraries.
6. Sampling design and target population
A gross sample of 5,312 persons aged 18-69 living in private households was drawn from the preliminary 2021 Census data. The sample selection was carried out through stratified random sampling with fixed margin of error per stratum which was applied to households while respecting precision requirements in terms of persons. Up to a maximum of 2 persons aged 18-69 were randomly selected from each household. The target population accounts for 366,883 persons (source: end-of-year demographic population estimates).
7. Reference period
– The reference period was the 12 months period prior to the date of interview.
– Data collection period was between 7th January and 17th April of 2023.
8. Questionnaire design
The questionnaire was drafted to meet the standards outlined in the aforementioned regulations and adheres to Eurostat’s implementation guidelines. The survey methodology has been designed at Eurostat level and aims to enhance the harmonisation and comparability of results across Europe. The questionnaire’s structure was specifically designed to make it easier for respondents to complete, reducing the likelihood of missing data and minimising potential misunderstandings of the questions.
9. Data collection method
Data was collected using a face-to-face interview method. For the majority of the respondents the questionnaire was filled using a computer assistance (CAPI/CATI) – 90.6 per cent. Less than 10 per cent of respondents filled in the questionnaire through a paper assisted personal interview (PAPI) – 9.4 per cent.
Before data collection began, each selected household received an information letter about the survey, which included contact details for the responsible unit. Throughout the data collection period, technical support was provided to both households and interviewers by internal staff. Additionally, follow-up actions were carried out to ensure full population coverage and to clarify any conflicting or ambiguous information.
10. Response rate
The overall effective response rate for the 2022 AES stood at 81.4 per cent, and had the following breakdown:
| Table A. Response rate of gross and effective sample for AES 2022 | |||
| No. | % gross sample | % effective sample | |
| Sampled persons | 5,312 | 100.0 | - |
| Ineligible persons | 110 | 2.1 | - |
| Effective sample | 5,202 | 97.9 | 100.0 |
| Refusals | 189 | 3.6 | 3.6 |
| Other non-contacts and rejected questionnaires | 777 | 14.6 | 14.9 |
| Net responding persons | 4,236 | 79.7 | 81.4 |
The resulting responding sample provided the following distribution at individual level, by age group and sex:
| Table B. Distribution of respondents by age group and sex for AES 2022 | |||
| Age group | Total | Male | Female |
| Total | 4,236 | 2,159 | 2,077 |
| 18-24 | 1,441 | 787 | 654 |
| 25-34 | 514 | 272 | 242 |
| 35-54 | 1,408 | 673 | 735 |
| 55-64 | 599 | 293 | 306 |
| 65-69 | 274 | 134 | 140 |
11. Weighting
Through the application of post-stratification weighting, estimates are produced based on the target population by breakdowns of sex, age group and district of residence. The following table presents the distribution of persons by age group and sex after weighting each respondent:
| Table C. Estimated population distribution by age group and sex for AES 2022 | |||
| Age group | Total | Male | Female |
| Total | 366,883 | 195,318 | 171,565 |
| 18-24 | 37,978 | 20,628 | 17,350 |
| 25-34 | 90,946 | 49,815 | 41,131 |
| 35-54 | 149,807 | 80,271 | 69,536 |
| 55-64 | 60,757 | 30,770 | 29,987 |
| 65-69 | 27,395 | 13,834 | 13,561 |
12. Sampling errors
Since this is a sample survey, the results are estimates and may not perfectly represent the entire target population. They are based on data from sampled respondents, as detailed in the data collection methodology, and reflect approximate values that would be obtained if everyone in the target population were surveyed. The degree of error depends on how much certain categories of information vary among individuals and how representative the sample is within each category. This error, known as sampling error, results from using a sample rather than the entire population, and a flagging system was implemented to identify results with higher sampling errors in the published data:
u Under represented (between 20 and 49 sample observations)
: Unreliable survey estimates (less than 20 sample observations)
Non-sampling errors, which affect all surveys, also impact the report results and are not quantifiable. These errors arise from factors like respondent inaccuracies, interviewer or staff mistakes, and while efforts were made to minimize them, they remain and should be considered by data users.
13. Data processing and quality assurance
During the interviews, responses were recorded by the interviewer into a system which was designed specifically for AES to eliminate post-interview data entry errors. This method allows for automatic validation using built-in logic checks within the software. Interviewer audits were performed regularly to ensure data quality. The data analysis for the AES 2022 involved rigorous data verification and consistency checks. During data collection, efforts were made to minimize item non-response as much as possible. Nonetheless, some non-response persisted which required corrective actions during data analysis. Missing information was subsequently imputed using auxiliary and administrative data or suitable statistical methods.
14. Confidentiality
As with all surveys conducted by the NSO, the AES is regulated by the Malta Statistics Authority Act (XXIV of 2000). This legislation grants the NSO the authority to gather private and personal data solely for statistical purposes, while simultaneously prohibiting the Office from sharing any identifiable information with third parties.
15. More information relating to this release may be accessed at:
2022 AES implementation manual
16. Totals/percentages may not tally due to rounding.
17. A detailed news release calendar is available online.
18. References to this news release are to be cited appropriately. For guidance on access and re-use of data please visit our dedicated webpage.
19. For further assistance send your request through our online request form.
Adult Education Survey: 2022
- In 2022, 46.8 per cent of individuals participated in various forms of formal and/or non-formal education or training.
- 11.6 per cent engaged in formal education, 13.9 per cent of females participated compared to 9.6 percent of males.
- 41.8 per cent of persons took part in non-formal education during the same year.
- The participation rate of persons in informal education and training were 52.4 per cent for females and 51.3 percent for males.
- With regards to information-seeking behaviour, 24.3 per cent of individuals sought information regarding learning opportunities throughout 2022.
