Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The National Adult Learning Survey 2000 (NALS) surveyed 4,885 adults in England and Wales on their adult learning experiences. The first survey in the series, conducted in 1997 (held at the UK Data Archive (UKDA) under SN 3815), collected information about respondents' involvement in both taught and non-taught learning through a series of questions, each of which was designed to capture a particular aspect of learning. Respondents were asked if they had undertaken each type of learning in the past three years, or since leaving continuous full-time education, whichever was more recent. The 2000 survey was intended as an update of the 1997 study, and was designed, as far as possible, to replicate all aspects of it. The questionnaire for the 2000 survey was, however, redesigned to include questions regarding policy interest, and in addition to interviewing a nationally representative sample of people aged 16-69 years, the survey also included a further 1,205 interviews with people in the same age range who had a long-term health problem or disability. For comparability purposes, the key learning questions were kept as similar to those in the 1997 survey as possible, but the precise context in which these questions were asked clearly varied between the two waves. Note for prospective users The depositor strongly advises that the other studies in the NALS series should be used for analysis rather than this one. The 1997 study is held at UKDA under SN 3851, the 2001 study under SN 4455 and the 2002 study under SN 4681.

Main Topics:

The dataset covered various topics, including profiles of certain groups, namely learners, non-learners, those in full-time education, vocational and non-vocational learners, learners by region, and respondents still in full-time continuous education. Information on the key characteristics used in predicting learning participation is also included. Variables also include recent taught learning episodes, including age and gender by type of learning, work status when learning episode started and length of learning episode. Also covered are mode of tuition, subject of learning, qualifications obtained, where learner first heard about the course, employer involvement in learning, reasons for starting taught learning, perceived benefits of the learning, problems with taught learning, post-course support, costs of taught learning, and non-taught learning in the three years prior to the survey (on the job training, professional development, other self-taught learning), and a range of other issues concerned with adult learning.

Multi-stage stratified random sample

Face-to-face interview

computer-assisted