Our Research

The Institute for Adult Learning conducted the TAE Landscape Study 2 (2021–2023) to examine changes in the TAE sector. As the second iteration of the TAE Landscape series, it explores shifts in the profile of TAE organisations and professionals, TAE jobs and skills, as well as developments in TAE business and practice.

Our intent in undertaking this research is to develop and uncover how the TAE sector can move towards teaching, and learning enables our learners to thrive in changing circumstances. Our objectives are to: • Develop a framework for future-oriented pedagogical practices • Develop change processes for individual Adult Educators and systems (training providers, institutions, and policy)

This mixed methods study seeks to better understand the impact of workplace discrimination, harassment and related injury (DHI) on career trajectories and employment vulnerability, and to help inform policy decisions on navigating any challenges faced in workplace DHI in order to ensure fair, inclusive and safe work practices (including recruitment, dismissal, promotion and access to training) and the work environment.

This is a collaborative research piece between IAL and UCL Institute of Education’s LLAKES and CGHE research centres. The first objective of this collaboration is to assess the current state of the Singaporean graduate labour market through the lens of graduate jobs and provide important intelligence on demand trends in times of continued expansion of higher education and changing demand patterns brought on by technological change and increased competition on globalised markets. The second objective is to draw on the OECD PISA and PIAAC data to explore the variation across countries, and in particular Singapore, in changes to levels and distributions of core skills (Literacy, Numeracy and Problem-Solving) between age 15 and early adulthood, through the stage of upper-secondary education and training.

While most workers maintain stable employment over their career, an increasing proportion of tertiary graduates (i.e. those with polytechnic diploma and above) have been experiencing worsening employment outcomes even before the pandemic. These individuals face difficulties gaining employment or re-employment, and may be entrenched in short-term or casual work earning low incomes. This study seeks to provide further understanding on employment vulnerability in Singapore by examining the extent to which individuals experience EV, the nature of EV, the role that individuals and employers play in mitigating EV, and suggest possible intervention measures that can help to mitigate EV. Time-ordered sequential information is collected over an individual’s work life span since graduation, on a multitude of variables that may affect employment or career decisions. The surveys is implemented on a large nationally representative sample with a focus on individuals with diploma and higher education and companies in industries that who are unemployed or left the labour force due to inability to find work.

This Critical Core Skills (CCS) profiling and development project is commissioned by SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) to seek an understanding of how CCS are distributed and developed in different occupations. This study adopts a mixed method approach, that is, it uses both quantitative and qualitative methods to achieve the research aims.

IAL and the University of Bristol (UoB) jointly conducted the COVID-19 Educator Online Survey in Singapore during May and June 2020. The project aims to capture educators’ perspectives to understand the impact of online learning on adult educators, learners and learning, current and long-term impact on education institutions/training providers, higher education/TAE sector, and potential changes to the future of education due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The project aims to capture educators’ perspectives to understand the impact of online learning on adult educators, learners and learning, current and long-term impact on education institutions/training providers, higher education/TAE sector, and potential changes to the future of education due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is an international survey designed to measure a range of skills that adults use in their work and daily lives – such as reading, finding information and using computers - as well as their education and work experience. It is the second cycle of the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), an initiative of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The first cycle was conducted from 2011 to 2018.

Skills and Learning Study (SLS) is the third iteration of the Skill Utilisation series which aims to track skills utilisation in Singapore. Lifelong learning is a new area added into this iteration. This study will provide a set of continued skills utilisation measures in Singapore as well as a baseline measure of Singapore’s level of lifelong learning.