Læring i nord 2025 – Basic Skills in the Nordic countries: New data, next steps

Date: Friday, October 24, 2025
Time: 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM (CEST)
Location: Zoom (link will be sent after registration)
Target group: Education providers in formal and non-formal education, including teachers of basic skills.

Join our digital conference on basic skills in the Nordic countries! Basic skills – reading, writing, numeracy, oral skills, and digital skills – are the very foundation for active participation in society, a well-functioning daily life, and a productive working life.

In a digital Nordic region, it is nevertheless a reality that many adults still struggle with these skills. This can create barriers in everyday life and limit opportunities in the labor market.

Key questions

This seminar focuses on key questions related to basic skills in the Nordic countries:

• What significance does mastering basic skills have for the individual? How are adults who lack these skills affected, and what are the consequences for society as a whole?
• How can investing in basic skills initiatives contribute to reducing social inequalities and promoting inclusion? How can we reach vulnerable groups with relevant and effective schemes and educational offers?
• PIAAC is an important framework for mapping adult skills. We will take a closer look at the current status in the Nordic countries with PIAAC2, and discuss the way forward. What similarities and differences do we see in the results, how do we handle this challenge, and what can we learn from each other?

We want to create an inclusive arena for learning and exchange of experiences. Topics such as PIAAC, the importance of basic skills, and various measures and schemes in the Nordic countries will be central. We will focus specifically on initiatives for basic skills in the Nordic countries, and delimit against more general and transversal competencies

Programme

See the full programme for the conference here.

Practical information

Registration: Use the form below to register as a participant.

Language: The conference is in English.

Inquiries or input for the conference: Andreas Gravdahl, National Coordinator for NLL Norway at: andreas.gravdahl@hkdir.no or epale@hkdir.no.

Background material

Here you will find a link to the PIAAC article series and national reports from NLL for the various Nordic countries, which provides a good backdrop for the discussions.

Join us to explore how we in the Nordic countries can strengthen the basic skills that are so crucial for the individual and for our society.

The program will soon be available on EPALE’s website.

Organizers

• Nordic Network for Lifelong Learning (NLL) Norway
• EPALE Norway

In collaboration with

• The Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir)

Inspiration om emne