Insights on adults’ social and emotional skills
English
Information is gathered from other international organizations that promote skills development and the transition from education and training to work. The Interagency Group on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (IAG-TVET) was established in 2009 to share research findings, coordinate joint research endeavours, and improve collaboration among organizations working at the international and national levels.
Lifelong learning
There is a critical need for a greater overall investment in education and training, particularly in developing countries. Education and training investments should be closely linked to economic and employment growth strategies and programmes. Responsibility should be shared between the government (primary responsibility), enterprises, the social partners, and the individual. To make lifelong learning for all a reality, countries will need to make major reforms of their vocational and education and training systems. School-to-work schemes for young people should integrate education with workplace learning. Training systems need to become more flexible and responsive to rapidly changing skill requirements. Reforms should also focus on how learning can be facilitated, not just on training for specific occupational categories.
Social and emotional skills – such as openness to experience, emotional stability and conscientiousness – shape how adults learn, work and thrive. The new OECD report, Skills that matter for success and well-being in adulthood, draws on data from the 2023 Survey of Adult Skills to highlight how these competencies influence education, employment, health and civic engagement, independently of cognitive skills like literacy and numeracy.
Join us for the launch of this report to explore what the findings mean for policy and practice. Andreas Schleicher, Director of Education and Skills at the OECD, will present key insights into how social and emotional skills vary across countries and social groups, and how they relate to adults’ learning and labour-market outcomes. A panel of international experts will discuss strategies to strengthen these skills throughout life – from schooling and higher education to workplaces and non-formal learning.
Time: 28 October 2025 at 13:00 CET
Register here: https://meetoecd1.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_YJ3qwpivQy--KE-1j_MKsA#/registration