Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC)

Summary

The PIAAC data collection have been designed to provide links to the International Adult Literacy Survey, IALS (1994, 1996, 1998), as well as the Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey, ALL (2002, 2006). Consequently, the analysis of the common framework will allow the measurement of changes in the literacy competencies of populations over time. The PIAAC survey is aimed to provide comparative analysis of formal and informal skill-formation systems and their outcomes, and international benchmarking regarding adult skills. The data will provide information on the demographic characteristics, educational background (individual, parental, and linguistic), labour market outcomes, as well as the use of skills on daily, work and civic related activities. First results from the survey, as well as more specific methodological information, will be available in October of 2013.

Type of data

Data Source
Survey

Type of Study
Crosssection occasional

Data gathering method
Face-to-face

Access to data

Conditions of access
Results and additional information are planned to be released in late 2013

Type of available data (e.g. anonymised microdata, aggregated tables, etc.)
N/A

Formats available
N/A

Coverage

Coverage Years of collection, reference years, and sample sizes
Round 1: Data collected from 2008 to 2011; Total target sample size of 115,000 (5,000 in each country) Round 2: Data collection began in 2012. Target sample size of 45,000 (5,000 in each country). Round 3: Scheduled May 2014

First year of collection
2008

Stratification if applicable

Base used for sampling

Geographical coverage and breakdowns
Round 1: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the United States Round 2: 9 more countries will be added – Chile, Greece, Indonesia, Israel, Lithuania, New Zealand, Singapore, Slovenia and Turkey Round 3: To be defined.

Age range
16-65 in private households who reside in the country at the time of data collection.

Statistical representativeness
Population representative

Coverage of main and cross-cutting topics
The survey is aimed at assessing literacy and numeracy skills and the ability to solve problems in technology-rich environments. PIAAC collects a broad range of information including how skills are used at work and in other contexts, such as the home and the community. Therefore, it provides an overview on how individuals understand, use, interpret and communicate written texts and mathematical information in a wide range of situations in adult life. Regarding social participation, the PIAAC collects information on people’s trust in others, the perception of others’ behaviour towards oneself, political efficacy, and individual participation in voluntary work.

Linkage

Standardisation
Labour-force status: ILO-definition

Possibility of linkage among databases

Data quality

Entry errors if applicable
N/A

Breaks
N/A

Consistency of terminology or coding used during collection
N/A

Governance

Contact information
Andreas Schleicher, Deputy Director, Directorate for Education and Skills
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
2, rue André Pascal
75775 Paris Cedex 16 France Phone: +33 (0) 1 45 24 93 66
Email: Andreas.Schleicher(at)OECD.org
Url: http://www.oecd.org/site/piaac/

Timeliness, transparency
Round 1 (2008-13) -with 24 participating countries- results will be released in October 2013. Round 2 (2012-16) -with 9 participating countries- results will be released in 2016. A third Round is scheduled to begin in May 2014.