Activities of adult learning associations

Updated

26 March 2021

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34 838

courses

Popular education organisations. Number of courses, participants and lessons¹Published 26 March 2021
	2020	2016 - 2020
	2020	Change in per cent
¹The figures for 2020 include courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Courses	34 838	-22.7
Both sexes	373 693	-26.0
Males	162 566	-25.0
Females	211 127	-26.7
Lessons total	960 223	-32.4

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Table 1
Number of courses, participants and lessons by organization

Number of courses, participants and lessons by organization¹
	2020
	Courses	Participants			Lessons total
	Courses	Total	Males	Females	Lessons total
¹The figures for 2020 include courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	34 838	373 693	162 566	211 127	960 223
The Workers' Education Association of Norway	810	10 696	5 552	5 144	26 213
The Adult Learning Association for Agriculture and Community	1 080	8 522	6 167	2 355	33 301
Adult Education Association of Christian communities and organizations in Norway	3 805	27 427	11 253	16 174	98 726
The Study Association Funkis	5 569	35 999	10 511	25 488	110 657
Association for studies of culture and traditions	4 040	29 738	5 602	24 136	113 046
The Sports Education Foundation	2 737	34 314	21 935	12 379	48 084
The Adult Education Association of Music	5 466	66 478	28 270	38 208	197 887
The Sami Adult Education Association	84	420	98	322	7 298
The Adult Education Association of the Centre Party	632	3 390	1 937	1 453	11 679
The Adult Education Association of Solidarity	351	1 586	541	1 045	46 196
Folkeuniversitetet - An Adult Education Association	5 754	76 264	34 826	41 438	184 440
The Adult Education Association of Nature and Environment	2 593	22 524	10 863	11 661	51 887
The Adult Education Association of the Liberal Party	380	2 221	1 219	1 002	6 004
The Academic Association for Adult Education	1 537	54 114	23 792	30 322	24 805

Table 2
Number of courses, participants and lessons by county

Number of courses, participants and lessons by county¹
	2020
	Courses	Participants			Lessons total
	Courses	Both sexes	Males	Females	Lessons total
¹The figures for 2020 include courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	34 838	373 693	162 566	211 127	960 223
Viken	6 676	69 201	29 858	39 343	189 781
Oslo	4 567	75 391	34 277	41 114	134 149
Innlandet	3 500	31 453	12 793	18 660	86 775
Vestfold og Telemark	2 546	25 160	10 577	14 583	72 874
Agder	2 204	20 666	8 897	11 769	51 994
Rogaland	2 564	24 704	11 399	13 305	68 839
Vestland	4 036	39 882	16 977	22 905	106 307
Møre og Romsdal	1 667	17 697	7 485	10 212	37 479
Trøndelag - Trööndelage	3 604	36 459	15 959	20 500	117 643
Nordland	1 770	16 439	6 458	9 981	45 925
Troms og Finnmark - Romsa ja Finnmárku	1 688	16 440	7 772	8 668	48 086
Svalbard	16	201	114	87	371

Table 3
Number of courses, participants and lessons, by subject

Number of courses, participants and lessons, by subject¹
	2020
	Courses	Participants			Lessons total
	Courses	Total	Males	Females	Lessons total
¹The figures for 2020 include courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	34 838	373 693	162 566	211 127	960 223
Language studies	1 172	7 740	2 839	4 901	48 257
Aesthetic subjects and handicraft	13 830	153 523	57 843	95 680	455 000
Humanities, philosophy and ethics	3 599	31 579	14 419	17 160	80 811
Social sciences	539	11 555	4 857	6 698	14 650
Organization and management	6 115	79 492	40 911	38 581	107 759
Business and ICT	284	3 833	1 840	1 993	3 219
Health, social and sports	5 742	38 008	11 789	26 219	149 570
Transport and communication	45	1 540	974	566	1 462
Science, industry and technical subjects	636	18 049	11 624	6 425	16 292
Natural resource management, ecology, environmental protection and outdoor recreation	2 754	27 695	15 249	12 446	68 927
Goods and services	122	679	221	458	14 276

Table 4
Number of participant, by organizations and age

Number of participant, by organizations and age¹
	2020
	Participants	14-29 years	30-49 years	50 years or older
¹The figures for 2020 include the number of participants in courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	373 693	105 645	100 352	167 696
The Workers' Education Association of Norway	10 696	2 987	4 784	2 925
The Adult Learning Association for Agriculture and Community	8 522	3 183	3 115	2 224
Adult Education Association of Christian communities and organizations in Norway	27 427	13 524	6 374	7 529
The Study Association Funkis	35 999	1 377	4 382	30 240
Association for studies of culture and traditions	29 738	5 344	2 908	21 486
The Sports Education Foundation	34 314	14 332	14 573	5 409
The Adult Education Association of Music	66 478	7 886	12 062	46 530
The Sami Adult Education Association	420	147	129	144
The Adult Education Association of the Centre Party	3 390	287	1 118	1 985
The Adult Education Association of Solidarity	1 586	417	566	603
Folkeuniversitetet - An Adult Education Association	76 264	35 205	16 877	24 182
The Adult Education Association of Nature and Environment	22 524	8 705	7 776	6 043
The Adult Education Association of the Liberal Party	2 221	350	789	1 082
The Academic Association for Adult Education	54 114	11 901	24 899	17 314

Table 5
Number of participants, by county and age

Number of participants, by county and age¹
	2020
	Participants	14-29 years	30-49 years	50 years or older
¹The figures for 2020 include the number of participants in courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	373 693	105 645	100 352	167 696
Viken	69 201	19 066	16 332	33 803
Oslo	75 391	22 017	29 116	24 258
Innlandet	31 453	8 520	6 178	16 755
Vestfold og Telemark	25 160	6 700	5 717	12 743
Agder	20 666	5 533	5 515	9 618
Rogaland	24 704	7 799	7 171	9 734
Vestland	39 882	13 138	9 421	17 323
Møre og Romsdal	17 697	4 293	4 245	9 159
Trøndelag - Trööndelage	36 459	10 958	8 263	17 238
Nordland	16 439	2 978	3 702	9 759
Troms og Finnmark - Romsa ja Finnmárku	16 440	4 613	4 597	7 230
Svalbard	201	30	95	76

Table 6
Number of participants, by subject, age and sex

Number of participants, by subject, age and sex¹
	2020
	Participants	14-29 years	30-49 years	50 years or older
¹The figures for 2020 include the number of participants in courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	373 693	105 645	100 352	167 696
Language studies	7 740	1 987	3 974	1 779
Aesthetic subjects and handicraft	153 523	34 155	26 775	92 593
Humanities, philosophy and ethics	31 579	21 855	4 118	5 606
Social sciences	11 555	4 586	3 074	3 895
Organization and management	79 492	23 904	33 960	21 628
Business and ICT	3 833	628	1 144	2 061
Health, social and sports	38 008	2 889	8 263	26 856
Transport and communication	1 540	277	665	598
Science, industry and technical subjects	18 049	4 604	8 085	5 360
Natural resource management, ecology, environmental protection and outdoor recreation	27 695	10 632	9 922	7 141
Goods and services	679	128	372	179

Males
Total	162 566	48 518	45 945	68 103
Language studies	2 839	675	1 536	628
Aesthetic subjects and handicraft	57 843	13 501	9 045	35 297
Humanities, philosophy and ethics	14 419	10 647	1 756	2 016
Social sciences	4 857	459	1 995	2 403
Organization and management	40 911	12 120	17 799	10 992
Business and ICT	1 840	314	579	947
Health, social and sports	11 789	1 096	2 672	8 021
Transport and communication	974	174	393	407
Science, industry and technical subjects	11 624	2 939	4 998	3 687
Natural resource management, ecology, environmental protection and outdoor recreation	15 249	6 537	5 044	3 668
Goods and services	221	56	128	37

Females
Total	211 127	57 127	54 407	99 593
Language studies	4 901	1 312	2 438	1 151
Aesthetic subjects and handicraft	95 680	20 654	17 730	57 296
Humanities, philosophy and ethics	17 160	11 208	2 362	3 590
Social sciences	6 698	4 127	1 079	1 492
Organization and management	38 581	11 784	16 161	10 636
Business and ICT	1 993	314	565	1 114
Health, social and sports	26 219	1 793	5 591	18 835
Transport and communication	566	103	272	191
Science, industry and technical subjects	6 425	1 665	3 087	1 673
Natural resource management, ecology, environmental protection and outdoor recreation	12 446	4 095	4 878	3 473
Goods and services	458	72	244	142

Table 7
Number of participants, by county and subject

Number of participants, by county and subject¹
	2020
	All subjects	Language studies	Aesthetic subjects and handicraft	Humanities, philosophy and ethics	Social sciences	Organization and management	Business and ICT	Health, social and sports	Transport and communication	Science, industry and technical subjects	Natural resource management, ecology, environmental protection and outdoor recreation	Goods and services
¹The figures for 2020 include the number of participants in courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	373 693	7 740	153 523	31 579	11 555	79 492	3 833	38 008	1 540	18 049	27 695	679
Viken	69 201	714	30 434	6 457	936	14 663	635	8 411	40	1 635	5 212	64
Oslo	75 391	3 674	14 210	4 413	8 736	21 209	2 249	4 738	1 240	10 926	3 805	191
Innlandet	31 453	60	15 554	3 140	127	4 848	208	3 882	25	232	3 322	55
Vestfold og Telemark	25 160	237	12 761	2 098	117	4 969	27	2 402	5	644	1 822	78
Agder	20 666	446	7 284	4 254	247	3 899	79	2 745	63	239	1 403	7
Rogaland	24 704	515	9 603	4 266	87	5 619	0	2 050	11	583	1 801	169
Vestland	39 882	1 468	20 950	3 007	618	6 592	389	3 262	20	660	2 905	11
Møre og Romsdal	17 697	85	9 260	900	105	4 207	125	1 499	0	252	1 249	15
Trøndelag - Trööndelage	36 459	181	17 399	1 801	260	7 039	63	5 111	116	1 402	3 050	37
Nordland	16 439	79	8 516	656	162	3 015	38	2 585	6	100	1 256	26
Troms og Finnmark - Romsa ja Finnmárku	16 440	281	7 445	587	160	3 358	20	1 313	14	1 376	1 860	26
Svalbard	201	0	107	0	0	74	0	10	0	0	10	0

Table 8
Number of participants, by examination and level

Number of participants, by examination and level¹
	2020
	Total	Option of public examination	Option of other valid examination or certificate	Option of internal examination	Option of vocational examination	No examination or final tests
¹The figures for 2020 include the number of participants in courses of at least four hours duration in contrast to previous years when the minimum requirement was eight hours.
Total	373 693	9 567	10 338	2 391	960	350 437
Primary level	196 919	7 597	2 848	498	0	185 976
Secondary level	120 702	1 706	4 813	598	960	112 625
Higher level	3 851	264	1 888	82	0	1 617
Not reported	52 221	0	789	1 213	0	50 219

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About the statistics

The main purpose is to show education arranged by popular education organizations from different angles. The aim is to reveal total course activities related to course level, choice of subjects and age as well as gender of the participants.

Definitions

Definitions of the main concepts and variables: Adult education: Education specially arranged for adults.
The Norwegian Association for Adult Education: The Norwegian Association for Adult Education is an organization for all approved popular education organizations.
Subject: The courses are grouped after school subjects in accordance with Norwegian educational terms.
Level: The popular education organizations can offer tuition on primary, secondary, and tertiary educational level in addition to many other courses.
Courses offering examination: Meaning to be a supplement to subject and level. Several courses arranged by popular education organizations, give students the possibility to take an examination.

Standard classifications: Classification of subject groups is worked out by Statistics Norway together with The Ministry of Education and Research, The Norwegian Association for Adult Education, Norwegian Association for Distance Education and Folk High School Council.

Administrative information

Name and topic: Name: Activities of adult learning associations
Topic: Education

Responsible division: Division for Education and Culture Statistics

Regional level: The figures are given on national and county level. It is also possible to order tables on municipal level.

Frequency and timeliness: Annual.

International reporting: Not relevant

Microdata: All statistics in Statistics Norway will be properly stored and treated in a safe and secure manner in agreement with The Data Inspectorate.

Background

Background and purpose: The main purpose is to show education arranged by popular education organizations from different angels. The aim is to reveal total course activities related to course level, choice of subjects and age as well as gender of the participants. The statistics about course activities for popular education organizations started 1996 and were financed by The Ministry of Education and Research. The statistics has been published yearly since then.

Users and applications: Users are The Ministry of Education and Research, Norwegian Agency for Lifelong Learning, other public services, researching institutions, media, Norwegian Association for Adult Education and individual popular education organizations.

Equal treatment of users: No external users have access to the statistics and analyses before they are published and accessible simultaneously for all users on ssb.no at 10 am. Prior to this, a minimum of three months' advance notice is given inthe Statistics Release Calendar. This is one of Statistics Norway’s key principles for ensuring that all users are treated equally.

Coherence with other statistics: This statistics is a part of statistics of adult education in Norway.

Legal authority

Act of 21 June 2019 No. 32 relating to official statistics and Statistics Norway § 10, Act no. 95 relating to adult education of 19 June 2009, and Chapter 2, Regulation no. 2896 § 13 of 8 December 2020.

EEA reference: Not relevant

Production

Population

All approved popular education organizations receiving grants from The Ministry of Education and Research, reports on course completions to Statistics Norway.

Each participant are reported by course subject, place of residence, and aim group in addition to course level, duration, and time when they started and finished the course.

Data sources and sampling

Electronic reports from popular education organizations.

Including the whole population.

Collection of data, editing and estimations

Per 1 March in the year of census data is collected from the popular education organizations. After correcting the data, Statistics Norway put all files together to one basic file, on which the statistics are based.

All received data files undergo various controls, such as deleting duplicates and checking variables for valid values. In case errors are discovered, the popular education organizations will be contacted for corrections. Statistics Norway makes test tables based on corrected data, so the individual organizations get the possibility to compare own figures.

Statistics about popular education organizations is summarily only, and special analyses are not executed.

Seasonal adjustment: Not relevant

Confidentiality: There are no sensitive data.

Comparability over time and space: Statistics Norway has published statistics on popular education organizations since 1997. The statistics for the period 1997-2009 includes courses of at least 12 lessons, but the statistics from 2010 includes courses of at least 8 lessons and is still comparable with the statistics of today.

Accuracy and reliability

Sources of error and uncertainty

Mostly errors can be traced back to basis of the statistics. Errors in coding of course completions might occur because the organizations do not use administrative data systems, neither is it easy to define what the correct subject code should be.

Statistics about popular education organizations include courses receiving grants only, and do not reflect the whole education activities.

Not relevant. Statistics about popular education organizations is not based on sample surveys.

Not relevant. Statistics about popular education organizations include the whole population (courses receiving grants).

Revision: Not relevant

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