Chapters at a glance 8 Introduction 11 1 Key terms and classifications in international and comparative adult education 16 1.1 Key definitions of adult education and related terms 17 1.2 Typologies of adult education provision 20 1.3 Examples of common types of adult education providers 23 1.4 Summary 27 2 Early ventures in international and comparative adult education 28 2.1 Three phases of development 29 2.2 Early contacts 30 2.3 The interwar years 31 2.4 The impact of World War II 32 2.5 The increasing role of research 34 2.6 Continuing institutionalisation from the 1970s 35 2.7 Summary 37 3 International and comparative adult education research 40 3.1 Review studies on directions in adult education research 41 3.2 Adult education studies published in international education journals 44 3.3 Book series on international and comparative adult education 46 3.4 Summary 49 4 Theoretical approaches to the study of international and comparative adult education 50 4.1 Theories discussed in relation to international and comparative education 51 4.2 Foundational theories of international and comparative adult education 52 4.3 Other theories relevant to international and comparative adult education 55 4.4 Summary 57 5 Methodological approaches to the study of international and comparative adult education 58 5.1 The argument for international and comparative research 59 5.2 Tools to select the focus of international and comparative research 60 5.3 Selection of units of comparison 62 5.4 Methodological approaches to international and comparative research 63 5.5 Summary 67 6 The influence of international governmental organisations on research, policy and practice in international and comparative adult education 70 6.1 The role of international governmental organisations 71 6.2 European Commission 72 6.3 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 74 6.4 United Nation Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 75 6.5 World Bank 78 6.6 International Labour Organisation 78 6.7 Summary 79 7 International Surveys 82 7.1 International large-scale survey studies 83 7.2 Surveys of the OECD 84 7.3 Surveys of the European Commission 86 7.4 Surveys of the UNESCO 89 7.5 Surveys of the World Bank 91 7.6 Summary 92 8 International and comparative adult education in the non-Western world 94 8.1 Adult education outside the Western ‘comfort zone’ 95 8.2 Adult education in Asia 99 8.3 The role of the Institute for International Cooperation DVV International 102 8.4 Adult education research on and in the Global South 103 8.5 Summary 104 9 International and comparative adult education in a digital world 106 9.1 Digitisation in adult education 107 9.2 The importance of digital literacy 108 9.3 The question of internet access 110 9.4 The growth of open education 111 9.5 Digital resources for adult educators 115 9.6 Summary 116 10 The growth of adult education advocacy organisations across the world 118 10.1 International adult education advocacy 119 10.2 International Council for Adult Education 120 10.3 ICAE’s regional member in Europe 121 10.4 ICAE’s regional member in North America 122 10.5 ICAE’s regional member in Latin America 123 10.6 ICAE’s regional member in the Caribbean Region 124 10.7 ICAE’s regional member in Africa 124 10.8 ICAE’s regional member in the Arab Region 126 10.9 ICAE’s regional member in Asia and the South Pacific 127 10.10 Summary 128 11 International exchanges and partnerships for adult education professionals and learners 130 11.1 Learning with and from each other 131 11.2 Erasmus+: opportunities for mobility and cooperation 132 11.3 DVV International 136 11.4 MOJA – Adult Education Africa 138 11.5 Summary 139 Literature 141 Tables and figures 147 Suggested solutions to questions and tasks 148 Useful websites 161 The authors 164