Lifelong learning

Concepts and definitions in the LFS are in accordance with recommendations given by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and EU/Eurostat. Through its participation in the European statistical cooperation, Statistics Norway is bound to follow and fulfull the requirements set by Eurostat (EUs statistical bureau) for the contents of the LFS.

According to the international recommendations, persons above a specified age should be classified by their attachment to the labour market in a specified, short period, either a day or a week. In the Norwegian LFS the reference period is one week, and the sample of persons are classified in relation to their situation in that reference week.

Employed

Employed persons are persons who performed work for pay or profit for at least one hour in the reference week, or who were temporarily absent from work because of illness, holidays etc. Persons engaged by government measures to promote employment are also included if they receive wages. Persons who have been laid off up to three months are considered employed.

Lifelong learning

Lifelong learning is here defined as all organised learning activity undertaken throughout life, and which results in improving knowledge, know-how, skills, competences and/or qualifications for personal, social and/or professional reasons.

Education and formal education

Education and formal education includes all education leading to a qualification which is recognised in a (or the equivalent of a) national framework of qualification, e.g. elementary school, lower secondary school, modules or courses in upper secondary school, apprentices and practice candidates in upper secondary education, technical vocational schools, tertiary education giving official credit points and further education leading to a professional specialisation.

Formal supplementary education

Formal supplementary education includes education leading to a qualification which is recognised in a (or the equivalent of a) national framework of qualification. All formal supplementary education is also regarded as formal education, but not the other way around. Formal supplementary education is, in many cases, a specialization or an extention of a previously compleded education. In this statistics, formal supplementary education is defined as formal education taken by the following groups: 1) all persons aged 35-59 years that at the time of interview state that they have participated in formal education within the 12 past months, and 2) persons aged 22-34 years that at the time of interview state that thay have participated in formal education within the 12 past months, and at the same time have had a break/pause in their education of at least 3 years since the age of 19. In this statistics, formal supplementary education includes persons aged 22-59 years.

Non-formal education/training

Non-formal education/training is any organised learning activity that is not formal education. It includes courses, seminars and conferences (where learning is the main purpose), public lectures and private lessons not part of formal education. The definition of non-formal education/training used in the Learning Conditions Monitor does not include guided on-the-job training.

Both formal education and non-formal education/training are institutionalised forms of learning. This entails that there is an organisation providing structured arrangements (which must include something similar to a student-teacher-relationship) especially designed for education and learning.

Informal learning

Informal learning is not institutionalised learning. Thus, it is less organised and less structured than formal education and non-formal education/training, often undertaken by the individual on his/her own. It may include watching TV or reading a book with the intention to learn, intentional learning from colleagues or family members, guided tours in a museum etc. The importance of the intention to learn when undertaking an activity separates informal learning from random learning.

Learning-intensive work

Learning-intensive work refers to employment that requiers updating of skills and acquiring of new ones, with good possibilities to develop new skills during the daily work.

For discussions and examples used to clarify the differences between formal, non-formal and informal learning, see Eurostats Classification of Learning activities - Manual.

The industrial classification of economic activities is in accordance with the Standard industrial Classification (SN2007). The standard is based on the EU standard (NACE rev. 2).

Occupation is coded in accordance with the Standard classification of occupations, based on International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO-08).

Educational attainment level is primarily based on information from register information in the National Education Database according to theclassification of eudcation (NUS2000). In cases where the respondent lacks register information, the respondent is asked. The definitions of the different educational levels were revised in 2006.