How digitisation can be used to educate the low-skilled

In order to further strengthen the continuing education participation of semi-skilled and unskilled workers, all stakeholders are in demand: Companies should increasingly offer jobs on which workplace-oriented learning is possible and competences can be acquired. Even learning guides who ensure that certain skills are learned as part of the daily work process are important for the low-skilled. In addition to personal contact persons, the use of digital learning guides is also suitable. Training providers should take into account the specific requirements and hurdles of low-skilled persons and develop corresponding offers that, as a first step, also build up the self-learning skills. Self-learning competence describes the abilities to initiate and organize self-determined learning. As digital media allow an individual tailoring of learning content, they increase the motivation of the low-skilled and reduce learning hurdles such as lack of time, fear of failure and time pressure in classroom sessions. This will give the low-skilled more opportunities for further education and more responsibility for their own education and employment biography. Finally, public financial support in further training is relevant for the low-skilled as they are less likely to take part in continuing education, which is financed by the employer. Public funding for continuing vocational training should therefore continue to focus heavily on the low-skilled in order to sustainably increase their chances of employment through qualification measures. Here, too, it is important to examine the extent to which digital-based learning and workplace-oriented learning can also be used more intensively in the course of further education.