Very light posting recently, which I attribute to an unusual (and troubling) imbalance in the work-to-pondering ratio over the last week or so. I thought I’d break the silence with news of two new reports released today that might be of interest to those who follow adult education policy.

First up: Time for the U.S. to Reskill? What the Survey of Adult Skills Says, an OECD report on the policy implications of the recent PIAAC Survey for the U.S., including “key lessons about the strategic objectives and directions which should form a frame for policy development in the US, including policy on adult learning and schooling.”

In addition, NDD United‘s report, Faces of Austerity: How Budget Cuts Have Made Us sicker, Poorer, and Less Secure was also released today. This is the first really comprehensive report on how Americans have been affected by federal budget cuts over the last several years. NDD stands for “non-defense discretionary, which is the part of the federal budget that includes the bulk of the funding for things like education, job training, health and science programs and research, and national parks. Adult education funding is an example of an NDD program, while not discussed at great length in the report, it is mentioned several times in the workforce section.

It’s a sad coincidence that an important new report calling attention to the need for greater investment in skills is released the same day as another report detailing the ways in which the country has been dramatically dis-investing in programs that address this very problem.

Those interested in the NDD report might also want to take a look at Sam Stein’s piece on NDD United’s efforts in the Huffington Post.