Tag: lifelong learning

Regina Duarte Presents Project at World Literacy Summit 2025

Written by iread4skills on April 8, 2025. Posted in News.

This week the city of Oxford is hosting the World Literacy Summit 2025, one of the largest global meetings dedicated to literacy. Today, between 3.40pm and 4pm (local time), the highlight will be the presentation of the iRead4Skills project, led by Regina Duarte, Commissioner of the National Reading Plan 2027 (PNL2027), in room 10 of the Examination School.

The theme of the session, ‘Enhancing literacy for a more inclusive society’, reflects the central aim of the project: to make literacy accessible, functional and aligned with the contemporary demands of the digital society.

The project’s participation in this international forum reinforces its active role in promoting literacy as a tool for inclusion and progress. The World Literacy Summit 2025 brings together delegations from more than 85 countries, with a full programme of debates, workshops and presentations available at: worldliteracysummit.org/programme.

Year 2 Periodic Report of the Project

Written by iread4skills on March 17, 2025. Posted in News.

iRead4Skills has just released its Year 2 Periodic Report, highlighting significant progress in the development of intelligent tools to improve literacy in adults with low reading skills.

Aiming to make reading more accessible and effective for Adult Learning (AL) and Vocational Education and Training (VET) learners, the initiative has been combining artificial intelligence (AI) and natural language processing (NLP) to classify texts according to their complexity and create innovative reading support solutions.

Key Achievements in the Second Year of the Project

📌 Creation of a specialized linguistic corpus in Portuguese, Spanish, and French, classifying texts by complexity levels for further analysis.
📌 Development of the Intelligent Complexity Analyzer (ICA) API, an innovative system that allows evaluating text readability, identifying complex linguistic patterns, and providing recommendations adapted to users’ literacy levels.
📌 Adoption of machine learning models capable of predicting and automatically classifying the reading difficulty of different types of content.
📌 Co-creation workshops with trainers and learners to validate and improve tools, ensuring they meet the real needs of the target audience.
📌 Strengthened collaboration with policymakers and training institutions, ensuring the practical implementation of developed solutions and their integration into educational programs.
📌 Promotion of Open Science, ensuring that collected data and developed methodologies are accessible to researchers and educators.

The Year 2 Periodic Report is now publicly available and can be accessed via the link: https://zenodo.org/records/15038440

Regina Duarte (MEC team) Discusses Literacy, AI, and Lifelong Learning in New Interview

Written by iread4skills on March 6, 2025. Posted in News.

The iRead4Skills project highlights a recent interview with Regina Duarte, Commissioner of the National Reading Plan 2027 and a key member of the iRead4Skills team, published on EPALE – the Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe. The interview explores the role of literacy in the digital age, the impact of artificial intelligence on education, and the challenges and opportunities in adult learning.

Duarte emphasizes the growing integration of digital tools and AI in literacy education, particularly in Portugal’s national strategies. She discusses how these technologies can support adult learners, improve access to reading materials, and enhance learning outcomes. The conversation also highlights the importance of collaborative efforts between educators, policymakers, and literacy projects like iRead4Skills in addressing existing gaps in adult education.

The interview provides valuable insights into how digital transformation is shaping the future of literacy education. It underscores the need for accessible learning materials, effective teacher training, and policies that encourage digital inclusion.

The full interview is available on EPALE: https://epale.ec.europa.eu/en/blog/interview-regina-duarte-mecpnl-portugal

New iRead4Skills Policy Brief Highlights the Impact of Literacy on Employment

Written by iread4skills on February 27, 2025. Posted in News.

The iRead4Skills project has released a new Policy Brief focusing on the importance of reading skills for lifelong learning and employability. The report, based on surveys conducted in Portugal, Spain, and French-speaking countries, reveals how literacy challenges affect daily life, professional opportunities, and digital inclusion.

Low Literacy Affects Employment and Confidence

The study found that 70% of participants felt more self-confident after improving their reading skills, and 65%reported feeling better prepared for the job market. However, many adults still struggle to understand complex documents, including rental contracts and medical leaflets, highlighting the need for clearer communication in essential services.

Key Policy Recommendations

The Policy Brief proposes several measures to improve literacy support:

Simplifying public documents through plain language initiatives.
Creating real-world learning materials tailored to adults’ daily needs.
Training adult educators (AL/VET) in digital literacy tools to enhance reading support.

The findings reinforce the need for stronger literacy policies that connect reading skills with digital and employment opportunities, ensuring a more inclusive society.

🔗 Read the full Policy Brief here: https://zenodo.org/records/14936989

iRead4Skills featured on EPALE – Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe

Written by iread4skills on January 31, 2025. Posted in News.

We are delighted to appear on EPALE, a European, multilingual, open membership community of adult learning professionals, including adult educators and trainers, guidance and support staff, researchers and academics, and policymakers.

EPALE is part of the European Union’s strategy to promote more and better learning opportunities for all adults. The platform supports and strengthens the adult learning professions by enabling members to connect with and learn from colleagues across Europe. It provides a space for knowledge exchange through blog posts, forums, and the Partner Search tool, complemented with physical gatherings. EPALE also offers high-quality, accurate information relevant for adult learning practitioners, fostering engagement and collaboration within the community.

We are pleased to share an insightful interview with Raquel Amaro, the coordinator of the iRead4Skills.

Q&A highlights

What are the goals of this international project?
The iRead4Skills project is dedicated to enhancing adult reading skills by developing an automatic system capable of assessing text complexity. This system will help individuals find suitable reading materials or assist in the creation of such materials. Ultimately, the goal is to bridge skill gaps, improve professional competencies, and enhance access to information and culture for vulnerable and often overlooked populations.

How has it been to work with experts from different nationalities and disciplines?
Collaborating with a diverse, international, and multidisciplinary team has been both rewarding and inspiring. It brings challenges, as different perspectives and expertise must be integrated, but this also results in stronger outcomes. The iRead4Skills project is particularly enriching as it combines knowledge from computational sciences, information technologies, education, social sciences, and humanities.

How can the project contribute to adult literacy improvement across Europe and globally?

Our system is designed to be easily accessible and freely available to trainers, librarians, publishers, and individuals with low literacy skills. By offering tailored reading recommendations, we aim to make reading more engaging and less discouraging. The ability to choose materials that match one’s reading level is crucial for motivation and success, whether in educational settings, informal learning environments, or workplaces. Currently, the system covers Portuguese, French, and Spanish, benefiting speakers of these languages worldwide.

Read the full interview on EPALE: https://epale.ec.europa.eu/en/blog/iread4skills-interview-raquel-amaro