The main outputs of the RALExILA initiative are now all available for free and with CC license!
Co-designing registries for learning opportunities and ILA platforms: an essential guide
The RALExILA Essential Guide to co-design National Registries for Adult Education is a handbook that aims to be the ultimate guide to co-develop national registries of adult education opportunities and Individual Learning Accounts platforms that are accessible and interoperable, within and across European Member States.
The Handbook serves as a practical and conceptual guide for policymakers, practitioners, and stakeholders engaged in the co-design, implementation, and management of such systems.
The Guide includes:
- General principles for ALE ecosystems and ILA as an instrument and related tools (ALE registries and ILA platforms), with a focus on quality assurance, governance and digital ecosystems;
- Design and technical aspects of ALE registries and ILA platforms;
- A playbook to support the whole co-designing process for ALE registries and ILA platforms in a specific country or context.
The full set of tools used to implement the RALExILA co-design process across research, development, and piloting phases are also available in the Handbook.
- Roadmap and primer for co-design and implementation of the system;
- Presentations and practices template to re-run and adapt the co-design workshops;
- Protocols and materials of the research.
The system model and its approach
How do we ensure that digital ecosystems for adult education and individual learning accounts remains flexible and scalable while accommodating diverse national regulations, policies, and technological infrastructures?
RALExILA consortium also developed a full System Model for Building an Interoperable Ecosystem for Adult Learning Registries and Individual Learning Accounts in Europe.
The System Model provides a structured approach to integrating a high performing, flexible and robust Adult Learning and Education (ALE) registry with Individual Learning Accounts (ILAs), offering a comprehensive framework for managing learning opportunities, tracking entitlements, and ensuring interoperability.
The model defines key components, data structures, and technological principles, ensuring that ALE/ILA systems can operate efficiently, securely, and in compliance with EU standards.
The integration of ALE registries with ILAs is designed to:
- improve access to learning opportunities;
- facilitate funding allocation;
- support lifelong learning pathways.
By providing a standardised yet adaptable framework, the system model enables national authorities, training providers, and adult learners to engage with trusted, quality-assured education and training systems.
The System Model is based on extensive multi-country research and consultation with experts, conducted as part of the RALExILA project and incorporates insights from the user needs assessment, which explored the perspectives of learners, training providers, policymakers, and funders.
What is needed in policy and practice?
Strengthening quality assurance and governance in Adult Learning and Education (ALE) ecosystems across Europe requires a standardised yet adaptable approach, tailored to different national contexts and priorities.
The policy and practice recommendations were identified from the extensive research conducted across 10 EU countries in 2024 and the 2 years co-design process with experts and stakeholders.
What are the key recommendations for practitioners and policy makers to ensure that ALE systems across Europe are robust, responsive and in tune with the evolving demands of lifelong learning?
- Strengthening quality assurance frameworks
- Enhancing governance through stakeholder collaboration
- Integrating ALE with labour market and education systems
- Promoting inclusivity in ALE systems
- Ensuring financial sustainability and scalability
- Recognising prior learning for greater flexibility
- Strengthening continuous professional development (CPD)
- Promoting a culture of lifelong learning
Check and download all the results and guidelines!
If you are interested, the partners are also available to organise ad hoc meetings and demos of the RALExILA models for single organisations, networks and stakeholders’ groups. Get in contact with Angeliki Giannakopoulou angeliki@eaea.org
RALExILA – National Registries of Adult Learning and Education to support the deployment of Individual Learning Accounts is an initiative co-funded by the European Union, coordinated by the European Association for the Education of Adults in partnership with Knowledge Innovation Center, ALGEBRA BERNAYS UNIVERSITY, AiVD Asociácia inštitúcií vzdelávania dospelých v Slovenskej republike and Center for the Advancement of Research & Development in Educational Technology (CARDET).
Text: Viola PinziPhotos: EAEA