Approximately 36 million U.S. workers lack the basic literacy, numeracy and digital skills needed to thrive in today’s workforce. Many of these workers are employed in low-wage jobs and face limited career potential. ISTE’s SkillRise initiative seeks to change this by bringing together best practices from workforce development, adult basic education and education technology to help adult learning organizations upskill workers, preparing them for the careers of today and tomorrow. SkillRise provides resources that support the planning, implementation and sustainability of edtech solutions for such learning – these resources include:

• Framework: Articulates best practices and guidance for improving adult education and training programs with education technology.
• Course: A free, facilitated online professional development course provides in-depth training to implement the framework practices.
• Podcasts: The Upskill with Edtech podcast series explores how to use digital tools to support career advancement and lifelong learning.

Constantly evolving work environments powered by technology demand workers with more than basic literacy, numeracy and communication skills. To get and keep jobs in a competitive environment, workers also need the digital competencies required to work with new workplace technologies.

The purpose of ISTE’s framework Upskill With Edtech: Preparing Adult Learners for the Future of Work is to help adult-learning and workforce-development organizations understand how to leverage educational and productivity technology to better prepare adult workers and job seekers in the digital age. Changes are needed in both the content of programs and how they are delivered to be more relevant and reach more people. By redesigning the model for content and delivery through transformative uses of technology, organizations have the opportunity to increase both access and impact.

Five areas of activity are essential to the success of technology initiatives:

1. Vision & Readiness
2. Team Capacity & Development
3. Research & Planning
4. Procurement & Implementation
5. Communications & Professional Learning Networks

The framework addresses why each one is important and offers proven practices and actionable guidance for planning, designing and decision-making around the adoption, scaling and sustainability of programs and services enabled by technology.