Intergenerationa learning approach: The state of art in partner countries
In the first phase of our project we’ve analized the state of art of the Intergenerational learning approach in our countries. Read the article to know more about the current situation of the IGL in Italy, Slovenia, Lithuania, Poland and Turkey.
LITHUANIA
In Lithuania, the education of older adults is defined by the Law on Non-formal Adult Education and Continuing Education of the Republic of Lithuania. The activities are carried out by the following institutions:
- Third age universities. There are 50 third age universities in Lithuania, where older people can study. They actively cooperate with other institutions: universities, colleges, museums, libraries implementing joint projects. The Association of Third Age Universities coordinates these activities (http://www.tauasociacija.lt/).
- Libraries. Joint cultural events for young people and the elderly take place in the librarys’s spaces, and different community civic actions are organized that unite people of different generations. Libraries also organize cultural activities, but the focus is on digital literacy education when seniors are taught by young volunteers.
- Museums. Organize various educational classes and programs for seniors. Museums also often organize educational workshops for children and youth led by experienced craft masters seniors.
- NGOs are involved in the education of older people:
- One of the largest and most active among them is the association “Window to the Future” (https://www.langasiateiti.lt/en/). It implements joint projects for young people and seniors, for example the project “Connected Lithuania”. 2000 scouts have been trained; they will be involved into seniors training. The plan is to train 500,000 people in Lithuania for two years. The project “TRANS eScouts: Empowering eFacilitators for intergenerational dialogue” was implemented several years ago together with partners from Latvia, Croatia, and Spain. Young people taught seniors to use computers, and seniors shared their life experiences, knowledge of the country’s history, and so on.
- The Association for Adult Education (http://www.lssa.smm.lt/en/) promotes cooperation between young people and seniors. The association organizes a traditional adult learning week every year. Different generations are involved in the activities of this event.
ITALY
In Italy, there are no legal provisions or policies aimed at governing and promoting intergenerational learning (IGL). Consequently, there is a lack of national and local programmes focused upon the development of reciprocal IGL. Nevertheless, since the early 2000s, a number of IGL activities have been implemented by foundations, NGOs, local government bodies, third sector organisations, trade unions and business associations, schools and vocational training centres. The majority of these activities are provided on a voluntary basis and have been implemented within the framework of various projects, specifically Erasmus+ and Grundtvig, co-financed by the European Commission.
The initiators of IGL initiatives come from both the public (schools, libraries, governmental associations) and the private sector (NGOs, associations). The bridge between the private organizations and the target groups is often realized with the help of open public institutions such as schools and libraries, encouraging the initiatives coming from volunteers.
Currently, many of the intergenerational programs are being implemented with children from primary, elementary school, adolescents.
Taking in consideration our target group (elderly people 55+, young people 16-30 y.o.), the learning process is often organised in the direction from younger generation to elderly one (digital competences courses) at Adult centres/ Universities of the Third Age. IGL activities are mostly promoted on non-formal (NGOs) or informal (families) level. IGL activities mostly take place at elderly care homes, NGOs, the Universities of the Third Age, libraries, schools.
POLAND
The answer to the contemporary challenges of an ageing Polish society is taking practical measures in the field of integration and intergenerational education. In Poland, activities in this area began to intensify after 2010, when the Union intensively promoted the senior policy. It can therefore be said that Polish actions in this direction are just sprouting, they are relatively fresh, they are building their offer. Currently, Poland is already moving towards institutionalizing activities for intergenerational education, new government projects appear.
In recent years, Polish senior policy has introduced several long-term government projects aimed at co-financing initiatives that activate seniors, including those aimed at intergenerational integration, and also education. These include programs such as ASOS 2014-2020, Active +, Senior +, thanks to which Non-Governmental Organizations could obtain funding for projects for seniors as well as integration and intergenerational education. The initiatives of an intergenerational character are joined by the Universities of the Third Age and the Academies of the Third Age, which are growing in Poland every year. There are also Intergenerational / Intergenerational Universities that allow students to participate in various forms of intergenerational education. Worth mentioning is the Seniors in Action program, implemented by the Society of Creative Initiatives “ę”, which has been continued since 2008 until today.
The phenomenon of intergenerational learning occurs not only in the field of informal learning, but it enters into more formal activities, such as various types of projects, (non-formal) initiatives, but also educational programs at universities. The development phenomenon of intergenerational education is driven mainly by the senior policy in the country, as well as European priorities. So far, the offer of actions aimed at supporting intergenerational education is growing, expanding its possibilities, however, it is still in the growth phase, the idea is still developing, however, awareness of its essence increases. Currently, the offer in the field of intergenerational education is expanding with new ideas and initiatives, such as intergenerational houses. Increased awareness of the needs related to intergenerational mutual learning can be seen in the sphere of social policy, gerontology, andragogy, pedagogy, social work, and medicine, which bodes well for the future.
SLOVENIA
For more than three decades, the education of the elderly in Slovenia has been an integral part of lifelong education, learning from the cradle to the grave.
Education in later life, however, is not determined by age, but much more by the status that older people have in society and in various communities. For practical reasons, we are talking about the education of different groups of older people (older workers, people preparing for retirement, people in the third age or people “in the post-employment period”, or even in the life period called “between work, retirement and old age”). ”, And a group of people who are partially or completely dependent and spend most of their time in institutional care. All of these groups need different education programs because their social status is different and because their needs are different.
In Slovenia an important part of the education of the elderly is regulated by labour legislation, which includes the Employment Relationships Act and the Employment and Unemployment Insurance Act. Older workers are equally entitled to education as the rest of the workforce.
Two legal documents are essential for the education of the elderly in Slovenia.
(1) National Adult Education Program in the Republic of Slovenia for the period 2013–2020 (ReNPIO13–20). In general, the resolution directs adult education policy at the national level and contributes to the systemic regulation of the field, including stable funding, setting priorities and substantive tasks for the development of adult education.
(2) The strategy of a long-lived society (2017) has established a framework for active and quality aging.
Elderly education goals:
- achieve a better understanding of the needs of older people and improve their lives through culture and education,
- facilitate the integration of older people into society on the basis of personal growth, through paid or voluntary work,
- support active aging in all its forms,
- enable different generations to collaborate, study and work together,
- lead a public campaign on the issues of the elderly and their education,
- support older workers to stay in and / or return to the labour market,
- research the education of the elderly and disseminate findings,
- train teachers, mentors and moderators in the field,
- develop new innovative educational programs for different groups in later life,
- provide comprehensive counselling and management of active aging (educational, psychological, legal and labour market management),
- provide a network of civil and public society organizations in the field of education in later life.
Two ministries are responsible for adult education, the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. They are responsible for matters concerning the adult education sector.
Elderly education providers
– Public adult education centres (33 centres in Slovenia)
– Third age universities
– NGO`s
– Retired people societies
Organisation of elderly education
Slovenia, which has a long tradition of developing the theory of education for the elderly, has naturally come to the realization that adults have the right to education in an informal way and that target groups have the right to influence goals, content, teaching methods and techniques.
The methods used in educating the elderly depend on the principles that guide the education of the elderly and also on the whole organization that provides education for the elderly.
We understand the educational program for elderly as a dynamic process, which of course includes knowledge and skills, as well as values, attitudes towards learning, the impact of social and cultural conditions. This is especially important in the case of the elderly, who form a huge group of very different individuals, with different life choices, who have experienced different experiential knowledge, values, and so on. But they are also of different genders, health status, have different social status. Their motives for learning vary. In short, the elderly are not a homogeneous group. People are never as different as they are in later life.
Providers use different methods / forms: multigenerational learning, independent learning, study circles, lectures with short contribution followed by discussion, public discussion, research learning, experiential learning, community learning, transformative learning, mutual learning, mutual learning, dramatization, simulation, project learning , educational tourism, counselling, guidance.
Financing
Most funding comes from public tenders, local, national or European, private funding is also available, but to a lesser extent.
Elderly education programs or courses are co-financed by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport. Most funding for continuing education and non-formal education depends on the annual plans of the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport. Even activities that have made a positive contribution to society and their quality, which has been demonstrated for more than a decade, are still funded as projects rather than as a permanent activity. For many years, it has been possible to co-finance new programs from the European Structural Funds, but every year the issue of redistribution of funds arises again, while the annual plan for adult education is prepared.
Local funding for non-formal elderly education is not sufficiently included in the financial scheme.
TURKEY
Turkey has not been fully successful before the last 30-year period in the education/training forms of generations as expected. With the contribution of local and international projects, new aspects of methods, and the special efforts of universities, there has been a very serious awareness in Turkey against lifelong learning related closely to international learning. For the last 30 or more years, there are special institutions and NGO s handling possible training and teaching problems and producing solutions in order to help social cohesion.
Especially in recent years, universities have been doing a lot of research on intergenerational education. The increase in adult education institutions, the increase of institutions such as adult retirement homes and care centers have facilitated research on these issues.
Intergenerational activities have recently become very popular in Turkey. Although there are socio-economic problems, individuals are very happy to participate in such activities, even for a short time.
Blended learning processes are generally preferred in such activities. The interaction of different generations together provides convenience in the methods and techniques to be used.
In IGL activities, official institutions are generally very influential in scientific research and inferencings. The issue of implementation and dissemination is mostly carried out by NGOs.
IGL activities are generally implemented in NGO and care centers.
There are not enough courses on IGL approach in adult education that are easily accessible for everyone. Existing ones are not accessible to everyone due to numerical inadequacies or wage requirements.
CZECH REPUBLIC
Ing.Dana Steinova
Head of Center of Lifelong Learning which is an independant educational body located in Prague, the Czech Republic
The very first university for grandparents and grandchildren was organized in cooperation with the Faculty of Mathematics & Physics of Charles University in the school year 2004/2005. This intergenerational educational project made it possible for grandchildren between 6 and12 years old and their grandparents to study together in University premises. Later the project was carried on in cooperation with the Faculty of Forestry of the Czech Agricultural University and the Faculty of Natural Sciences of Charles University.In 2009/10 the Experimental University returned back to the Faculty of Mathematics & Physics of Charles University in connection with the International year of Astronomy. 2010/11 was all about Egyptology in cooperation with the Czech Institute of Egyptology and grandchildren enjoyed turning themselves into mummies with the help of toilet paper or feeling like the ancient tomb robbers during their summer camp.The school year 2011/12 was devoted to Meteorology and Climatology and the Faculty of Mathematics & Physics which was doing its best to explain to the participants how the weather forecast is done or where wind comes from. Summer camp was organized in the summer resort of the Institute of Meteorology in Southern Bohemia with a very rich program.This year the summer camp took place in the natural preservation area called Czech paradle,no wonder that we got the highest number of participants ever, 65 grandparents and grandchildren!
In the years 2012-2015 the project moved to the Agricultural University and the subject was: People and animals, about relation between human being and animals, what role animals played in people’s lives from the early times up to the present time.And it was followed by „Forest and Landscape“.
From 2015/16 the project returned to the Faculty of Natural Science of Charles University with „Geographical explorations” and continued in 2016/17 with „Protection of environment“. The following school year 2017/18 brought this intergenerational project back to the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics.All the kids who attended the first subjekt Astronomy are already adults and the desire of present attendees to get back Astronomy was very strong,They wished to build sundial and go to the observatory as well.
The school year 2018/19 was about Meteorology and the kids were learning about why the sky was blue or why the wind was blowing…The summer camp was in Jizerske Hory with
beautiful natural trails and weather observations.The last school year 2019/20 was organized in co-operation with the Institute of Latin and Greek Studies of Faculty of Philosophy of Charles University „ What the life in Antiquity was about“ and the summer camp could not také place in any other place but in Rome, Italy in July 2020 during the short relieve in pandemic.
Grandparents and grandchildren work together as a team, helping and advising each other. Grandparents are enjoying the role of advisers and grandchildren are becoming acquainted with the prospective subjects for their future studies. Lectures take place once a month on Saturdays under the guidance of University lecturers and which are adjusted to the needs of their young listeners. There are also summer camps taking place during the main vacations. This project not only expands the horizons of grandparents and grandchildren but also builds a platform for the reinforcement of their mutual relationships and development of mutual respect.
dana_stein@volny.cz
Dana Steinova is a founder and organiser of this project of intergenerational co-operation
Experimental University for Grandparents & Grandchildren is a part of the Center of Lifelong Learning in Prague with enrollment of over 3.000 students,mainly seniors
Dana Steinova is also a head of EURAG Memory Training Center in Prague,
EURAG Secretary General and a head of Prague Senior Council