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Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
Ageing Societies, Learning, and
Information and Communication Technologies
Kirsti Ala-Mutka & Yves Punie
EC JRC, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies
Information Society Unit
The views expressed by the authors are not necessarily those of the EC
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Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
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Institute for Prospective Technological Studies
IPTS: Part of the JRC of the EC:
7 Research Institutes across
Europe
Mission: “to provide customerdriven support to the EU policymaking process by researching
science-based responses to
policy challenges that have both
a socio-economic as well as a
scientific/technological
dimension”
Outline
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
● Key challenges in the ageing context
● Active ageing and Ageing well
● Lifelong learning
● Learning needs and barriers of ageing learners
● Role of ICT
● Challenges
● Policy issues
● Conclusions
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Key challenges in the ageing context
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
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Preventing of significant physical and cognitive impairments
― Changing health visions: from cure to prevention and importance of mental health
•
Enhancing the perceived quality of life of older people
― Inclusion: Independent living, social networking and participation/integration
•
Using the experience and knowledge of older people for society
― Employment, competitiveness, voluntary work/care
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Active Ageing and Ageing Well
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
Definition of active ageing (Based on WHO 2002)
● “Active ageing refers to a continuous participation in social,
economic, cultural, spiritual and civic affairs, not just the ability to
be physically active or part of the labour force. Active ageing
views older people as active participants in an age-integrated
society.”
Ageing Well in the Information Society (EC COM(2007) 332
final):
● Ageing well at work or ‘active ageing at work’: staying active
and productive for longer
● Ageing well in the community: staying socially active and
creative, improving quality of life and reducing social isolation
● Ageing well at home: enjoying a healthier and higher quality of
daily life, maintaining independence, autonomy and dignity.
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Lifelong learning (LLL)
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
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“all learning activity undertaken throughout life, with the aim of
improving knowledge, skills and competences within a personal, civic,
social and/or employment-related perspective” (EC COM(2001) 678 final)
– Encompasses formal, non-formal and
informal learning
Formal
– Objectives include
• active citizenship, personal fulfilment,
social inclusion, as well as
employment-related aspects
– Effective implementation emphasises
• centrality of the learner, equal
opportunities, quality and relevance of
learning opportunities
% of individuals
• life wide learning
Non-formal
Informal learning
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
25-34
35-44
45-54
Age group
What does this mean in the ageing context?
55-64
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
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From Purdie & Boulton-Lewis. (2003). “The Learning needs of older adults”:
“I’ve got my limitations.
But I’m not going to lie down and bloody die.”
(a statement from a 79-year-old interviewee given as an example of positive
attitudes to learning and the willingness to overcome challenges)
Learning needs and barriers
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
Learning needs of older people
●
●
●
●
●
Learning to manage and improve everyday life
– Health, safety, independence
Learning for keeping mind and life active, “life is learning”
– Learning for activities, “new things”, to keep up-to-date
To understand changes
– Society, politics, people, cultures, ageing
Learning as participation, being in contact and interacting with other people
Learning situations as giving back, showing and using skills, helping others to learn
Barriers for learning
●
●
●
●
Prior learning, learning skills, self-confidence
Health, mobility, cognitive abilities
Financing
Interest vs. non-interest
Main sources:
Purdie, Boulton-Lewis (2003). The Learning needs of older adults. Educational Gerontology, 29, pp.129-149.
Boulton-Lewis et al (2006). Learning and active aging. Educational Gerontology, 32, pp. 271-282.
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Learning and ICT
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
● Learning to benefit from the ICT tools (learning ICT)
– Technology tools for everyday tasks at home and for work
– Aids for compensating disabilities
– New possibilities for communication, participation, entertainment
● Learning with ICT
– ICT as enablers for learning
• Distance learning compensating mobility limitations
• New information resources available, new ways to access
• Specific learning tools
– ICT for allowing more personalization in learning
• Flexible learning approaches
– ICT for interacting and sharing through ICT
• Informal learning in communities
– Also using ICT in collaboration in physical meeting places
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Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
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ICT as a Regenerator of Local Economy:
Kamikatsu – Japan
Swedish Learning centres
Challenges for Ageing, Learning and ICT
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
● Challenges with ICT
– Current generations of older people have very low ICT skills
– Strong need for more user-friendly interfaces (e.g. speech vs keyboard)
• Different technologies, e.g. digital television
• Smart, unobtrusive ambient intelligence technologies in the future
● Designing suitable learning opportunities
– Accommodating differences in interests and learning barriers
● Dilemmas
– Inter-generational learning vs. peer-learning
– Dedicated approaches vs. stigmatization
– Inter-generational justice vs. inter-generational competition
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Policy issues
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
● Increasing digital competencies and ICT access
– Local learning centres, bringing ICT close to learners
– Promoting benefits of ICT, developing relevant resources available
● More holistic policy and financing approaches
– Not only education & training budgets but e.g. sectoral financing
● Support Lifelong learning for all
– Prepare for LLL skills and attitudes already in obligatory education
– Organized LLL at workplaces, mentoring schemes
● Support R&D for intergenerational and integrating learning
– User-friendly tools and interfaces
– Pedagogies, learning approaches
– Involving older people in R&D and as teachers
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Conclusions
Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
● Learning can contribute to addressing the challenges of the
ageing societies
● ICT enable learning for older people in new ways
● However, low digital literacy is a key challenge for realising the
benefits
● Ageing challenges affect several policy areas, and thus, holistic
policy approaches are needed to support Lifelong learning for
older people
● To maximize the potential of learning in the later period of life,
LLL needs to be promoted in all stages of life
● More research is needed to develop accommodating tools and
approaches for older learners
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Silver Economy 2007 Conference, 15-16 November 2007, Sevilla
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Thank you for your attention
[email protected]
http://is.jrc.ec.europa.eu/
References:
Ala-Mutka, K., Malanowski, N. Punie, Y. & Cabrera, M. (Forthcoming). Active Ageing and the potential of ICT in
Learning. Institute for Prospective Technological Studies, European Commission, Joint Research Center.
Ala-Mutka, K. & Punie, Y. (2007). Ageing Societies, Learning and ICT. In: Boonen, A. & Van Petegem, W. (2007).
European Networking and Learning for the Future. The EuroPACE approach.
Purdie, Boulton-Lewis (2003). The Learning needs of older adults. Educational Gerontology, 29, pp.129-149.
Boulton-Lewis et al (2006). Learning and active aging. Educational Gerontology, 32, pp. 271-282.
Willis et al. (2006) Long-Term Effects of Cognitive Training on Everyday Functional Outcomes in Older adults. JAMA,
296, 23, pp. 2805-2814.