Week 4 Learning Journal

Points to Ponder:

What do I know about older adult learners?

Ruminations:

This week we read about Nola Ochs, the oldest person to receive a bachelor's degree at the age of 95.  Our message board discussions were pretty disappointing to me.  Everyone pretty much said the same thing, focusing on a nature vs nurture argument.  Her social roles were considered as was her stage of life and the transition from wife to widow and active mothering to older children.  But, instead of considering that this woman might have been driven to learn and grow, it seems many think she kind of fell into education as a way to occupy her time.  There is some truth to this, but she could have done lots of other things.  Instead, she took on a huge intellectual challenge and even separated herself from her peers.  One of my classmates considered her story with a historical approach.  She has lived through some truly significant events that have to potential to influence her route to education late in life.  

Clearly, Nola is unique.  However, the discussion board posts seemed to take a pretty negative view of middle age adults and beyond with regards to their abilities.  In other words, my classmates seemed to spend more time focused on limitations and not advantages or increased abilities and motivations.  I don't mean to bash my classmates, just looking for a conversation about how dynamic this population is and how much life and learning is possible with older adults.  Even if they have physical challenges, why would we not address them the same way we address any student with challenges?

Rarely have I met a traditional student that is going to school for the sake of learning; they need a job and therefore, need education.  However, most of my middle age and older friends often include intrinsic motivation as explanation to their decision to go back to school.  Of course, many are looking for increased job opportunities, but even if that was the initial push for more education, it often takes a back seat to the learning journey.  Maybe I am making erroneous judgment.  So what do I know about older adult learners?

After doing a bit of research, it seems adult educators should pay close attention to this population of learners, age 55-79 or third age adults.  As their numbers are increasing in academic institutions, traditional student numbers are slightly decreasing (ACE 2nd report, 2008).  I decided to answer a few questions to gain more insight:

"We're aging, but we're not done yet!" - focus group member, age 81

Who are third aged adults learners from a demographic standpoint?

Like their younger counterparts, minorities, recent immigrants, displaced workers and rural dwellers are underrepresented among the third age cohorts on campus .  In addition, a strong indicator of continued education is past education.  Third age adults are more educated than in the past, however, as they age the levels of education decline.  Of course, that implies that as more adults reach third age, they will be very educated!  There is a definite gap along the racial lines with non-hispanic white being the most educated, followed by Asians.  Women are better educated than ever before and yet among the older population there are still many more men holding higher education degrees.  Although this age group is not typically rich, they are considerably more well off than their predecessors (ACE 1st Report, 2007).  So who will you see in the classroom?  Well, the reasoning goes something like this:  An educated white woman is more likely to go back to school than an uneducated black man.  An Hispanic man with money will be more likely to seek educated than a minimally educated woman.
  

"Don't put us off somewhere and tell us, 'That's all you can learn'." - focus group member, age 79

What do they want from education?

Third age adults want to learn in an intergenerational manner.  In addition, many want programs and instruction in "chunks." Instead of linear degree programs, they are looking for seminar or skill-building course designs and accelerated programs.  Prior knowledge is a hallmark of adult education.  Third age students want services that capture that experience and support them in their career management goals. Personal note here - I can totally relate to this one.  Educational institutions need to reevaluate their services to distance students as they relate to resume writing, interview process, and otherwise career planning.  Third age students would also benefit from some logistic support.  Increased transportation, outreach, technology support and social programming are some ideas (ACE 2nd Report, 2008).

“I’ve been asked, ‘How are you enjoying retirement’ —but I’m not retired. I’ve been operating on my own time, learning, growing.” - focus group member, age ?

What is their quality of life?

The negatives of aging are not secret.  Older adults have a higher incidence of chronic disease, eye sight and hearing deficiencies, as well as attention and memory challenges.  However, increased awareness and lifestyle changes contribute to extending quality of life and reducing or preventing health problems.  Psychologically, third age adults report high levels of identity, self-esteem, well-being, personality, and emotional regulation.  These positive traits of aging indicate self-worth, life satisfaction,  happiness, and emotional well-being are as good or better in third-age (Barnes, 2011).

Interesting statistics or facts:

• Half of college students age 50+ attend community college.
• Motivations for education: learning to learn, learning to connect, and learning to work.
• Tope 5 programs enrolling older adults: fine arts/humanities, business management and entrepreneurship, human services and counseling, teacher education, and health services. 
• They want to be called third age or lifelong learners, not seniors.
• Older adults often do not know or do not take advantage of tuition waivers offered to older students.
• Fastest growing online audience is adults over 50.
• Survey responses show that, while institutions offer classes to older adults via other venues, the main campus is still the primary location:
• Main Campus 95%
• Branch Campus 46%
• Online 39%
• Senior Citizen Center 15%
• Nursing Home or Assisted Living 10%

So, all in all, I feel my instincts are fairly on target.  Third age adults are a rich and dynamic population that for the most part engage in active learning and have the capacity to continue their growth.  Adult educators will do well to acknowledge the benefits of third age adults in their classrooms and yet be sensitive to their challenges.  Recruiting students, funding their journey, and supporting them as they navigate the learning process (mainly technology advances) is worthy of discussion.  Within the classroom and course design, encourage older students to share their life experiences, be conscientious of font and volume, and help relate new skills to real life problems.

References:
American Council on Education, 2007.  Reinvesting in the Third Age: Older Adults and Higher Education (First Report).  Framing New Terrain:  Older Education & Higher Education.  MetLife Foundation.  Retrieved from http://plus50.aacc.nche.edu/documents/Reinvestingfinal.pdf on November 11, 2012.

American Council on Education, 2008.  Reinvesting in the Third Age: Older Adults and Higher Education.  Mapping New Directions: Higher Education for Older Adults.  MetLife Foundation.  Retrieved from http://www.lifelonglearningaccounts.org/pdf/MapDirections.pdf on November 11, 2012.

Barnes, S., 2011.  Third Age - The Golden Years of Adulthood.  San Diego State University Interwork Institute.  Retrieved from http://calbooming.sdsu.edu/documents/TheThirdAge.pdf on November 11, 2012.