The Third Age and Learning
Carmen Stadelhofer, Academic director of ZAWiW, Centre for General Science Continuing Education, University of Ulm, Germany
Internet as a chance for the third age?
About useful pedagogical concepts in the age of the new media!
We live in time which is marked by fundamental demographic changes and rapid development in technology science and economy with consequences on society as well as the individual. The people of today and of tomorrow have to process more information, handle social developments and critical situations and make more decisions. Learning and (continuing) education is no longer a privilege but a basic necessity for all people, older people included.
New technologies are a driving factor in the „information and knowledge society", they will influence the way of life of all people in a fundamental way. Media competencies will be required as new key qualifications. In order to avoid exclusion of older people from society, we have to create a knowledge basis for them concerning the application and intelligent use of the new technologies. Extensive education with the goal of a reflected and beneficial application of the new media will be the prime task of the educators in continuing education.
While the use of the new information and communication technologies (NICT) is taken for granted by many seniors in the USA and other English speaking countries, there is a lack of knowledge about their possible uses in other countries, and there are many reservations about them. Especially in South-, Middle - and Eastern Europe, there is a lack of infrastructure to create application possibilities.
On the other hand there is quite a number of projects in different European countries aimed at opening of the NICT for older people. Some of them have already developed very useful concepts and materials.
The aim of this workshop is to reflect on
- how on the regional, national and international level attempts are made to utilise the new communication technologies in the continuing education for older people and to close the gap between the older people interested in education and technology and those whom these themes are distant.
- how can we promote participation of older people in social and technical developments of the information society and encouragement of social engagement.
- how can we support "self determined life-long learning" with the aid of technologies for information and communication through a multiplier principle.
- how can we learn and profit on the national and international level from the existing positive experiences of the NICT- for the third age.
- how can existing websites, materials, concepts and activities for the opening and utilization of the new technologies for older persons be collected and be made applicable to other initiatives.
- how can we make use of the existing infrastructure of the network of the Universities of the Third Age and other relevant facilities of senior education in existing networks like the "European Network Learning in Later Life" (LiLL) as well as the already existing good cooperation with key national and international organizations.
- how can support be given concerning the development of hard- and software through an individual exchange of experiences between the developers on the one hand and seniors as critical customers on the other hand.
Introduced will be the European project "Learning in Later Life" (LiLL) - the information and communication system in the Internet for the promotion of information and communication between establishments of continuing education for older people in Europe and between older people themselves, coordinated by ZAWiW, university of Ulm. Introduced will be further the federal campaign "Senior-Info-Mobil" initiated by the the german federal ministry of education and research which is taking place in many German towns and provides older people who are interested with the opportunity to get to know the modern technologies at first hand. Both projects have in common that they are designed in the way of the „help to self-help" approach and that they demonstrate the possibilities of the new information and communication technologies on an international and inter-generational basis.
Further information on
ZAWiW University of Ulm : 
www.uni-ulm.de/uni/fak/zawiw
European Network
"Learning in Later Life" LiLL: www.uni-ulm.de/LiLL
Campaign "Senior-Info-Mobil": www.uni-ulm.de/LiLL/senior-info-mobil
