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Learning is for life
The Learning and Skills Council, England,September
26, 2002
Janet Thorpe
is England’s oldest learner. At the age of 108, the former housemaid has
joined the country’s growing band of ‘silver surfers’ by undertaking
an IT course and sending her first e-mail. Janet is proof that learning is for life. Having left school in 1908 at the age of 14, she has just finished six-weeks of a course on basic computing for the over – 55s at the care home where she now lives in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. She put her new skills to good use by sending her first e-mail message to a relative living in Leicester. “I like to keep my mind active,” said Janet, who attributes her longevity to hard work. “I don’t feel any different being 108 so why should I stop learning new things? “I think it is really important that people get a good education, whatever age they are.” When Janet was born, Queen Victoria was on the throne and the Earl of Rosebery was in No.10. A two - bedroom cottage cost £190, a loaf of bread, the equivalent of 2p, a gallon of beer 5p and the average weekly wage for a skilled worker was £1.90 while a farm labourer earned just 90p. The first commercial computer did not come onto the market until she was 57 years old. Janet is one of three people aged over 100 identified by the Learning and Skills Council as having undertaken courses in recent months. Edgar Bartlett, 101, from Chichester, has studied furniture restoration and art at his local college; Clara Brick, 100, from Wolverhampton has attended a range of craft courses at her local adult education centre. The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) funds a range of education and work based learning for around 3.5 million people - one in ten of the population of England. Of those, seven per cent (237,000) are over the age of 60. The vast majority of learners, 2.5 million, fall between the ages of 19 and 59 while almost 636,000 (18%) are under 19 years old. In a recent LSC survey of people attending part-time courses, 89 per cent of those questioned said they would never be too old to learn. Bryan Sanderson, Chairman of the LSC, said: “Learning is for everyone. However old you are, wherever you live and whatever you do, learning will broaden your horizons and open up new opportunities. “We are committed to ensuring that young people continue learning after leaving school and that we equip people with the skills needed by business and industry. But we must also consider older people, who want to learn and are no different in their wide - ranging needs. There is a need to overcome prejudices and assumptions about what they want. An understanding of how to access the Internet and use e-mail can transform the lives of older people, particularly if they are house-bound for long periods. “The most popular subjects for the 60+ age group are training programmes that improve their understanding of computers, business and finance as well as courses to improve their skills in their chosen hobbies. “The demographic changes currently taking place in our society highlight the urgent need to retain the wealth of experience and maturity within our social economy. ”The LSC, has courses for people of all ages, we want everyone to have a go. Initiatives like Bite Size have proved extremely popular and successful in encouraging people to learn something new. “There are hundreds of part and full-time courses around England available to anyone who wants to learn. All you need to do is pick up the phone and contact your local LSC.” The top ten subjects studied by the over 60s are: · sciences, including mathematics and computing; · basic education; · humanities, including education and social sciences; · art and design, including performing arts; · business, including administration and management; · health and community care; · hotel and catering, including leisure and tourism · engineering; · agriculture; and · construction. Jim Soulsby, Older and Bolder Development Officer for the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE), said: “An older person’s learning interests are as broad as everyone else’s. We should no longer be making assumptions that growing older means diminishing ability, skills or interest in the world around us. Inviting older people into learning is as important as providing skills for our workforce. Older people contribute so much to society and our social economy and should be encouraged and welcomed.” Emma Aldridge, Project Manager for IT and older people with Age Concern, said: “IT and the Internet are extremely relevant to older people in the UK, but the challenge is to give even more older people the confidence and skills to enjoy the benefits of being able to communicate, access resources and services in this way. By providing innovative training and outreach projects, Age Concern is working to break down the barriers and make access to IT and the Internet a reality for more older people.” Greater Manchester and Devon & Cornwall have the largest groups of over 60+ learners both five per cent of the learning population. These two local LSC areas attribute their successful recruitment of older learners to having well informed communities. The LSC survey revealed that the South East region of England has the largest number of 60+ learners in the country – 17 per cent of the learning population. Learning is not restricted to any age group. If you want to learn more about any subject at any stage of your life, you can. Learning is for life! Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging
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