In different European countries later life education takes on different organisational and methodological formats, though in most cases comprehensive education for older adults does not exist. Education of older people is often limited to educational provision, to a limited variety of educational contents for those who are either older than 50 or older than 65. In most countries “the educational provision” for older people is just added to the rest of the courses provided by an organisation, or these courses readily borrow the name of the third age university without being one. Most of the times there is no clear-cut division between educational and free time activities for older people.

In the Eramus+ project Promoting Third Age Education for 50+, P3AE co-funded by European Union will be united the endeavours of the intensively conceptualized Slovenian Third Age University as well as those of the partner organisations from Lithuania, Latvia and Spain.
There is and will be exchange of experience about the organisational structure, contents of older adult education, about the ties of NGOs with their municipality and the role of daily centres for older people’s activities (Latvia), about older adult education for personal growth (Lithuania), education and free time activities for older people and people with handicaps (Spain).

Partners will conduct research into the state of education in later life in their respective countries. They will build a model and devise modules for older adult education, organise national events, conduct experimental courses for educators and educational staff. They will disseminate the results of the project to the best of their abilities. Moreover, they will prepare a three-day international conference on older adult education to be held in Slovenia.

Duration: 1.9.2016 – 31.8.2018

Activities / Methods / Results

Educating educators and staff active in the field of older adulteducation;
Contributing towards the professionalization of the field;
Indirectly fostering older peoples’ social identity and their social ties;
Promoting education for the 50+.

Preparing, organising and carrying out a kick-off meeting; Preparing and conducting transnational meetings; Conducting national events; Conducting desktop research into the state of older adult education in partners’ respective countries;
Translating national research reports into national languages; Analysing country research reports; Preparing a compiled European research report in English; Building a model of education for older people to be adopted in their entirety or partly by different countries; Contributing contents for building up educational modules:
(1) Active ageing and Europen identity of odler people (2) English for travellers (3) English for older beginners (3) Bettering the knowledge of Catalonian language

United EU Benchmarking Report based on the data collected in Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Spain >>

Survey on Older Adult Education, Programmes, Methods and Characteristics of Older Students >>

Mentors and Mentoring in Older Adult Education >>

A PPT on Methods in older adult education >>

Conceptual Guidelines for Educators Engaging in Older Adult Education UPDATED >>

P3AE Course

P3AE International Conference. Ljubljana, 12. – 13. June, 2018. Programme >>