Education for the Aging; Living with a Purpose as Older Adults through Education: An Overview of Current Developments.

Overview & Synopsis

Directed toward the practitioner, the book is a compilation by 18 knowledgeable, experienced authors of some of the recent literature and current practices in the field relating to aging. The book consists of seven parts: (1) The Older Adult as Learner, (2) The Role of Education in an Aging Society, (3) The Aging Individual and the Changing Nature of Society and Education, (4) Informal Approaches in Education for Aging, (5) Preparation for Critical Phases of Life in Aging, (6) Governmental Resources in Education for Aging, and (7) The Scope of the Field and Perspectives for the Future. Part two focuses on the role of gerontology in adult education as well as the political implications of education for aging; part three outlines available educational opportunities for the elderly and sets forth concepts and a framework for incorporating education for aging within elementary/secondary school systems. Informal educational approaches are presented in four chapters that describe community programs, non-traditional approaches in practice, preretirement education/planning, and the challenge of leisure in later maturity. Another five chapters, part five, discuss aging as related to: community health services, physical fitness education, nutritional education, sexuality, and education of long-term health care administrators. References follow each chapter. (EA)