Participation of Older adults in Lifelong Learning via Open and Distance Learning
Malaysia’s older adult population aged 50 years and above has increased rapidly during the last twenty years, and this places a great demand on social and health care systems that needs to be paid for by the working age population. If the older adults can remain healthy, mentally active and produ...
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| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Conference or Workshop Item |
| Published: |
2010
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://library.oum.edu.my/repository/562/1/part_ageing.pdf http://library.oum.edu.my/repository/562/ |
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| Institution: | Open University Malaysia |
| Summary: | Malaysia’s older adult population aged 50 years and above has increased rapidly
during the last twenty years, and this places a great demand on social and health
care systems that needs to be paid for by the working age population. If the older
adults can remain healthy, mentally active and productive, there is no reason why
they cannot continue to contribute positively until the last years of life; undergoing
what we call successful ageing. One approach to attain successful ageing is for
older adults to be employed for as long as possible. To be employable, older adults
would need to upgrade themselves with the relevant skills and knowledge that
meet the requirements of new job activities. It is in this context that open and
distance learning (ODL) can play a significant role. Presently there are six ODL
institutions in Malaysia that offer various study programmes at the Diploma,
Bachelors, Masters and Ph.D levels. This flexible education opportunity is not fully
taken up by the older adult learners, and possible reasons could be that they are
not aware that they are eligible and that they could participate in distance learning
in ODL institutions. The purpose of this paper therefore, is to highlight the profile
and the learning experiences of older adult learners in ODL institutions with the aim
of encouraging others to enroll and study in relevant programmes. |
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