Education of the elderly in Germany

Transcription

1 1 Education of the elderly in Germany The number of seniors in Germany (65 79 years) will rise considerably after the year 2010 until 2030 (+ 37, 4%). They will also be more active, if the actual trends continue. Finally they are in a better economical position, because more and more of the elderly will have the complete pretension for a pension and have higher savings than their predecessors, even than their children. For this reason more and more seniors will tend to look for further education in all areas of their interests and knowledge. The education of the elderly in certain aspects is different from the education of younger persons, in their youth or in the middle age. This is true not only in respect of the objectives and conceptions. A general speciality of education in old age is the freedom from regulations and enforcements by third parties, because education or further education to get or to keep a job are no longer necessary. Seniors have the possibility to learn only for the reason that it makes sense for them personally. Also there is no pressure to use that knowledge. So the elderly have the privilege to learn only what they are really interested in, without being worried, if this or that course of further education is good for their professional career. Seniors mainly learn by combining new knowledge with existing experiences and knowledge gained before. New knowledge brings new connections, which are always relied to subjects learned formerly. For this reason the contents of seniors education should refer to the modification of already existing structures and internal further education. Strategies of seniors education in Germany Adult education is component of the overall education system in the Federal Republic. In the 1970s, the legal foundations for the promotion of adult education were established in almost all of the federal states. Responsibility for the field of adult education in Germany is not concentrated in one hand. While the federal government is responsible for the area of professional regulations, the other areas are under the cultural and educational autonomy of the federal states. Both the areas of vocational and political education represent the two main subjects. In practice, there is no longer a clear division between the two. The Federal Government and the Federal States have passed a common strategy for life long learning in the Federal Republic of Germany ( Strategie für das "Lebenslange Lernen" in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland ). This means, there is a pluralistic system of providers in the field of adult education in Germany, who are subsidised by the tax revenues of the respective federal state. In return they guarantee the open admission to all persons interested in these educational offers. Financing adult education for the most part takes place through a combination of participant fees and the contribution (tax) of each federal state. The landscape of the adult education providers can be divided into two main areas. On the one hand, we find the legal entities under the jurisdiction of public law and on the other hand those under civil law. Included among the traditional providers are regional authorities, private enterprises, welfare organisations, political parties, churches and religious communities, trade unions and other associations.

2 2 Examples of providers (institutions) of adult education include: adult education centres/community colleges (Volkshochschulen) Catholic and Protestant churches Educational Association ARBEIT und LEBEN company education organisations in industry and trade educational organisations of welfare associations university institutions (senior citizens lecture series) community adult education centres (Heimvolkshochschulen) rural adult education organisations National and Federal Agency for Civic Education political party foundations (e.g. Friedrich-Ebert-Foundation, Konrad-Adenauer- Foundation, etc.) educational organisations for individual trade unions and of the DGB (German Trade Union Association) cities and regions For the co-ordination of this work, these organisations have set up networks in the form of associations and committees for adult education in the regional areas, at the federal state level and at the national level. The content of adult education covers all areas of life. In practice, adult education providers in Germany have been able to establish themselves well and set up educational institutions that more or less offer educational and training courses applicable to different life phases which enables and promotes learning throughout all stages of one's life. Thus it deals with continued and renewed learning. With demographic changes as well as the marked alterations in the stages of one's biography (above all the shortening of the period of professional work and the prolongation of the life stage after retirement) education for senior citizens has acquired a special status within adult education. The terminology employed in academia and in educational practice varies. Included among these terms are: Altenbildung (education for the elderly) Seniorenbildung (senior citizens education) Altersbildung (learning across the life-span to grow old) Bildung mit älteren Menschen (education with elderly people) Geragogik (senior citizen s education) Prerequisites for this new branch are the recognition that elderly people retain an ability to learn well into very old age and the fact that the challenges experienced in the different stages of one's life verifiably influence the readiness and ability of elderly people to learn. First of all, learning in this sense can be understood as "everyday life learning", that means to acquire and/or improve one's ability to master and control one's everyday life in various situations. Thereby, learning and education can ensure the participation of elderly people in societal developments. Accordingly the course of such education in Germany has undergone different phases of development.

3 3 It can be described briefly as follows: 1960s education for the elderly in the form of care and welfare for old people (elderly people as a population group were considered to be in need) 1970s education for the elderly for the creation of equal opportunities for disadvantaged older people in the society 1980s education for the elderly as education for senior citizens : focussing on the resources of elderly people, this area of education became a permanent feature of adult education 1990s a change in the paradigm of education for the elderly: self-determination, selforganisation, and greater involvement and independence well into old age determined the educational content At present education in at an advanced age describes the current educational work that covers all areas: beyond one's own biography, life plans and concepts are drawn up and discussed and then placed into the context of everyday life developments. Those involved in this learning actively participate in groups comprised individuals of the same or of different ages. Inter-generational learning has increased. Even the teachers themselves are senior citizens and embody a new quality of life experience and readiness for social participation. Main approaches in senior citizens education (1) Learning at an advanced age (acquisition of new competencies for ways of acting and increased opportunities to participate) (2) Learning for one s age (structuring biographical stages and crises, transitions into retirement) (3) Learning how to interact with elderly people (inter-generational approach)) (4) Ageing inter-culturally (cultures of growing old in different countries, generations and cultural circles) (5) Citizen participation and education (creating knowledge and methods, transfer of empirical knowledge In the daily educational work, both formal and informal learning are used at the same time. The boundaries here are fluid. Generally there is a greater trend toward informal educational offers and demands. Because of the initial motivation of those interested and the intended applicability of knowledge, one can observe its direct integration into the practical living environment. The part of "social learning" after the omission of professional or vocational learning" predominates - and supports the greater integration of elderly people into other spaces of social relationships (neighbourhood, interests groups, projects, groups, etc.). Within these contexts of learning, the participating elderly people themselves are increasingly actors who embody experience-based knowledge and thus are "experts for the ways of life of the elderly." This also corresponds to the form of learning: "learning on site," meaning the orientation toward different life worlds or the claim of being a "learning organisation," symbolises a rise in the informal learning culture in adult education with elderly people. The orientation toward different worlds of life meets up with the senior citizens in their own world and applies it methodologically (in writing workshops, as contemporary historical eyewitnesses, in work forms emphasising and based on life experience, description and evaluation of milieus, living situations and lifestyles) to those interested in learning. The learning sites then become the neighbourhood locality, the project, the group, the network, or the living quarters.

4 4 What are the results of senior citizen s education? The results of senior citizens' education are very diverse. The individual (the elderly person) who independently organises his or her daily life is at the heart of these considerations. He or she has the opportunity to participate in societal (municipal/regional) developments, which means to be able to articulate his or her interests and needs and to take part in realising them. Senior citizens attain greater social and communicative competencies. Through the senior citizen's active involvement "for oneself" and "for others," the character of the community is altered. New structures for social relationships are created. In difficult situations, they make it possible to develop solutions to problems and apply them both individually and collectively. In society, the image of the elderly person or elderly people is gradually changing. The generations of elderly people are increasingly becoming a new resource for society. They can be distinguished by their autonomy, creativity, and great collective empirical knowledge. The education and further education of senior citizens gives rise to the first signs of a new inter-generational relationship. Through the increased activities of elderly people in society, different generations encounter each other in very different areas (politics, ecology, media, culture, social issues, and history). The possibility exists for the transfer of knowledge and experience (community involvement) in both directions, that is, a transfer that unfortunately hardly still ever takes place in professional further education and in the world of employment. Within the context of this social contract between generations, cultural reservations can be dismantled. Adult education and senior citizens education As clarified above, senior citizen's education has become a permanent feature of general adult education. Numerically elderly people represent an ever larger interest group. They are a cross-sectional group in the educational landscape and can be found in all institutions, with all providers, and in the most diverse offers. Educational offers for senior citizens are distinctly set aside as a specific educational segment in the provider's educational programme. Nevertheless, it must be pointed out here that there are offers for mixed-ages as well as educational offers solely for senior citizens. Most of the trainings for the elderly are part-time courses, running f.e. once a week for two hours, or weekend courses. There are correspondence courses and distant trainings, but they are dedicated to persons of all age groups and not specifically for the elderly. Most of the elderly prefer to attend courses in their own town. Most of the German universities offer the possibility to the elderly either to participate in normal lectures as a guest student or they organize a special study for seniors in form of a University of the Third Age. Some universities also have a mixture of both. Some examples for the Kassel region, which are comparable to most of the other areas in Germany: In the region of Kassel there is the Lernende Region (learning region), which is a network of education institutions in the city and region of Kassel. The network works on questions and

5 5 problems of further education in the region and develops lasting projects on a wide basis of cooperation partners. Furthermore this initiative wants to give any citizen the mind for education by organizing meetings, public relation etc. The most important aim is to improve the situation of education in the area of Kassel by projects cutting across institutional boundaries. So they developed a database of further educations and trainings, where everyone can choose the offer which suits him most. The members of this initiative are widespread, f.e. the University of Kassel, the Volkshochschulen (community colleges), education institutions of the trade unions, as well as private organisations work together. There are job-related classes and trainings as well as political, social, health related and other general topics. The government of the region of Kassel ( Landkreis Kassel ) organizes training courses for everybody ( Volkshochschule ), not especially for the elderly, but many older persons take part in these courses. They offer courses with a wide range of topics, such as language courses, computer courses, health, gymnastics, sports, politics, history, social science etc. There are also special courses like The elderly in our society. Social changes, physical changes, ability for learning. The same is true for the city of Kassel, which also organizes a wide range of further education courses. But in Kassel there are special courses offered to the elderly and which take place mainly during the day. The most popular topics are sports and gymnastics, health, languages, PC and video, as well as art, painting, sculpturing and Dwelling and getting older. There is a government organisation in the region of Kassel, which organizes and realizes ca events for further education per year in more than 60 villages and cities in the region of Kassel in nearly 250 schools, village community houses etc. They have more than participants per year in their classes. 70% of the participants are women. The government of the city of Kassel regularly organized courses, trainings and lectures for the elderly. Topics are sports, health, and nutrition. Single lectures are held in 2006 f.e. on Taxation of pensions new law on earnings in old age, Staying fit but how?, Conflicts about rules of the house and peace in the house in tenancies, What to do when it is hot, Preventions of falls in old age, The therapy of Ayurveda, Inheritance and entailing, Security in everyday life. Further more there are special sightseeing and viewings, like the TV-studio in Kassel, the Jewish cemetery, factories, museums etc., and special performances in the theatres of Kassel. The Landessportbund Hessen, the umbrella organization for all sports clubs in the federal state of Hessen, offers trainings and further education in the area of sports and wellness and locally in several cities of Hessen, so as well in Kassel. In several cities there are the so-called Seniorenakademien (senior academies). They are mostly private initiatives and work as far as possible on an honorary basis. Their aim is to offer academic knowledge to the elderly, but they also organise courses on a more basic level. There is a private institution in Kassel specialised on computer courses for the elderly ( Senioren PC Hilfe Another private initiative is 50+ ans Netz, which trains seniors to be able to use the internet and has founded several initiatives in Germany, f.e. in Hessen the internet portal Senioren auf Draht (seniors in the internet), which shall link elderly persons in Hessen. (

6 6 Most of the trade unions offer courses for persons for preparation for retirement, questions of pensions etc. Furthermore there are other unions and organizations on national, regional and local level, like f.e. the Lebensabendbewegung ( evening of life union ), education houses for full-time education (lasting a weekend or a week each) or the Initiative Senioren lernen online (the elderly learn via the web). The latter is an innovative offer to the elderly, a portal for e- learning, so that even handicapped persons can learn at home. They offer introduction courses for this type of learning. In Kassel there are several clubs, groups and initiatives, which offer further education events for the elderly. Most of them belong to associations, like the Worker s welfare Organization (AWO Arbeiterwohlfahrt), the churches, trade unions, etc. Most of the events are published once a year in the Seniorenprogramm (program for seniors), published by the government of the city of Kassel. The most popular topics are: Health, nutrition 68% Memory training 60% Arts 58% Communication 55% Law, pensions 55% Museum, theatre 53% Society 52% Sports 50% Meaning of life 48% Literature, theatre 47% Preparation for retirement 45% Local history and information, information on foreign countries 40% Foreign languages 38% Religion, philosophy 36% Technique, computer 30% Training for honorary work 26% Environment, ecology 23% Education, psychology 13% Household 9% Craftsmanship 6% Mathematics, natural sciences 4% Astrology, esoteric 4% Business related 3% Other topics 15% Source. Bildung im Alter Anbietererhebung 1999 Intergenerational and intercultural aspects of senior citizen s education As already mentioned, both approaches can be found in senior citizen's education. Depending on for whom the educational offers are intended and/or from whom they are initiated, there are wide variations. Since youth education and senior citizen's education make up two separate fields in everyday German education, the cross-sections are constituted very

7 7 differently. In the area of citizen participation, in sport, in ecology, and the separate cultural areas, these fields are more closely intertwined, and consequently there are also more frequent encounters in such educational situations. At present the German Federal Ministry for the Family, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Bundesministerium für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend) supports a pilot program called "Experience-based knowledge for Initiatives" ("Erfahrungswissen für Initiativen" - EfI). This program promotes an advanced and further education process which enables the application of the empirical knowledge of elderly people in society, which makes it possible for elderly people to engage in new roles and areas for action, and which simultaneously shows them recognition for their efforts for active involvement. Among other things, new forms and areas for intergenerational and multicultural encounters are being tried out through this program. In this way, already actively involved elderly people will be equipped with knowledge and methods for specific areas of action, which will then give them an opportunity in their capacity as a senior citizen trainer to be effective as a multiplier, tutor and/or as moderator. Senior citizen participation in the further education of senior citizens in Germany This issue is very important for the further development of a culture of senior citizen s education. This process is already embarking along a good path. Above all, the efforts of the national government (models) and the specific aims of the federal state ministries to promote it make it possible for this development to relatively continually take place and include elderly people with their expertise in this development. Among the actors who especially positively influence this development are: networks of senior citizens organisations (e.g. BAGSO) pilot project networks of senior citizens offices and their umbrella organisations (BaS) national and federal agencies for civic education enquiry commissions Demographischer Wandel ( Demographic Transformation and Zukunft des bürgerschaftlichen Engagements in Deutschland ( The future of citizen participation in Germany ). Foundations of political parties ARBEIT UND LEBEN as well as trade union educational institutions German Association of Adult Education Centres (Deutscher Volkshochschulverband) together with its divisions. Included among the forms of work nation-wide are: conferences and workshops seminars future workshops (Zukunftswerkstätten) pilot projects programmes of action and working symposiums German Senior Citizen Day etc. In addition to these nation-wide activities, within local and regional educational affiliations one also finds different platforms and networks that play an important role in the further

8 8 development of the quality of senior citizen's education, and through their special expertise and knowledge are able to influence the everyday life realities of the elderly. Important keywords are the support of lifelong learning or the further development of areas of activities and beneficial structures for participation and civil engagement. In this connection also the expansion of target groups is necessary: New offers for intergenerational and intercultural encounters or new forms of outreach work with the elderly, which f.i. also reach severely ill or handicapped seniors. The modernization is supported by several offers of further education for persons working full time or voluntarily with the elderly. These educations themselves are in a process of changes. Keywords are learning accompanying every day life, training on the job, self organized learning or the complementing use of E- learning elements. The elderly not only produce economically modified resources but they also have shown a rising potential for social engagement during the recent years. Already since 2002 successful approaches for qualifications for seniors, professionals and volunteers have been tried and carried out through the Federal project Experienced-based knowledge for initiatives, and the projects Development of complementary services, Seniors online/forum work with seniors. Besides the transfer arranged by the Ministry for Generations, Families, Women and Integration of the county of Northrhine-Westfalia with events, public relations and consulting services this initiative for the qualification of the elderly, started in 2006, shall reach the following goals: Reaching more communities with these offers for further education Preparing the professionals as well as the volunteers for new tasks and methods in the work with the elderly, Accompany changes in the institutions. There are also aims on the level of the society: To show the competences and abilities of the elderly to the public, To support creativity and experiences of the elderly in their potentials for local initiatives and projects, To extend intergenerative and intercultural projects, To improve the offers for seniors in the need of help. On an individual level there are the following aims: Supporting civil engagement and self organization of the elderly, Supporting of lifelong learning, Assisting seniors in their creativity and there willingness for shaping, Supporting and initiating intergenerational and intercultural meeting, Improving the individual security of supplies. For elderly volunteers learning does not end in itself. They are more interested to qualify for concrete tasks in their respective practical work. So the knowledge to be gained primarily has a reference to their activities. It shall not only widen their own horizon, but open their latitude to act, and optimize their own activities. Starting point and motivating factor is a concrete situation of a need identified by the seniors willing to engage themselves often an improvement of the living conditions in their environment is concerned. So the institutions offering this kind of education are trainers for learning oriented to everyday life and volunteering. Who wants to be active in civil initiatives is not only interested in a personal but also in a collaborative development. An important motivation is to do something for oneself, with others, and for others. Experiences have shown that many participants have

9 9 special experiences and thus can contribute with their expert knowledge to the course. This also means that again mostly the well educat4d seniors participate in this kind of education. New and innovative projects in the fields or culture, environment, or new media have been founded in those areas where an appropriative infrastructure is available, such as agencies for volunteers. With the accompanying qualification the already existing competences of the participating seniors are systemized, ideas for projects are developed together and additional knowledge is procured to the elderly. Few programs to reach the less educated seniors Also in Germany mostly those seniors participate in further education, who have a higher level of education. There some exceptions in different fields though, f.i. courses of craftsmanship, needlework and similar offers are also attended by less educated seniors. Although there is a wide range of opportunities for the elderly for further education there are only few initiatives to reach the less educated seniors in Germany. One example is an outreach program carried out some years ago in Kassel. In the Kassel Project "Outreach Counselling and Education Activities for Old Persons", 12% of the older inhabitants of a working-class district took part in study groups, lecture courses, and educational excursions after social workers had built up familiar contacts over 2 years with a target group of risk persons (characterized by poor health, low income, living alone, etc.). Those seniors contacted continuously took part at a rate above average. It is shown how outreach counselling and educational activities can support each other in a community context. Special attention to specific target groups Specific target groups increasingly also play a role in Germany. The scope of the target groups addressed is very large. Depending upon the educational profile of the provider, we find specialisation as well as general target groups here. Intercultural educational offers are very different between the federal states. In the states of the old Federal Republic, educational offers for senior citizens have developed strongly over the last ten or fifteen years. This has foremost to do with the fact that the first generations of migrant workers ( guest workers ) have entered into retirement and also that their final place of residence was then in Germany. In the new federal states, this development did not take place since the amount of elderly migrants was significantly less. Here the share of elderly Spätaussiedler/innen (ethnic German migrants) has, nonetheless, become noticeably larger. As a result, the potential educational offers are growing for this group, based on approaches of integration and biography. Special target groups in the area of senior citizen s education are: elderly women elderly migrants elderly Spätaussiedler/innen (special group of migrants ethnic Germans from eastern European countries) senior citizen members of trade unions elderly people with social and/or health problems older unemployed people

10 10 The concept of self-controlled learning Life long learning is learning, for which largely the individual is responsible, i.e. learning, in which the learning individual is steering through a multiplex network of possibilities and offers of education. This self determined learning contains the use of educational processes organized by others as well as the self organization of learning. It implies fair possibilities of access and competent advice on how and where to learn. The target group elderly contains adults who are as a rule at an age only a few years far from retirement or actually have retired. This deliberate inclusion of learning into this part of life is combined with new requirements to education and the integration of the elderly in our society. A new image of old age becomes a matter of course, which regards the elderly not as an individual burdening the social state end being excluded from the development of the society, but as a member supporting society. In the phase of life in old age the importance of formal education is decreasing. Therefore a support of informal learning is necessary in form of a further education, which reacts competently and flexibly on the specific demands of old individuals corresponding to their changed life situation and fields of application of their knowledge. The life phase of the elderly is determined by a larger liberty of the learning individual, to decide themselves, if, how and for which purpose they will learn. Older persons concur in the shaping of cultural and societal development through their knowledge and their experience. This is the starting point for the self participation in learning processes, for self organization, and self realization of the elderly, also by new social relationships. Gaining or keeping autonomy and self determination also in old age is one of the most important aims of life long learning in this phase of life. During the process of aging the development of skills and abilities is less important than conserving the existing abilities. In case intellectual, physical, psychical and/or social competences are not constantly stimulated, they get lost. Seniors are looking for connections which follow previous earned knowledge and abilities, they look for a self determined choice of topics and fields for learning, which allow for a self regulated annexation balanced on the own living conditions in old age. They also look for an improved coping with every day life and a personally sensible and socially relevant use of their knowledge in their social environment. It is important for the individual to organise the learning process by him/herself. Elearning Many seniors are less mobile so that offers of learning with the help of the new IT media becomes important. Those can only be used by the elderly, though, when there is access to the internet and the necessary knowledge how to use it is available. More than 50% of the population in the age of 60 to 69 years do not have internet access yet, and in the group of the seniors more than 69 years of age the number is more than four fifth. So there is a great demand to guide this age group to the web. Up to now most offers for seniors in the web refer to internet portals and -platforms, which contain information to several topics, like living, law, growing older etc. Offers for Elearning

11 11 especially for the elderly are rarely available or less known. Positive experiences with Elearning offers for seniors in Germany and Europe have shown that they can be successful when there is a connection to institutions and a link to existing networks of competence is possible. The contents of the few existing Elearning offers mainly are IT-technologies, while programs with contents of the actual living context (e.g. ageing, health, travelling, culture) are missing. The aim of the services mainly is to support the participation of the elderly in the new communication media. But the interests of seniors are besides these communication technologies especially cultural topics (like arts and music). Seniors are also interested in health and nutrition, politics and society, languages as well as foreign countries and knowledge about their own region. Especially interesting for them are programs on the aspects of ageing. Altogether there is an interest to deepen or to extend ones knowledge or to gain new knowledge. One of the exceptions is the a.m. learning portal Senioren Lernen Online (seniors learn online), which is aiming especially at the needs of the elderly. The range of the available courses is reaching from Web 2.0 technologies, processing photos and videos to the elaboration of presentations for lectures about journeys. This multiplex offer animates seniors to life long learning and provides them with the necessary tools, to produce their knowledge and their experiences actively themselves. "Senioren Lernen Online" (SLO) is a union of seniors in pension age, who work voluntarily. They want to motivate persons of the same age to use modern technologies to pass on their knowledge and their experiences. SLO gives the possibility to learn at home independent from time and place. Doing this they receive instruction and personal support. At present mainly courses with technical contents are being offered, like telephoning via internet, processing photos and videos, creating web pages and working with Windows. For the presentation of the contents and for the communication the tutors use up-to-date web 2.0 technologies. Thus the elderly automatically are guided to actual technologies and are used to expressions like virtual classrooms, Twitter, Blogs, Podcasts or Wikis. Of course the use of the computer and the internet is the most important topic in SLO. But also projects on the history of arts encourage the participants to deal with painting, sculptures and architecture. A new offer is an audio-project with the topic Seniors live online and the possibility to present the own travel experiences in form of a public internet lecture with pictures to the interested public. The internet license health in the internet of the company IMAGO GmbH is offering information to seniors on the topics of health, wellness, practical tips facilitating the everyday life of seniors and medical advice in the internet and thus is an orientation guide for finding and rate health related topics. On the platform Wissensdurstig (hungry for knowledge, seniors of the target group 55+ can search for education, events, lectures etc. taking place nearly in all regions of Germany. Thus it acts as a database for all kinds of offers for the elderly.

12 12 Seniorweb.ch is a Swiss example for a comprehensive offer of Elearning. This Swiss platform offers Elearning for nearly every topic the elderly could be interested in, starting from PC knowledge, learning languages, economics, health, travelling up to leisure activities and cooking. This platform is also open to German users. According to statistical figures the target group 50+ has with more than 10% the highest rate of increase regarding internet access. With rising age the risk of illness and physical handicaps often increase, so many seniors look for orientation in the complex diversity of offers. Some EU-projects concerning the situation of the elderly in Europe and seniors education The heterogeneity of the living situation of the elderly in Europe and within the regions of the member states is considerable. The north Europeans are healthier and richer, but people in southern Europe live longer, the coordinator of the SHARE-project ( Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe ) summarized briefly ( The project investigates the living situation of persons of 50 years and older in 11 European countries regarding the dimensions health, occupation, income/capital, family and social networks. To strengthen the participation of the elderly several projects emphasize the resources and potentials of seniors. In the recent years the project NIGEL worked on New activating methods in the education for seniors to strengthen the European civil society ( Basing on the German model program Experience for initiatives the project network LACE is aiming at a creative combination of lifelong learning and the establishing of innovative roles for the elderly. LACE means Lifelong Learning and Active Citizenship in Europe s Ageing Society and has partners in seven countries ( and For several years the Centre for General Scientific further education (ZAWiW) of the university of Ulm has cooperated with several European countries in the network Learning in Later Life (LiLL). A special emphasize is given to self organized learning and internet-based communication ( The Pan-European Network for Education of the Elderly (PEFETE) is up to now the broadest network of institutions of the adult and seniors education and is active in 14 countries in Europe ( The closing event took place in Sofia/Bulgaria in 2006.