Post Secondary Education
by Jane Angelis and
Joanne Kaufman
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
Contents
Goals
Goals for aging education at the postsecondary level resemble
those of elementary and secondary education. The differences
are in the ability of the student to assimilate these concepts
and the wide range of disciplines that can incorporate aging
concepts. Goals for postsecondary education:
The goals of postsecondary education on aging are:
- To understand aging myths and stereotypes.
- To understand that aging is a global and interdisciplinary
topic.
- To understand that aging is a normal and natural process.
- To facilitate interaction with older persons.
- To understand the implications of an aging society for one's
discipline.
The goals can be accomplished by bringing aging information
into the sciences and the arts, facilitating interaction with
older adults, tapping their expertise, observing the works of
older adults in their later years in comparison to their younger
years, and recognizing the impact of aging on one's discipline.
Curriculum
College and university students
have passed through several of the life stages and have experienced
aging. Thus they can identify many of the changes produced by
aging.
Bringing aging information and
older adults into the classroom provides novelty and excitement
to topics that might otherwise be mundane. This can be accomplished
in many ways, but the most common are:
-
Students interviewing older
adults
-
Reading about older adults
or works by older adults
-
Bringing older adults to
class to discuss their area of expertise
-
Discussing the myths and
stereotypes of age
-
Observing the aging process
in plants, animals, objects chemicals and so forth, and comparing
them with human aging
-
Normal physical changes associated
with aging
-
Demographics of aging
The first activity,
interviewing
an older person is a very popular activity with the students.
At first they may seem a little reticent but once they have
the first meeting, their enthusiasm is high. For example,
one class providing reports on their interviews with older
adults became so involved discussing their interviews that
the suggested ten minute reports became 20-25 minutes. Interviews
with older persons can also provide an opportunity to tap
their expertise in disciplines such as sciences, mathematics,
humanities or social sciences.
In the sciences and mathematics
the interviews can be utilized to focus on the experiences
of retired scientists and mathematicians. In the humanities
and social sciences the interviews can also take a content
orientation as students discover social and psychological
characteristics of older persons as well as their contributions.
Students can also observe the interaction between themselves
and older adults from a communication perspective.
Using materials written or
researched by older authors or scientists is the second activity
for postsecondary aging education. If the older writer produced
works at a younger age, it is a stimulating exercise to observe
the maturity or evolution of the work from the younger years.
The third activity across
disciplines and perhaps the most effective is bringing older
adults to the classroom to share their experiences and expertise
with students. A natural follow-up to interviews is the involvement
of retirees in the classroom to discuss specific areas or
simply compare ideas with the students. When well planned
and integrated into the curriculum, this activity can bring
excitement and variety into the classroom.
The fourth activity is one
that seems relevant in most disciplines--discussing the myths
and stereotypes of aging. These myths can enliven a class
with dynamic discussions. Students can analyze the accuracy
of the myths in light of experiences with older adults. Likewise
myths can serve as discussion points when interviewing older
adults. Some myths include:
Too old to learn Too old for sex Most older persons become
a financial burden to their children Older people end up in
nursing homes Older people are sick Old age is equal to senility
Retirement brings the rocking chair Older individuals are
extremely inflexible Older people have nothing to give People
become more religious as they age Older workers are unreliable
The fifth activity is observation of the aging process through
plants, animals, chemicals, old objects such as photographs,
and so forth. The following pages give suggestions on ways
to incorporate aging education into science, mathematics,
social sciences and the humanities. These suggestions will
give you ideas and perhaps stimulate your creativity to develop
other class sessions on aging.
The sixth activity is to discuss
the normal physical changes with age and how they could affect
ones life and discipline. A list of these changes is provided
in the science section, but it is just as relevant in arts,
humanities, and social sciences.
Last, the demographics of
aging is an interesting phenomenon which has implications
for science, arts, humanities. Table 3 presents a vision of
the population changes in the last 90 years. A study of this
table can help the student realize how the number of older
adults has rapidly increased. The student can also analyze
how these changes affect their work and life styles.
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Humanities
and Social Sciences
A. Art and
Photography
-
Draw, sketch or photograph
an important elder. Mount the pictures and provide a biography.
Tell about the person depicted in photographs or sketches
and discuss their stage in the life cycle.
-
Draw self-portraits depicting
old age. Discuss what traits remain the same and which
will change. Point out the expected physical changes such
as wrinkles, gray hair, baldness, change of facial features
and so forth.
-
Photograph or sketch
people in various stages of age. Discuss the significant
events in each life stage.
-
Photograph or sketch
old objects such as trees, plants, barns, schools or other
buildings. Ask students to compare their descriptions
of older objects with their descriptions of older people.
-
Collect pictures or photographs
of an older person as a baby, child, teenager, etc, and
compare the life cycle stages.
-
Research the life and
work of long-lived artists such as Picasso, Georgia O'Keeffe,
Michelangelo etc.
Youth is a thing of beauty. Age is a work of art.
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B.
Business and Public Relations
-
Consider the transitions
that come about as the individual ages, and how life cycles
affect business practices. What are the implications of
an aging society for business? What products and services
will be in greater demand? What are the differences in
the approaches used to reach an older audience compared
with a younger audience?
"We
should all be concerned about the future because we will
spend the rest of our lives there." Charles Kettering
- Consider the following
topics for class discussion:
Age discrimination Early
retirement and its impact on business Retraining of older
workers Marketing to an older population Changes when
serving an older population Income distribution for older
adults--discretionary income Investments for young compared
to investments for older adults Benefits and disadvantages
of various retirement plans Pensions of older women Social
Security Careers for older adults after retirement Health
care expenditure as a part of the national budget Older
CEO's listed in Fortune 500
-
Invite retired business
persons to class or to serve as consultants to help students
prepare case studies.
-
Use the following chart
to forecast demand for different types of products such
as jogging shoes, coffee, toys, travel, or insurance.
Table 4: Youth, Middle Age and Elderly Market
-
Describe retirement trends
during the last thirty-six years. What are the implications
for business in the next decade?
Table
5: Labor Force Participation of Older Men by Age: 1950-1986
Table 6: Labor Force Participation of Older Women by Age:
1950-1986
-
On the basis of the information
in Table 7, construct a budget demonstrating the expenditures
of a typical person under 65 and one over 75.
Table
7: Consumer Expenditures by Type and Age Group: 1984
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C.
Journalism, Radio/TV, and Theatre
-
Produce a feature article,
video or play on issues relating to older adults in the
community. Possibilities for the feature include historical
events, health care adequacy, housing concerns, public
policy issues, forced retirement, Social Security, catastrophic
insurance, older persons' interaction with the community,
changes in life style with retirement
or
social and community needs.
-
Analyze TV shows, magazines,
newspapers, plays, or advertising to evaluate the extent
of coverage of older adults and the images of older adults
that are projected. Research and write papers to discuss
the images of age.
-
Invite older thespians,
journalists, or reporters to discuss the portrayal of
different ages. Discuss the differences and similarities
in depicting and writing about younger and older people,
and the problems faced by older adults that required special
attention.
-
Use role-playing or skits
that portray older people. Myths and stereotypes might
be contrasted with reality.
-
Develop one-act plays
based on older characters. Develop plots that involve
healthy, active older people and those who have problems
commonly associated with aging.
-
Develop an intergenerational
theatre troupe. Have younger and older players exchange
parts.
-
Compare advertising for
similar products in magazines targeted to younger audiences,
and those targeted to older audiences. Analyze similarities
and differences.
-
Compare theatrical or
film treatments of classics that have been produced at
different times. How did different generations treat various
themes or characters?
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D.
English Composition, Literature and Languages
-
Ask students to write
essays or poems on aging topics.
-
Read journal articles
or books on the myths of aging, famous older adults, personal
views on aging, the presence of wisdom in both young and
old, or descriptive words, idioms, or adages about aging
-
Write a persuasive composition
targeting an older person. Take into consideration the
environment of the audience (for example living in a nursing
home, independently, or with relatives); their relationship
to the subject ( important, trite, neutral); and the relationship
of the audience and the writer unknown, credible, skeptical).
-
Compile reading lists
of older authors' works. Compare the author's earlier
works and discuss the impact of age on the writing.
-
Compile a list of books
that treat aging topics. Evaluate the images of age promoted
by the books.
-
Obtain an oral history
about a community or neighborhood by conducting an interview
with an older person.
-
Identify passages from
various authors across time that address the phenomenon
of aging.
-
Invite older adults to
discuss historical and contemporary aspects of life in
their home country, ethnic costumes and ethnic food.
-
Invite older adults fluent
in various languages to meet with the students for conversation.
"I pray
that I may seem. though I die old, A foolish passionate man."
William Butler Yeats
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E.
History and Political Science
-
Read a biography of an
older leader such as Roosevelt, Churchill, Margaret Chase
Smith, etc. Have students discuss the contributions made
over the life span.
-
Invite older individuals
to class to discuss historical events they witnessed such
as local history, World War II, prohibition, suffrage,
small town tradition, and so forth.
-
Interview an older person
to establish an oral history of the individual, an organization,
the community or the region.
-
Identify recent legislation
that affects older citizens.
-
Compare voting behaviors
of various ages depicted below.
Table 8: Number
and Percentage of Persons Who Reported Voting in National
Elections, by Age Group: 1980-1986
-
Discuss governmental
and private organizations established for older people,
such as the Administration on Aging, Area Agencies on
Aging, the American Association of Retired Persons, Medicare,
and the Older Americans Act.
-
Contact a local retiree
group for a guest lecturer to speak about public policy.
-
Compare legislation for
old and young, such as housing, abuse, transportation,
health, day care, entitlements and so forth.
-
Examine the structure
of federal and state aging networks Discuss the services
they provide and how one obtains access.
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Table 9: Older
Americans Act Network
F.
Psychology
-
Discuss the psychological
theories of aging, disengagement and activity theories.
-
Discuss grieving and
death issues faced by older adults and their families.
Invite someone from Widowed Persons Service to discuss
their experiences coping with death.
-
Discuss the facts and
myths of aging such as senility and senile dementia with
special emphasis on Alzheimer's and drug or nutritionally
based psychological changes
-
Study the interaction
of physical and psychological factors on health for the
elderly. Profile those who age satisfactorily with those
who have problems adjusting to aging.
-
Discuss how physical
problems can create psychological problems and vice-versa.
-
The chart on care
giving
suggests that it is primarily a women's issue. These statistics
are from 1982. Do you think more men are providing care
in 1990? Why or Why not?
Table 10: Distribution
of Informal Caregivers by Relationship to Elderly Care Recipient:
1982
-
Interview a caregiver
to determine the main problems and satisfactions.
-
Compare the incidence
of suicide among older men and teens. What similarities
do you find?
-
Compare unemployment
among older workers and teens. Do you find similarities?
-
What psychological changes
should be anticipated with retirement? Look at the educational
attainment of the various age groups in the table below.
Compare the differences in various aged groups.
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Table 11: Educational
Attainment by Age: 1986
G.
Sociology
-
Discuss the changes in
demographics in the United States in relation to an aging
population (See Table 3).
-
Discuss the sociological
theories of aging--disengagement and activity.
-
What are the projections
on the proportion of the aging population in the 21st
century? What are the implications for the increase of
the 85+ population?
Table 12: Actual and Projected
Increase in Population 85 Years and Older: 1900-2080
-
Discuss changes in the
nuclear or extended family. Discuss family responsibilities
to older members and provision of care.
-
Discuss the impact of
poverty among the sixty-five plus population. Construct
a profile of an older person in poverty from the table
below.
Table 13: Percent
of Elderly People Below the Poverty Level by Selected Characteristics:
1986
-
Discuss crime against
the elderly and the older population in prisons.
-
Describe the growth of
the minority elderly population.
Table 14:
Growth of the Minority Elderly Population: 1985-2050
-
On the basis of the table
below, discuss the statement: "Old age is a female
domain."
Table 15: Number
of Men per 100 Women by Elderly Population: 1985-2050
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Science
and Mathematics
A.
Architecture, Industrial Design, and Interior Design
-
Compare homes built recently
with those built fifty years ago.
-
Compare changes in design
and discuss advantages and disadvantages of each.
-
What are the improvements
in landscape for older adults?
-
List the barriers for
older adults in kitchens, bathrooms, and bedrooms in an
ordinary house. How can these rooms be designed to be
adaptable to life style?
-
How could intergenerational
housing reflect needs of young and old?
-
Assign projects requiring
students to redesign products or design new products for
older people. Consult older people and have them demonstrate
their problems with poorly designed products.
-
Study improvements in
building, landscape, and interior design for older clients.
-
Does the chart below
seem to predict changes in architecture and design?
Table 16:
Actual and Projected Distribution of Children and Elderly
in the Population: 1900-2050
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B.
Health Education and Recreation
-
Invite a healthy, physically
active older person to class to discuss the importance
of exercise and nutrition.
-
Discuss the following
topics:
-
The attitudes and
efforts of older adults to stay healthy.
-
The myths and truths
about older adults' sexual activity.
-
The basic nutritional
needs for adults and the changes necessary with age.
-
Wellness associated
with aging including precautions for the skin, teeth,
musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and digestive systems.
-
Polypharmacy and the
problems associated with medication abuse.
-
What are the implications
of aging for recreation?
-
How do local park districts
meet older people's needs?
-
Discuss recreation programs
for older adults in nursing homes, retirement villages,
and senior citizen clubs.
-
Compare recreation programs
for young and old.
"To be
able to fill leisure intelligently is the last product of
civilization." Toynbee
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C.
Mathematics
Statistical Information on
Aging
Table 17: Life
Expectancy at Birth and Age 65 by Race and Sex: 1900-1985
-
Ask students how frequently
they interact with an older person. (More than just meeting
at the grocery story.) Prepare a frequency chart and follow
with means, medians, mode, standard deviation and so forth.
-
Discuss the implications
of the changes in demographics that can be predicted by
the data. Ask students to determine the percentages of
each age in 1986. How many millions of males and females
lived in the U.S. according to this chart.
Table 18:
U.S. Population by Age and Sex: 1986
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D.
Geography
-
Use geographical mapping
of ancestry. Have students trace the origins of their
ancestors. Map their trek to the United States
-
Invite older relatives
to class to discuss the area where they were born.
-
Identify the states with
the largest older populations. What are the trends in
migration among older adults?
-
Compare the growth rate
of older adults in various countries.
Table
19: Average Annual Growth Rates of Elderly Population
by Age, for Selected Countries: 1985-2005 and 2005-2025
-
What are the common characteristics
of states that increased population of older persons?
-
What are the common characteristics
of states that received the lowest gain in the older population?
Table
20: Percent Increase in Population 65+ by States: 1980-86
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E.
Biology/Anatomy and Physiology
-
Discuss research on causes
of aging and life extension.
-
When discussing development
and physiology, it is a natural time to include normal
aging in the body systems.
Integumentary
System
Normal Changes with Age
Result Decreased thickness of epidermis Wrinkles Transparent
Skin Pigmentation Age Spots Loss of elasticity in connective
tissue Wrinkles Loss of nerves Decreased Sensation Fragility
of blood vessels Redness of Skin Loss of fatty tissue Wrinkles
Decreased activity of sweat & sebaceous glands Dryness
of Skin Degeneration of hair follicles Baldness, Gray Hair
Sensory System:
Eye
-
Normal Changes with
Age Results
-
Lens Loses Elasticity
Less depth perception Presbyopia Yellowing Difficulty
Seeing Blues, Violets, Greens
-
Macula Degeneration
Decreased visual acuity Slower adaptation to light changes
-
Iris Narrowed Pupil
Increased need for light Slower response to stimuli
Loss of speed in accommodating to light and dark
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Sensory :
Ears
-
Normal Changes with
Age Result
-
Bones of the Middle
Ear More rigid Difficulty hearing high pitches
-
Auditory Nerve Degeneration
Presbycusis
-
Eardrum Thickened Perception
of sound Inner Ear Degeneration Difficulty with high
pitch sounds
Musculo-skeletal system
-
Normal Changes with
Aging Results
-
Bones Become porous
and brittle Prone to fracture Decreased calcium Prone
to fracture, osteoporosis Thinning of vertebrae Loss
of height Change in posture Change in gait
-
Muscles Muscle fibers
thin Less muscle power Fewer muscle cells Less agility,
sluggish reflexes Leg cramps
-
Joints Degenerative
changes Stiffness Decreased mobility
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Cardiovascular
System
-
Normal Changes with
Age Result
-
Heart Muscle Becomes
enlarged Decreased heart rate Decreased blood circulation
-
Blood Vessels Decreased
Elasticity Poorer circulation Smaller lumen Edema, Higher
blood pressure
-
Valves Rigid and thicker
Less efficiency
Pulmonary System
-
Normal Changes with
Aging Results
-
Lung Decreased elasticity
Reduced ability to cough and deep breathe. Decreased
circulation Reduced efficiency of lungs
-
Rib Cage and Spinal
Column
-
Rigidity Reduced ability
to deep breathe
"Forty
is the old age of youth; Fifty the youth of old age."
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Digestive System
-
Normal Changes with
Age Result
-
Salivary Glands Decreased
Secretions Difficulty in Swallowing
-
Stomach and Liver Decreased
secretion of gastric acid Gastritis, Indigestion Decreased
digestive enzymes and bile. Decreased tolerance of fat
-
Large Intestines Loss
of muscle tone and fluid Constipation
-
Small Intestines Decreased
absorption of vitamins Poor Nutrition and minerals
-
Tongue and Nose Decreased
secretions Loss of sensation Decreased appetite Decreased
taste and smell.
-
Teeth Alveolar bone
loosens Loss of teeth Worn Enamel Cavities and dental
problems
Nervous System
-
Normal Changes with
Age Result
-
Neuron Decreased number
neurons Slowing down phenomena Degeneration of neurons
-
Brain Decreased circulation
of blood Increased reaction time Slowing of processing
ability Greater tolerance to pain Sleep pattern altered
Endocrine and Reproductive System
Normal Change with Aging
Result Ovary Decreased female sex hormones Atrophy of Breasts
Thinning of vaginal mucosa Diminished activity of ovaries
Menopause Testes Decreased male sex hormones Prostate enlargement
Smaller testes Fewer sperm Longer to achieve an erection
Less frequent erections
All Glands Decreased hormonal
activity Change in homeostatic mechanism
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Urinary System
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F.
Chemistry
-
Discuss the scientific
theories on aging, such as the genetic clock.
-
Most pharmacological research
is performed with college students. Why is this a problem
for older adults?
-
Describe the change in
hormonal activity for older adults. What are the implications
for various body systems?
-
Osteoporosis is said
to be stimulated by a number of factors such as ingestion
of red meat, soft drinks, alcohol, lack of exercise, and
low calcium. What is the process that creates osteoporosis?
-
Digestion in older adults
is complicated by what factors?
-
Gas exchange in the lungs
of an aging person is characterized by what changes?
-
A number of causes have
been suggested for Alzheimer's disease. One is aluminum.
Describe the function of aluminum in the Alzheimer's brain.
Old age doesn't
matter unless you are a cheese.
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