The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a 13-week adult education class for older adults with early-stage dementia titled Health Promotion for the Mind, Body, and Spirit. The mixed method research design (N = 14) used a quasiexperimental one-group pretest/posttest and the qualitative methods of focus group and phone interview with…

Research among rank and file members of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Portland, Maine was conducted to investigate the perceived benefits of participation in a peer-governed and taught elder learning program. Interviews were conducted with 45 long-term members of the program by 6 focus groups. Benefits were reported in 4 categories:…

Focus groups with 48 peer teachers in Lifelong Learning Institutes revealed five predominant teaching methods: lecture, discussion, hands-on experience, hybrids of these three, and course coordination. Challenges include the range of educational backgrounds, students' subject expertise, physical changes of aging, and ambivalence about the…

Of 15 older learners who kept a journal or diary, a few had started diary keeping in adolescence or young adulthood. Their current practices varied in terms of time, method, and type of writing. Most linked journals with other writing practices. Writing helped them cope with daily life, experience the joy of discovery, and nurture voice and…

Interviews with 245 organizations in New England discovered that 51.8% offer some preretirement planning programs, most often one-to-one or group counseling, presented by in-house staff (76.5%). Financial topics dominated; 61.9% held programs on company time, and 93.5% of organizations paid all program costs. (SK)

Surveyed 560 older students attending Elderhostel programs to examine self-reported learning outcomes and study the predictive relationship between reasons for participation and outcomes. Found students reported moderate levels of growth on two outcomes factors: humanities/critical thinking and human relations/personal development. (Author/ABL)

Examined perceived educational benefits in 560 older persons participating in 20 New England Elderhostel programs. Level of education completed and sex emerged as significant correlates of growth. Persons of lower socioeconomic and educational status reported greater levels of learning than did those with higher levels of income and education.…