What is the initiative and where is it implemented (city or country, for example)?
The University of the Third Age (U3A) is an initiative targeted at individuals over 60 years of age who are eager to engage in different courses for the sake of personal development. It emerged in the second half of the twentiethth century, beginning in France and spreading, first across Europe and, eventually, Asia (Formosa, 2000). Lebanon became a host to the only U3A in the Arab world – the University for Seniors (UfS) at the American University of Beirut (Chahine and Sibai, 2019).
Lebanon was the only Arab state to have lifelong learning policies and one of the few to have lifelong learning programmes, taking a leading role in education in the region. The existing lifelong learning programmes mainly aim at professional development and literacy skills.
How was the initiative established? How was it implemented?
Although Lebanon is considered a leading country in terms of education in the Arab region, it is noteworthy that it shows the lowest level of literacy at 28.2 per cent. The U3A was introduced at the American University of Beirut by two professors of Public Health, Cynthia Myntti and Abla Mehio Sibai, who saw the potential for the development of U3A in Lebanon in 2008.
Their preliminary study constituted of discussions with senior citizens from diverse backgrounds, extensive surveys with alumni, questionnaires filled by university-based centres of U3A in the USA and Canada, and visits to Harvard, Minnesota and New York universities to explore established programmes. Unlike Malta, which followed a top-down approach in creating the programme, Lebanon developed U3A through a bottom-up approach, consulting the target group and taking into consideration the needs and interests of potential members of the U3A. Senior citizens had an opportunity to provide suggestions on topics of study, duration of the programmes, fees and other matters.
The results of the study showed that an emphasis on community building would be more beneficial for the learners than targeted skill development. Eventually, the University for Seniors was established in 2010 in the Continuing Education Center in the American University of Beirut. The UfS accepts members aged 50 and older, bringing about increased enrolment induced by promoting an early interest in the programme. Within the initiative, a diverse variety of activities are offered, including lectures, study groups, emphasizing cultural exchange through travel programmes, as well as various activities with current AUB students promoting intergenerational connections (Chahine and Sibai, 2019).
Which stakeholders are involved in the design and/or implementation of the initiative? Which sectors do they represent?
The stakeholders of the initiative include representatives of both public and private sectors, the key figure being the American University of Beirut, specifically its Continuing Education Center. The academic staff plays a pivotal role in the implementation of the initiative. Two officially remunerated members of the staff are the Programme Manager and a Programme Assistant, who are responsible for the management of the UfS. Three committees are formed by active UfS members: a curriculum committee, a social committee and an institutional committee, which allow senior members to actively participate in development and running of the programme, engaging them in governance (Chahine and Sibai, 2019).
What are the impacts of the initiative in terms of facilitating lifelong learning? Whom does it benefit and how?
The UfS has had a positive impact in terms of facilitating lifelong learning and reintegrating senior citizens into society. Rather than promoting learning for learning’s sake, the UfS curriculum focuses on providing its members with knowledge and skills that will help them come to terms with the realities of the third age and discourage ageism by promoting a positive image of the third age.
The curriculum emphasizes age-related topics such as the physical effects of ageing, palliative care, important end-of-life decisions and mental health. To promote a positive image of ageing, the programme offers memoir writing and oral history classes which highlight the experience and value of the seniors. Another initiative within the programme, Seniors to Seniors, allows UfS members to conduct mock job interviews with AUB senior year students, which gives them an opportunity to be mentored by experienced members of society.
By gaining knowledge and skills and enhancing their understanding of health and financial issues, the members improve their well-being, contributing to personal behavioural changes. Some courses have resulted in increased social activity of members, with some seniors engaging in different movements and projects to contribute to the development of the society. These changes induce improvements in the quality of life, enhanced health, both physical and mental, and a more active social life. Lifelong learning is democratized through adult learning policies and active engagement of the members in the projects.
The UfS enables its members to practice active ageing and anchors them in society. Engagement in the programme promotes empowerment, creates positive dynamics and improves the image of the third age. Moreover, the members of the UfS have reported that the programme gave them a way to cope with the grief of losing family members or other significantly difficult life changes, such as retiring (Chahine and Sibai, 2019).
References
Chahine, M. A. and Sibai, A. M., 2019. The University of the Third Age in Lebanon: Challenges, opportunities and prospects. In: M. Formosa, ed. 2019. The University of the Third Age and active ageing: European and Asian-Pacific perspectives. Cham, Springer, pp. 181–194.
Formosa, M., 2000. Older adult education in a Maltese University of the Third Age: A critical perspective. Education and Ageing, 15(3), pp. 315–339. [PDF] Available at: https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.471.5963&rep=rep1&type=pdf Accessed 30 July 2021.