Later life learning in China : attitudes towards active ageing and participation in learning from elders in Shanghai and Hong Kong /

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Student Theses

2022

Wu, Xue

Hong Kong : The Education University of Hong Kong

Thesis

Previous studies on later life learning have indicated the important role of learning in active ageing for promoting elders’ physical and mental health, improving their satisfaction with life, and maintaining their independence and dignity. However, little is known about active ageing and later life learning in Mainland China. With the aim of obtaining critical insights from Chinese elders on the concept of active ageing including what stimulates or hinders their learning in later life, this research was designed to investigate active ageing from the perspectives of Chinese elders who participate in learning programmes. It also aimed to identify some essential learning issues, including elders’ learning interests, instructional preferences, conceptualisations of later life learning, learning motivations and barriers to participation; and to assess the effect of learning on older learners’ active ageing. Finally, with a focus on Chinese elders’ perceptions of active ageing and learning in later life, this research has analysed and compared the results of Chinese older adults in two locations – Shanghai and Hong Kong. With the objective of understanding the current status of later life learning in Mainland China and Hong Kong, the research involved older learners studying at the University for the Aged in Shanghai and the Elder Academy of the Education University of Hong Kong. The findings of this research are consistent with and have added to the results of previous studies. First, five active ageing components were first confirmed: familial relationships, financial guarantee, social engagement and friends, health and independence, and life adaptation. Among these components, older Chinese learners considered familial relationships to be most significant. Second, socio-demographic variables, such as age, marital status, parental status, educational attainment, living arrangement, employment status, previous occupation and position, and annual income were found to have affected older learners’ perceptions of active ageing to some extent in Shanghai. Concerning the benefits of learning, the most interesting finding was that elders who have enriched their knowledge can better adjust to ageing.The research has also identified four factors that influence Chinese elders’ learning engagement. They are interpersonal relationships, intellectual curiosity, self-fulfilment, and adaptation and adjustment. Among these four factors, the most compelling factor was Chinese elders’ expectation of achieving self-fulfilment. The findings indicated that gender, age, marital status, formal education background, living arrangement, employment status, previous working experience and annual income all differentially affect elders’ motivation to engage in learning. In line with the literature, this research found that older learners in Shanghai face more dispositional and situational barriers to learning in later life than institutional barriers relating to bad experiences within educational institutions, such as feeling unwelcome on campus. Finally, the research confirmed that active ageing was significantly correlated with later life learning and that different types of learning motivations were significant predictors of active ageing. The within-group analysis of the data from the two sites revealed that older adults in Shanghai and Hong Kong shared more similarities than differences as far as active ageing and later life learning were concerned.The research provides insights valuable for understanding later life learning among Chinese elders as a component of active ageing. It therefore provides implications for education providers, policymakers and governments in encouraging elders to become more involved in learning during the process of ageing

LG51.H43 Dr 2022eb Wux

https://educoll.lib.eduhk.hk/records/Dz1dPRB9