Lifelong Learning

Lifelong learners are motivated to learn and develop because they want to: it is a deliberate and voluntary act. Lifelong learning can enhance our understanding of the world around us, provide us with more and better opportunities and improve our quality of life (extract from https://www.skillsyouneed.com/learn/lifelong-learning.html )

Implications for an aging society. 

Extract from Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifelong_learning

According to the Alzheimer’s Society, it is estimated that more than a million Canadians will suffer from Alzheimer’s diseases by 2030. “Exercising the brain may preserve it, forestalling mental decline” (Grady, 2012). In North America—and presumably globally—to proactively curb potential economic issues as the baby boomers continue to age, we need to look at society through a lifelong learning lens. Consider community programs to engage retirees and foster their cognitive health. Taking a proactive approach to keep our elderly population engaged through learning and their brains exercised as Grady described, the strain on the health care system and not to mention the families of the elderly would be lessened. The US Department of Health and Human Service published a study that suggests that older people with a mild cognitive impairment receive 8.5 hours more of care each week from their family and those with a severe impairment received 41.5 more hours than those without a cognitive impairment (USDHHS, 2007). Who pays for this? As a society we are living longer—85 years for men and 90 years for women—making cognitive health vitally important.