Lifelong learning

Lifelong Learning

YMCA Brown Bag Lunch SeriesApril 25, 2014

Presented by Kate Finn, [email protected]

Lifelong Learning; [email protected] 2

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or [120]. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.

Henry Ford

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• What does it mean to you?

• What examples can you think of?

• What does it “look like”?

What Is Lifelong Learning?

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Lifelong Fitness?

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Lifelong Fitness?

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Lifelong Learning Can Look Like this

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Best of Both Worlds?

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• Learning pursued throughout life

• Ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated:

Learning for personal or professional reasons

• Flexible, diverse: Available at different times and places


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1. Mental stimulation

2. Connecting with family

3. Expressing yourself

4. Exploring physical activities

5. Keeping current

Informal Benefits

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Informal Benefits (cont’d)

6. Improving job skills

7. Exploring “encore career”

8. Building friendships

9. Doing what you never had time for

10.Having fun!

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• Less depression

• More social engagement

• Better emotional balance

• Higher health awareness

• More active citizenship

• Better personal fulfi llment

• Increased employability

• Increased creativity

• Higher initiative

• More responsiveness

• Enhanced adaptability

• Increased independence

• Improved communication

• Reduced cognitive

decline

Formal Benefits

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• In-Person vs. Online

• Experiential vs. Intellectual

• Non-Credit vs. Credit/Certificate

• Individual vs. Group or Team

Options

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• Cooking Schools • Meetups

• Music schools • Lectures

• Outdoor Groups • Art Schools

General In-Person Options

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• Adult/Continuing Education

• Athletic Clubs, Dance Schools, Yoga Centers

• Book Groups, Author Readings, Library Events

• Community Colleges

• Community Centers, Senior Centers

• Garden Centers, Hardware Stores

• Medical/Health Facilities

General In-Person Options (cont’d)

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Socrates

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There is nothing more

notable in Socrates than

that he found time, when

he was an old man,

to learn music and

dancing, and thought it

time well spent. ― Michel de

Montaigne


Travel Example: RoadScholar

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• Adventure Afloat Study• African American

Studies• Art History/Criticism• Arts, Miscellaneous• Baseball• Bicycling• Birding• Bridge & Other Games• Crafts• Dance• Family Programs• Festivals, Misc.

Travel Example: RoadScholar

• Film Festivals• FLEX Programs• Food & Wine• Golf• Grandparent Travel• Health & Fitness• History & Culture• Holidays• Homes & Gardens• Ind’t City Discoveries• Inter-generational• Jewish Studies

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Going Online to Meet People in Person

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•Khan Academy• iTunes podcasts, iTunes U•TED talks•YouTube

Free On-Line Individual Options

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• Math• Algebra I, II• Geometry• Probability• Calculus

• Computing• Programming• Computer Science

• Humanities• History• Art

• Science• Biology• Physics• Chemistry• Health & Med

• Economics• Micro• Macro• Entrepreneurship

Free On-Line Individual Options:Khan Academy

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Less Interactive (just listen and/or watch)• iTunes podcasts• iTunes U• TED talks• YouTube

Free On-Line Individual Options: More

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Free On-Line Individual Options:iTunes Podcasts

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• Arts

• Business

• Comedy

• Education

• Games & Hobbies

• Gov’t & Orgs

• Health

• Kids & Family

• Music

• News & Politics

• Religion & Spirituality

• Science & Medicine

• Society & Culture

• Sports & Recreation

• Technology

• TV & Film

Free On-Line Individual Options:iTunes Podcasts

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Free On-Line Individual Options:iTunes U

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Featured Providers

• Cambridge U• Harvard U• Library of Congress• MIT• Nat Archives & Rec Admin• Ohio State U• Open U• Stanford U• TED• Yale U

• App Development• Ancient Greece & Rome• Astronomy• Business Skills• Classic Readings• Mind & Brain• US History & Politics• Virtual Field Trips

Free On-Line Individual Options:iTunes U

(some) Collections

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TED Talks

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TED Talks

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YouTube

• Free• Searchable• Minimal oversight• (pretty much) Anyone can put any video

up

• Uses• Entertainment• Learning

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YouTube – for Entertainment

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YouTube – for Education

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Tablets, SmartPhones (Mobile Apps)

• Can be used for watching educational videos•Mostly games and apps•Mostly used alone•Mostly free or low-cost• Some apps are educational• Mostly(?) for kids

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Words with My Mother

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“Brain Fitness” Apps

• Examples• Lumosity• BrainHQ (Posit Science)• FitBrains

• “Freemium” models• Be very careful about their claims

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• Credit, Audit, or Certificate of Accomplishment• Paid or Free

• “Traditional” Online• MOOC• SPOC (blended, hybrid, or flipped)

More Formal On-Line Options

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• Intended to provided world-class university

education experiences for underserved

people

• But most success: educated people in

developed countries

• Early problems >> current improvements

• Still to come: funding model?

MOOCs

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• Creativity: Music to My Ears• Stanford University• 22,000 students

• Demographics•Age range• Education•Reasons for Taking• Location

Example Hybrid (MOOC + Classroom)

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Albert Einstein

Intellectual growth should commence at birth

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and cease only at death.


My Lifelong Learning – So Far

• Chinese, French, Spanish, Ital ian, German languages

• I tal ian, Chinese, Indian, French, Thai cooking

• Household repairs

• Gardening w CA Native Plants; Planting Techniques

• Photography, Pottery, Faux Finishes

• Statistics, Stocks, Bonds, & Investing

• Website Development, Usabil ity Design, Photoshop

• Gerontology, Taking Care of Your Aging Parents

• College Counseling

• Folk Dancing

• Yoga, Meditation, Science of Compassion

• Creativity and Innovation

• Jewelry making

• Small Business and Entrepreneurship

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