Older adult learning in Malta : toward a policy agenda

Abstract

Late-life learning is no longer an exotic terrain within the field of adult education. Older adults are not only participating in lifelong learning avenues in increasing numbers, but recent decades also witnessed the emergence of learning opportunities targeting specifically older cohorts. In Malta, the government not only communicates its support to late-life learning, but also put forward agefriendly policies that facilitate the inclusion of older adults in learning programmes. This paper conducts a critical overview of the Maltese experience in older adult learning, analysing both its guiding rationale and participation rates. It notes that late-life learning in Malta occurs in the absence of a national policy framework that directs and supports the efforts of formal and non-formal bodies in providing learning opportunities for older persons. The paper also proposes an agenda for the late-life learning based on the values of social justice, social levelling and social cohesion.