Ageism can negatively affect everyday interactions with older adults, social policies, healthcare practices, and the physical and cognitive outcomes of aging. Reducing ageism among young adults can improve the lives of older adults and allow for optimal aging. The current study investigates whether a psychology course on aging with a…

We present a critically focused, semester-long community engagement project entitled "Intergenerational Connections" as a form of critical interpersonal and family communication pedagogy (CIFCP). The project utilized Zoom to connect small groups of undergraduate students in the US enrolled in a course on relational communication with…

Ageism is highly prevalent, especially among college students. However, efforts to reduce ageism largely take place in helping professions. This activity seeks to promote positive perceptions toward older adults and aging among communication undergraduate students through gerontological education, a positive intergeneration contact experience, a…

Life expectancy is increasing worldwide. Unfortunately, people are generally not prepared for this long life ahead and have ageist attitudes that inhibit maximizing the "longevity dividend" they have been given. Aging education can prepare people for life's later years and combat ageism. It can reimage aging as a time of continued…

This article describes and discusses a novel academic course founded by the Faculty of Welfare and Health Studies at the University of Haifa, Israel, which tried to establish an alternative interaction between graduate students and older persons as part of its graduate academic program. The course "Social Activism and Old Age: From Exclusion…

This article presents an evaluation of an intergenerational education experience at the University of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain). For this evaluation, following a review of the literature regarding the state of the issue, we undertake an analysis of benefits and disadvantages from the perspective of the participants. Among the benefits we find…

This article describes an innovative model for teaching gerontological social work that has been introduced into the social work methods curriculum in the Department of Social Work at a college in northern Israel. The basic concept of the model is to create an alternative learning environment by including older persons as full participants in the…

An intergenerational initiative was developed and implemented to enhance gerontology in the first course of the practice sequence. Seventeen students met with older adults (ages 82-98) in the classroom and at an assisted living facility. The evaluation of this older adult infusion project was conducted through two questionnaires and by the review…

A North Carolina elementary school collaborates with the local senior center in a program called "Grandpals." Group functions, an oral history class, and a pen pal program are among the mutual education activities. Resources to link senior citizens and school children are listed. (MLF)

Schools can help young people be aware of the social, political, and economic consequences of an aging society. This report is part of a six-part series, "Schools in an Aging Society," designed to promote education for, with, and about older adults. The Advanced Generations' Education through the Schools (AGES) is a planning model in…

Presents and discusses the results of an exploratory study seeking to determine the effects of an intervention program on aging on children's perceptions of elderly persons. It was found that classroom interaction with older people and exposure to media with accurate information about aging positively changes preschoolers' attitudes toward aging.…

A communication and aging course could potentially enhance both gerontological care providers' understanding of older persons' communication needs, and the older students' communication proficiency. Regardless of the theory of social adaption to aging that the course embraces--disengagement, activity-personality, social exchange, or fundamental…

Service-learning is increasingly becoming an avenue used in a variety of disciplines to provide students with real-life experience regarding aging and older adults. Developing and implementing meaningful service-learning experiences, however, requires consideration both of the discipline-specific content to be addressed, as well as the varied…

To broaden the scope of a letter writing unit for seventh graders, a real-life component brought together two groups who could learn from one another, youngsters (who usually did not have living or nearby grandparents) and the elderly in a convalescent home. Students selected their pen pals on the basis of biographical data and similar interests…

The Grandpals program at Oak Hill Elementary School in Overland Park, Kansas, meets teachers' needs while providing successful intergenerational programming. The first step in developing a program like Grandpals is to determine program goals, objectives, and theme. A next step is to determine the two populations to be involved. For example, whole…