Developing the Resources of the Rural Elderly Through Education

Abstract

Older adults want continuing education programs that are more than just recreational activities to fill leisure time. DARE (Developing Adult Resources through Education) is an educational program for the rural aged that provides courses ranging from those of a serious, academic orientation to the hobby/recreational to the practical. A model of why adult learners engage in lifelong learning is applied to the older adult. DARE shows how college and community resources can be used for the educational advantage of the older person.

Improving the Quality of Life for Rural Elderly African Americans Through Education: A Nontraditional Approach

“…In Nelson's (1983b) study, rural elderly service providers ranked the following obstacles to participation in learning: cost, physical infirmities and poor health, uncertainty of trying something new, lack of interest, lack of community resources, and availabilities. Other researchers have reported low population density, scarcity of resources, lack of existing educational systems, and attitudinal problems on the part of program planners as correlates of the low participation of rural elderly in traditional educational programs (Hausafus, Ralston, & DeLanoit, 1985;Price, 1980;Steinhauer, 1980). Another possible reason not identified in the literature is embarrassment.…”