Fifty Years of Learning by Older Adults in Aotearoa New Zealand

This paper reflects on the history of adult and community education (ACE) in Aotearoa New Zealand with special reference to older people's learning. The paper adopts a critical framework and draws on both primary and secondary sources. Key economic, political, social, demographic and cultural forces are discussed along with the huge growth in tertiary education, the increasing pressures on people to continue their education in later life, and the impact of social movements on this expansion. This growth in tertiary education has not been paralleled by a comparable growth of ACE, and I argue that the history of ACE is in fact more complex and subtle, with many different stories being told. I then discuss the history of older adults' learning and report briefly on some ACE programmes which have emerged over the years and some trends in government policy with special reference to the New Zealand Positive Ageing Strategy and its implications for older people's learning. In the light of the positive ageing rhetoric I also raise questions about the very limited government investment in ACE generally and in particular in older people's learning.