Europe is getting older. The ageing of the European population raises issues in almost all aspects of life: the employment and housing markets, pension schemes, health and welfare systems, transport networks, goods and services which will have to adapt to new needs and new social and financial realities. The way European society as a whole addresses these challenges will condition our future, its capacity to create smart and inclusive growth, strengthening knowledge, creativity and innovation that will benefit citizens of all ages , while at the same time reinforcing solidarity between generations to reinvent a new way of living together.

Active ageing in Europe calls for a new vision of older people and their social roles that are more in line with the reality of the 21st century. Lifelong learning is a key component of active ageing, ensuring to develop up-to-date skills right to the end of one’s professional career and continuing post-retirement to improve an individual’s social functioning and well-being and increase the potential for older adults to contribute actively to society through paid employment, volunteering, active citizenship and self-help for independent living. The relationship between higher educational attainment and living longer with improved health has been established in many countries. Furthermore, the roles of older people in workplace, or as volunteers or informal caregivers, contribute to their personal health and the wellbeing of communities.

In order to foster active ageing, older citizens need to have access to quality employment, the means to participate fully in society and the ability to live independently a fulfilling old age. This presents a two-fold learning challenge that addresses the skills and training of this target group and also raises awareness within the greater community.

This issue of eLearning Papers explores what teaching methods and learning environments are being used effectively to promote lifelong learning among older people. Enrichment and skill building educational programmes for older people must be continuously supported, promoted and facilitated as part of the active ageing process. This issue will also consider ways in which civil society, governments and employers support learning and active ageing.

Environments can be made much more age-friendly by increasing the public's sensitivity to the needs of older citizens and fostering an awareness of what they can contribute and why we need to mobilise all the human capital they represent. Public campaigns like the European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations 2012 are giving rise to new initiatives that need to be shared and analysed.

eLearning Papers seeks submissions about learning and active ageing in the 21st century, for both sections: In-Depth and From the Field. We specifically invite contributions which address one or several of the following issues:

Bridging the digital divide among older people paying due attention to specific challenges faced by older persons with impairments, ethnic minorities, low incomes, older women, etc.
Open educational resources for non-traditional students
Age-friendly environments, goods and services
Fostering technical skills to create adept senior e-learners
Learning environments for older learners
Challenges for teachers and developers working with older students using ICT
Policies and practice: institutional innovation supported by ICTs


The article submission closes on 20 April, 2012. The provisional date of publication is May, 2012.

For further information and to submit your article, please contact: jimena.marquez@elearningpapers.eu

Guest editor: Anne-Sophie Parent, Secretary General, AGE Platform Europe.

The submissions need to comply with the following guidelines:

Submission language: English
Title: must effectively and creatively communicate the content of the article and may include a subtitle.
Executive summary for In-depth section should not exceed 200 words.
Executive summary for From the field section should not exceed 50 words.
Keywords: up to five relevant keywords need to be included.
In-depth full texts: articles should range from 4,000 to 6,000 words.
From the field texts: texts should not exceed 1,200 words.
Conclusions: special importance is given to the representation of the conclusions, which should be clearly stated both in the summary and at the end of the article.
References: All the references must be adequately cited and listed.
Author profile: author name, institution, position and e-mail address must accompany each submission.
Images: Please send high resolution JPEG files
See the complete guidelines at: Instructions for writers