“It’s a Win-Win Situation” – Intergenerational Learning in Preschool and Elder Care Settings: An Irish Perspective

Abstract

This paper explores the level and sustainability of intergenerational practice in early years and elder care settings in Ireland. The paper is based on a small-scale research study involving interviews with sta in ve organizations and builds on ndings from previous research conducted for the TOY project (http://www.toyproject.net). The paper examines the pedagogies involved as well as the community context of intergenerational practice in early years and elder care settings. The ndings highlight that sustainable intergenerational practice is facilitated by strong pedagogies that support active and relational learning across the life course and by being embedded in robust community networks. IG practice as planned intervention is relatively new inIreland, although it is well established in Northern Ireland. IG activity in Ireland, rst mapped in a 2012 study by Finn and Scharf, revealed widespread interest in IG practice among a range of sectors including education, the arts, and community (Finn & Scharf, ). However, the participating age groups were mainly senior primary school children and teenagers and young children were largely absent from planned IG work. At European level, IG learning involving young children and older people was a relatively unexplored area of IG practice until research was undertaken as part of the TOY project 2012-2014. The TOY project, funded under the EC Grundtvig Lifelong Learning Programme, focused on IG learning among children under 9 and older adults (55+). Ireland,  2015  2013  2012  Full Article  Log in | Register   In this article  PDF G u dt g e o g ea g og a e, ocused o G ea g a o g c d e u de 9 a d o de adu ts (55 ). e a d,along with seven other European countries, participated in this research project (http://www.toyproject.net). The authors of this paper were participants in the TOY project, and the small-scale study reported here is a follow-up to the TOY project to develop further knowledge in the Irish context.This paper examines the question of the level and sustainability of IG practice in early years and elder care settings in Ireland. The focus was on investigating aspects of the pedagogy that underpins IG practices and the types of community networks that support IG learning in both early years and elder care settings.Because IG practice is a multidisciplinary and multisectoral activity, and occurs in a particular cultural, institutional, and policy context, and usually on a small scale, it is di cult to accumulate research knowledge. Furthermore, the theoretical basis for IG work is eclectic (Kuehne & Melville, ), making it di cult to o er a theoretical framework for describing

Intergenerational Practice in the Community—What Does the Community Think?

“…For older adults, and children often growing up without grandparents in close proximity, there are fewer opportunities for casual intergenerational engagement (Femia et al 2008). This can result in the stereotyping of older and younger people and lack of understanding across generations, compounding both social isolation and a sense of loneliness (Gallagher and Fitzpatrick 2018;Giraudeau and Bailly 2019;Hanmore-Cawley and Scharf 2018;Kuehne and Melville 2014;Macfarlane et al 2019;Sun et al 2019;Teater 2016;Yasunaga et al 2016).…”

‘It all depends … ’ A Real Life Learning model informing childminding pedagogy in Ireland

“…In this context, the Real Life Learning model could be considered evidence of an older, more traditional approach, where care and nurture are prioritised in practice, and where learning to be, learning to learn, and learning to live together (OECD 2006) are deeply rooted values underpinning the daily routine of activities in childminding homes. In changing times, such continuity of values across generations (Gallagher and Fitzpatrick 2018) can contribute to a stable, substantial, relational foundation for young children's lives.…”

Quality Child–Parent Relationships and Their Impact on Intergenerational Learning and Multiplier Effects in Climate Change Education. Are We Bridging the Knowledge–Action Gap?

“…The link between intergenerational learning and children's transfer of knowledge, attitudes and/or climate-friendly actions to their parents is themed in several studies, and is often referred to as a multiplier, spillover or catalyst effect [24,31,43,[46][47][48]. In this case, children who participate in an environmental program and affect their parents in their decisions concerning climate change can be seen as multipliers or catalysts [26,28,32,46,49].…”

“…It is already known that there are several influences on the multiplier effect; however, the various effects and their interrelationship is yet to be confirmed [25,28,29,45,49]. Nilsson et al [25] have noted that the strength of the multiplier effect is dependent on context similarity, personality, self-identity and/or framing, and it has been demonstrated that the link to intergenerational communication and the relationship between children and parents does play an important role [36,46,48,50,51]. According to this complex variety of influencing factors, it is not surprising that increasing knowledge does not necessarily change attitudes or even actions [3,34].…”

“…In summary, the influence of children over their parents is a topic of focus in recent studies, which emphasizes the transfer of knowledge, attitudes and/or actions patterns related to climate change [32,36,43,45,58]. In this case, Gallagher and Fitzpatrick [48] even refer to intergenerational learning as a "win-win situation" in creating opportunities for developing relationships and positive opinions. Overall, the success of intergenerational learning depends on the willingness to learn from each other and how children's opinions are valuated in their family [43].…”