Ageist attitudes permeate society, are readily transmitted, are perpetuated from generation to generation, and are a prejudice against our future selves. Research has consistently shown that children as young as preschool evidence ageist attitudes, these attitudes become more negative as the child grows older and tend to become self-fulfilling…

It is well known that agism is present in both Eastern and Western literature, including in school textbooks. Older people are often portrayed as insignificant, sick, dependent, boring or lonely. Younger generations may develop "gerontophobia" from such textbooks, which is not beneficial for ensuring that individuals can live happily in…

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…

The present study assessed knowledge of aging, attitudes toward aging, ageism, and contact with older adults in a sample of 271 Non-Hispanic White and African-American undergraduates. Research examining racial differences in knowledge of aging, attitudes toward aging, ageism, and contact with older adults has been sparse. Results for the current…

Successful aging and lifelong learning are value-laden concepts that are culturally determined. To this effect, people with different value systems and cultural backgrounds may perceive and understand these two concepts differently, resulting in different definitions and conceptualizations by people in diverse cultural contexts. There have been…

This paper reflects part of the wider outlook on ageing in general in Zambia and was intended to investigate perceptions of and attitudes towards the aged and ageing in Zambia by members of the community who, by definition and chronologically are not classified as aged i.e. not yet 60 years and over. Focus Group Discussions (FGD) were used to…

The article theorizes that augmenting traditional humanities course work with documentary video-making can enhance and motivate learning. The English class profiled focused on aging and the lives of elders in an adult daycare center and a retirement community. Students documented elders' stories in video over 15 weeks. The instructor's goal was to…

Ageism is a relevant topic of study because of its inevitability for all humankind. Student attitudes toward the elderly are generally negative and often follow stereotyped views found in books. An outline for use in developing a curriculum on aging is provided. (DF)

Students ask five individuals what three terms or words come to mind when they hear the term old person. The student prepares an overall list and frequency count of responses. Students present their findings to the class. Each response is discussed and its connotation (e.g., negative, positive, neutral) determined. (RM)

Provides an inquiry lesson on aging for the intermediate grades. The goals of the lesson are to provide accurate information about the elderly, to enable children to assess their perceptions of the aging process, and to expose children to an unbiased look at the attributes, behaviors, and characteristics of the elderly. (JDH)

Interprets two literary works--both about old women who have suffered strokes and are near death--and argues that literature can make contributions to gerontology by developing sensitivity to theory, empathy, and self-awareness. Examines these fictional accounts against two perspectives--political economy of aging and theories of personal…

Units of study to help secondary students learn about the aging process are provided. There are five units. Major concepts taught in the first unit, "Chronological Aging," are that aging is a continual process, that generational cycles ensure survival, and that species depend on each other for survival. In the second unit, students learn…

Studied the perceptions, expectations, and attitudes toward aging among students of religion and their graduate counterparts by means of structured interviews. Results revealed students had more positive attitudes toward young than old people, relatively low gerontological knowledge, and negative biases toward the aged. (RC)

Aging is often thought of as an essentially biological process and therefore a matter for the natural sciences, but that notion constitutes a very narrow view of aging. The longevity revolution of the past century and how it affects each individual and all societies can only be understood if we also draw on the social sciences. When the young…

A study was conducted to analyze the content of stories in several basal reading systems widely used in primary grade reading instruction. The investigation was in terms of the relative frequency of main characters who are elderly, the portrayal of elderly characters in relation to other characters in the stories, the incidence of aging themes,…