More ‘Silver Surfers’ Joining The Distance Learning Community
Over 50s are increasingly less likely to be baffled by computers and more likely to be using them as a learning resource, a new survey has revealed. And the news is described as being hugely positive in terms of older people’s health, their involvement in society and the development of their range of interests.
The National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) has published a major new survey (November 2012) showing an increase in independent and online ‘distance learning’ by more mature people.
While the proportion of people aged 50 and over engaged in learning has
not changed since the last survey in 2005, the numbers learning
independently and online have risen.
The news comes as no surprise to leading online courses provider,
Distance Learning Centre, whose managing director, Mike Verinder,
comments: “In recent years we have found increasing numbers of learners
over 50 joining our courses – and completing them successfully.
“The feedback we get from more mature students is that they have spent a
few years learning computer skills and now they want to apply them as a
resource to gain new qualifications, enhance their employability
prospects, or merely to pursue a particular interest and become more
involved in the modern digital world.”
Popular Distance Learning Centre courses with the over 50 community include: Webmaster Web Design Courses, Garden Design Courses, ECDL Online Courses, Fiction Writing Courses, Property Development Courses and Interior Design Courses.
The report’s author, Professor Stephen McNair, Senior Research Fellow at
NIACE, said: “There has been a transformation in older people’s
learning over the last seven years. This survey shows, for the first
time, how complex and important the benefits of learning are for older
people. Learning, for them, is not just about pursuing interests. It
helps them to stay involved in society, to maintain their health, to
manage caring roles and to cope with life crises.”
Name: Mike Verinder
Company Name: Distance Learning Centre
Town: Houghton le Spring
Country: UK
Email: mike@distance-learning-centre.co.uk
Telephone: 08451297238
Language: English
