Page 45 - IJPS-9-3

International Journal of
Population Studies The right to lifelong learning

Table 5. Use of dwellings and services by Canadians aged 65 and over (2019/2020)
Descriptor Total Men Women
Number % Number % Number %
Home has adaptations 1,985,400 31.0 762,000 25.6 1,223,400 35.7
Assistance from family, friends, or neighbors for health problems or 1,058,300 16.5 354,700 11.9 703,600 20.5
limitations in the past 12 months
Assistance from community support services in the past 12 months 579,800 9.0 208,100 7.0 371,700 10.8
Source: Statistics Canada (2022d).

Table 6. Canadians 65 and over who possess a valid driver’s 3.3. Equity
license (2019/2020)
While equity results from the fair sharing of benefits through
Descriptor Total Men Women policy, inequities can be created either by a lack of policies or
Number % Number % Number % through poor policies disadvantaging a particular population
Valid driver’s 5,274,400 82.0 2,685,100 89.7 2,589,300 75.4 group compared to others. Inequities can also result from
license poor policy performance due to the inability to handle the
Source: Statistics Canada (2021a). volume of demand or appropriate provision. For instance,
there are consequences to aging persons and society if
3.1. Rationale learning does not sufficiently support successful aging and the
ability to contribute to society. Normal aging does not include
During the last 20 years of life, learning cannot be denied cognitive deterioration but rather changes in the way the
to Canadians because they have to understand the world brain functions. This was demonstrated by the Seattle long-
they live in (for example, climate change), adapt to societal run longitudinal study of older adults (Schaie & Willis, 2010).
changes that affect their quality of life (for example, online The lack of necessary learning can reduce their autonomy,
grocery shopping), participate as Canadian citizens (for life expectancy, and quality of life. The value of the cognitive
example, voting) and continue their personal growth to reserve of older people to society is diminished. Furthermore,
ensure a meaningful life. in addition to the lost opportunity, learning poverty results
Furthermore, by 2030, a quarter of the population in additional costs to society due to higher demands for
will fall into this age group. From a practical standpoint, healthcare, social services, and financial support.
ensuring an inclusive policy that allows meaningful Equity between generations and within the generation
societal participation and contributions from this group has to be considered. The learning needs of the population
makes sense. They are also active voters.
of children under 15 are well developed and funded,
Learning is a human right: Canadian human rights though it is smaller (16%) compared to the group 65 years
legislation prohibits discrimination by age. Access to to 100 years and over, which is larger (18%) (Statistics
knowledge for all citizens is a right, particularly because Canada, 2023). It can be argued that since everyone ages,
knowledge is necessary to access other interdependent investments in late-life learning benefit everyone when
civil, political, economic, and social rights. examined from a lifetime perspective. The current learning
infrastructure progressively weakens from K-12 education
3.2. Target clientele and higher education when supporting the needs of adults
Canadians in later life are a large and under-served group in the workforce and post-retirement. For example, while
in terms of learning opportunities, particularly those in the almost all children attend school, less than a third of adults
older decades. There are about 7 million potential learners participate in training (Munro, 2019). Equity within this
in this population group aged 65 years to 100 (and over) population group is also an issue because those in the 60–69
(Table 1), and only about 500,000 of them could have age group may have better opportunities than those older.
conditions that would affect their cognitive capabilities.
Their numbers are projected to grow to 9.5 million by 2030 3.4. Access
when they will be one-fourth of the population. There are Access is a measure of the ability of the targeted population
insufficient learning opportunities at present, but any new group to find, choose, and use the learning options in a
or augmented system for late-life learning has to be scaled manner that meets their needs and ability. This means that
up rapidly to meet current needs and continue to increase information about late-life learning must be available to this
until 2030. group. At present, there are a few channels to reach them.

Volume 9 Issue 3 (2023) 39 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.339