The situations that many older women find themselves in are
often the result of social forces beyond their control. Educational
opportunities have not kept pace with the demands and challenges they have
faced and continue to face in negotiating phenomenal personal and social
transitions during the later period of their lives. In exploring these issues
with our mothers, grand-mothers, and older friends, younger women have much to
learn. Unless we ask, their knowledge will be buried in silence. It is all too
easy for us to forget that old age is the common territory of everyone and that
the current generation of elderly women are the pioneers of what will
inevitably be our inherited homeland. As we help to open doors to their present
lives, we are, in turn, opening the doors to our own future.
Sharon Harold is currently finishing her Masters in Adult
Education at the University of British Columbia, with a focus on the social
construction of aging, gender issues in aging, and the development of
theoretical approaches in educational gerontology. She is currently editing a
book with James Thornton called Education in the Third Age: Canadian and
Japanese Perspectives. She is the mother of four school-aged children.
1134 to 100 at the age 65-74; 164 to 100 at the
75-84, and over 200 to 100 after the age of 85 (Stone and Fletcher 1986).
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Education for Public Awareness
- Presentation through the media of positive images of
older women to dispel negative stereotypes.
- Education of employers about the abilities and
potential of older women as persons with multiple and transferable skills, and
incentives for employers to hire older women.
- Incorporation of age and gender issues into disciplines
such as social sciences, economics, history etc.
- Research on income, housing, transportation, and
employment issues related to age and gender.
Policy and Funding Issues
- Advocacy at all levels of government to develop and
promote equitable policy in employment, health care, pensions, domestic
relationships, and education for older women.
- Educational funding, through scholarships,
apprenticeships, and subsidies for older re-entry women.
- Financial support for developing co-operative
enterprises, community net- works, and shared resource exchange.
- Recognition and support of caregivers and caregiving
roles for and by older women through funding, respite services, education, and
compensation.
- Promotion and funding of research on women's aging
through grants and scholarships.
Campagne visant à sensibiliser le public
- Présentation par l'intermédiaire des
médias d'images positives des femmes d'un certain âge et les
inciter à embaucher des femmes d'un certain âge.
- Traiter dans les matières scolaires, comme les
sciences sociales, l'économie, l'histoire, etc., des questions portant
sur l'àge et les deux sexes.
- Procéder à des recherches sur des
questions relatives au revenu, au logement, au transport et à l'emploi
par rapport à l'âge et au sexe.
Mesures et subventions à envisager
- Faire pression à tous les niveaux de
gouvernement pour promouvoir une politique équitable à
l'égard des femmes d'un certain âge dans tous les domaines.
- Dans le domaine de l'éducation, octroi de
subventions par le biais de bourses, de stage d'apprentissage et de subsides
pour les femmes réintégrant le marché du travail.
- Appui financier pour mettre sur pied des entreprises
coopératives, des réseaux communautaires et des échanges
de ressources.
- Reconnaître et appuyer les personnes qui
prodiguent des soins aux femmes d'un certain âge.
- Grâce à des subventions et des bourses,
promotion et financement des recherches effectuées sur le vieillissement
des femmes.
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