Abstract
This study examined the prevalence, types, and perceived impact of intergenerational programs in schools. Programs involving senior volunteers assisting children, or children participating in activities with older people were considered. Of the schools reached, 47% reported intergenerational programming. Thirty-three schools in the Tel-Aviv region participated in the study. Data were collected from 85 seniors, 26 teachers, and 20 coordinators. Assessments included program characteristics, program preparation, and perceived benefits and difficulties. Both programs were reported to have beneficial effects for seniors and to benefit children in the academic, social, and emotional domains. However, programs appeared to attract different types of volunteers and different degrees of volunteer commitment. Findings suggest that there is a need to pay additional attention to both participants’ specific requests and needs and to the allocation of resources to improve the design and implementation of intergenerational programs.
Intergenerational programs are social vehicles that foster engagement between younger and older generations by offering opportunities to interact in mutually beneficial, planned activities in which there is a sharing of knowledge, skills, and experience. Their aim is to increase contact and understanding, to build meaningful relationships, to foster emotional and social growth, and to achieve various educational or community goals (Ayala, Hewson, Bray, Jones, & Hartley, 2007; Kaplan, 2002; Newman & Hatton-Yeo, 2008).
The rise of such programs is attributed to the combination of a rapid growth in the population of older people alongside the existence of ageist stereotypes, even among young children. The goals of early programs were primarily concerned with counteracting these stereotypes and associated negative attitudes. More recently, the concern with continuing projected growth of the older population and family fragmentation, along with mounting social problems and shrinking resources, has prompted attempts to reformulate these programs to address a broader range of societal concerns. To this end, older persons and youth have come to be perceived as a source of social capital, community assets rather than liabilities. As such, they represent untapped resources that can be harnessed to work together to both help each other and to help society address a broad range of social, economic, and political issues, thereby meeting needs that might otherwise remain unmet (Bishop & Moxley, 2012; Generations United, 2007; Newman & Hatton-Yeo, 2008).
Intergenerational programs have been shown to consistently benefit both generations involved. For children and youth, the beneficial outcomes of intergenerational programs include positive changes in perceptions and attitudes about older people (Bales, Eklund, & Siffin, 2000; Cummings, Williams, & Ellis, 2002; Dunham & Casadonte, 2009; Femia, Zarit, Blair, Jarrott, & Bruno, 2008; Heyman, Gutheil, & White-Ryan, 2011; Lynott & Merola, 2007; Meshel & McGlynn, 2004; Wescott & Healy, 2011), prosocial behaviors (Dellmann-Jenkins, Lambert, & Fruit, 1991; Femia et al., 2008), personal growth (Zeldin, Larson, Camino, & O’Connor, 2005), increased self-confidence and self-efficacy (Gamliel & Gabay, 2014; MacCallum et al., 2010), better behavior in school (Carlson, Glass, McGill, Hill, et al., 2004), reduced anxiety (Marx, Pannell, Parpura-Gill, & Cohen-Mansfield, 2004), increased self-management skills at school and interest in schoolwork (Newman, Morris, & Streetman, 1999), enhanced self-regulation (Femia et al., 2008), higher standardized reading test scores (Carlson, Glass, McGill, Rebok, et al., 2004), and academic growth (Kaplan, 2002; Lokon, Kinney, & Kunkel, 2012). For older persons, the benefits of intergenerational programs include greater life satisfaction (Meshel & McGlynn, 2004), physical activity engagement (Flora & Faulkner, 2007), enhanced emotional well-being (Jarrott & Bruno, 2007; Weintraub & Killian, 2007), decreased depressed affect (Hong & Morrow-Howell, 2010; Newman, Karip, & Faux, 1995), increased self-confidence and self-efficacy (Gamliel & Gabay, 2014), and increased social interaction (Short-DeGraff & Diamond, 1996; Varma et al., 2014).
Various formats for these programs have evolved, and various classification typologies have been developed. But most programs can generally be subsumed under the following categories: older adults supporting or serving the young, youth supporting or serving older adults, older people and youth collaborating to support the community, older adults and youths engaging together in shared activities, and older adults and the young sharing sites (Ayala et al., 2007; Generations United, 2007).
Intergenerational programs can be offered in a variety of community contexts or organizations serving seniors and/or youth, such as senior centers, day care programs, community centers, churches, assisted living and long-term care facilities, and universities (Ayala et al., 2007; Newman & Hatton-Yeo, 2008; Young & Janke, 2013). Ayala et al. (2007) provided an overview of programs offered in such contexts for one Canadian city. The most common model for intergenerational programs, however, may be programs based in schools (Newman & Hatton-Yeo, 2008). Yet, due to time and resource limitations, programs in schools were not covered in the Ayala et al. (2007) report.
The field of intergenerational studies is still in early stages of development, and, as such, there is much that has yet to be done to detail the features or assess the impact of existing programs to guide future program development (Kaplan, 2002). Research in this area has tended to be narrative in nature or has been concerned with presenting results from specific programs, many of which have been put in place as demonstration or research projects (e.g., Feldman, Mahoney, & Seedsman, 2003; Glass et al., 2004; Jarrott & Bruno, 2007; Young & Janke, 2013). Less has been done to survey the availability of programs as they have evolved in place in specific communities (Ayala et al., 2007). Furthermore, with research centering on specific programs or in overviews of programs, in general, there is little that allows comparison between different types of programs where they coexist. In addition, many studies on intergenerational programs have been concerned with effects on youth. Fewer have dealt with the perceptions of the older adult participants regarding benefits of these programs (Fees & Bradshaw, 2003; Young & Janke, 2013) or of the perceptions of other stakeholders involved, such as teachers or school personnel. The current article attempts to address some of these shortcomings.
The purpose of this research was to document the prevalence of intergenerational programs in schools in the Tel-Aviv metropolitan area, to characterize these programs, and to assess perceptions of their impact from the point of view of various stakeholders (i.e., seniors, teachers, and school coordinators).
Method
Recruitment and Procedure
The head of the education office at the unit for pedagogic planning and evaluation of Tel-Aviv municipality was contacted to reach the social supervisors in the various schools of Tel-Aviv. Elementary schools, high schools, special education schools, and boarding schools in Tel-Aviv, Ramat-Gan, and Givátayim municipalities were contacted with respect to intergenerational activities. In addition, two non-profit organizations coordinating senior volunteers in schools were contacted for the recruitment of participants. These organizations provided information for schools participating in their programming.
In the Tel-Aviv metropolitan area, 114 schools were contacted with regard to intergenerational volunteer programs involving their students. Of the five categories of intergenerational programs mentioned above, two types of volunteer programs were encountered, one involving senior volunteers assisting children (henceforth senior volunteer programs [SVP]), the other involving children participating in different activities with older people (including teaching the older persons how to use computers) at schools or senior centers (henceforth shared activities programs [SAP]). Forty-eight schools (42%) reported conducting volunteer programs; of those, 24 had SVP (50%), 18 had SAP (38%), and 6 offered both programs (13%). Fifty-four schools (47%) reported having no ongoing intergenerational volunteer program, and 12 (11%) schools were not reached despite repeated attempts. Thus, in this study, we focus on two types of intergenerational programs supported by the participating schools—older adults serving children or youth (SVP), and children or youth and older adults participating together in shared activities (SAP; Holmes, 2009).
Of the 48 schools reporting intergenerational volunteer programs, only 33 schools (69%) participated in our study. Of these, 22 schools had SVP (67%), 7 schools had SAP (21%), and 4 schools (12%) had both programs. Fifteen schools (31%) with intergenerational programs did not participate. Eight schools were contacted several times, but contact information for volunteers or activity organizers was not received. In three of the schools, either the headmistress (one school) or the volunteers themselves (two schools) were not interested in participating in our study. Two schools asked for additional municipality approval (that was not granted due to lack of municipality cooperation). One school conducted a child volunteer activity of food distribution to older people that did not involve an ongoing connection between the child and older person, and in one school, the volunteer activity had begun only recently. Schools were asked to provide contact information for senior volunteers, teachers with senior volunteers in their classes, and school coordinators involved in organizing senior volunteer activities in the schools. Only senior volunteers, teachers, and coordinators were included in this study as obtaining consent of minors in a school setting is difficult due to logistics. By focusing on the voices of senior volunteers and organizers, this study addresses a gap in the literature, because the perceptions of these groups have not been as well represented as the outcomes for youth in research on these programs (Young & Janke, 2013).
Data were collected through questionnaires developed specifically for this study based on a review of the literature and discussions with organizers of intergenerational programs. Questionnaires were developed separately for seniors, teachers, and coordinators/organizers. After obtaining participants’ consent, questionnaires were either completed in a personal interview by trained interviewers with an academic degree in the social sciences or sent by post or electronic mail.
Participants
SVP
Seniors
We contacted 97 seniors who volunteer in various schools. Of these, 92 were volunteers in elementary schools and 5 in all-age schools (Grades 1-12). Forty-three volunteers of the former group and all 5 volunteers of the latter group agreed to participate in the study, for a total of 48 participants (49%). Of the 49 seniors who did not participate in the study, 29 could not be reached (59%), 11 did not return the questionnaires (22%), and 9 refused to participate (18%). Reasons for refusal were health condition (n = 2), family problem (n = 1), dissatisfaction with the volunteer activity (n = 1), no longer taking part in the volunteer activity (n = 3), and not wishing to be interviewed (n = 2).
Teachers
Twenty-six teachers involved with the senior volunteer activity in their classes participated in the study.
School coordinators
Twelve organizers of senior volunteer activities in schools participated in the study.
SAP
Seniors
We contacted 81 seniors involved in SAP. Of these, 78 took part in activities with elementary school students, 3 in activities with special education students, and 1 in activities with high school students. The three volunteers in the special education and the one volunteer with high school activities agreed to participate in the study. Of the 78 seniors involved in elementary school activities, 33 (42%) participated in the study, 5 (6%) were not reached, 25 (32%) did not return the questionnaires, or refused to take part in the study (13%), did not meet the inclusion criteria (did not speak Hebrew or did not participate in the activity, 3%), or did not complete the questionnaire (4%). Reasons cited for not participating in the study included family problem (n = 1), leaving the country (n = 1), lack of time (n = 1), and not finishing the entire activity (n = 1); six participants provided no reason for their disinterest. In total, 37 seniors completed their questionnaires.
School coordinators
Six school activity organizers participated in the study.
Senior center coordinators
Only two activity organizers were identified and eventually participated in the study. Due to the small sample size, some of their responses are not reported hereinafter.
Assessments
All questionnaires began with demographic and background questions including age, gender, and education. All questionnaires also included questions regarding perceived benefits to children and school, including scope and type of benefit (e.g., academic, emotional, social).
Seniors
Program characteristics included the role of the senior, length of involvement, extent of involvement (e.g., how many days/hours a week do they volunteer and with how many children), and location of activities. Program preparation included whether expectations were coordinated prior to involvement, receiving guidance prior to volunteering or ongoing guidance (when needed, daily, weekly, monthly), and perceived adequacy of guidance. Perceived benefits to seniors included increased joy and plans to continue the volunteer work. Volunteer task preferences included suitability of location, interest in changing volunteer task, continuing volunteering for a specific task, and meeting other volunteers.
Teachers and school coordinators
Perceived benefits to children and school included specific academic improvements (e.g., academic performance, willingness to study, behavior in class, participation in class, class attendance), affective and behavioral benefits (e.g., self-confidence, peer relations, violent behavior), school atmosphere benefits (e.g., improved schoolchildren/school–parents relationships and school atmosphere). Items were rated in a dichotomous manner (yes, no). Perceived program difficulties were assessed via five statements for teachers and seven statements for school coordinators, with higher ratings representing higher concern. Participants were asked to rate their level of agreement on a scale ranging from 1 (not at all true) to 5 (entirely true; for example, “I am concerned that the volunteers are not using appropriate methods for controlling the class,” “I am concerned about senior’s judgment in their work with children”). Intergenerational attitudes were assessed via five items for teachers and four items for school coordinators (e.g., “I feel the volunteer was matched to my class,” “Establishing a relationship between older people and children is a good idea”). Items were rated on the same 5-point scale.
In addition to quantitative assessments, we used verbal open-ended items to assess teachers’ perceptions of the most important contribution(s) of the volunteers and to assess all participants’ perceptions of ways to improve the program.
Results
Participant Characteristics
Participant background and characteristics are presented in Table 1. The 48 participants in the SVP reported volunteering to be their main activity, having priority over other activities such as family care, study, and hobbies, each of which was noted by close to 40% of the participants. The 37 participants of the SAP had significantly fewer years of education than SVP participants. Males were more likely to participate in SVP than SAP programs (p = .051).
Participants’ Characteristics.
Note. SVP = senior volunteer programs; SAP = shared activities programs.
The majority (92.3%) of the 26 teachers involved in SVP were female, with a mean (SD) age of 41.42 (9.99) and 17 (1.69) years of education. The school coordinators for SVP were all female; they included four coordinators of specific areas of learning in the school, three school principals, two vice principals, one school counselor, one home room teacher, and one teacher. The six school coordinators involved in SAP were all female, with an average (SD) age of 49.17 (7.08) and 18 years (0.71) of education.
Program Characteristics
SVP
Most (68.1%) of the seniors in the SVP have been volunteering in schools for several years, 21.3% have been volunteering for a year, and about a tenth (10.6%) began volunteering within the previous 6 months. On average (SD), they spend 2.66 (1.08) hr per week volunteering. An average of 8.30 (SD = 5.54, range = 1-18) senior volunteers per school (n = 10) were reported to participate in the program. Activities included reading to the children, playing board games, helping teachers in class, helping individual children with behavior difficulties, tutoring after school hours, helping with homework, and helping the school office. Activities most often took place in an activity room (39.6%) or in the classroom (31.3%), and less often in other locations such as the library (14.6%), the teacher’s lounge (8.3%), the corridor (4.2%), or the school yard (2.1%).
SAP
The SAP often involved the child tutoring the senior (81.1%) and, to a lesser extent, conversation (32.4%), art, gardening, and sports activities (2.7% each). About a fifth (18.9%) of the senior participants reported telling the children about their life stories and the history of the State of Israel, often in conjunction with receiving computer training from the children. Most seniors reported participation in SAP for 6 months or less (74.2%), while 16.1% participated for a year and 9.7% for more than a year. This represents a significantly shorter (p ≤ .001) period of time than that reported by SVP participants, where 68.1% have been volunteering for several years. Most often, the activity involved meeting with one child (82.8%); three participants reported that the child was their grandchild. The mean (SD) number of hours of shared activities per week was 1.55 (1.16); 60% of the activities were 1.5 to 2 hr; 43.5% took place less than once a week. The number of hours per week spent in volunteer activity is significantly less in SAP than in SVP (2.66 hr per week, p = .001). According to teachers’ reports, a mean (SD) of 8.83 (3.49) children per class were involved in the SAPs. Activities tended to take place at the school (88.9%) and less often at the seniors’ homes (8.3%) or senior center (2.8%).
Program Preparation
SVP
Most of the teachers (75%) met with the senior prior to volunteering and often (69.2%) discussed role and rules of conduct with the volunteers. Coordination of expectations occurred for the majority of the volunteers, according to the reports of seniors (60.5%) and school coordinators (83.3%). A minority of both teachers (13%) and school coordinators (27.3%) thought more coordination was needed. Only 36.4% of the seniors reported receiving guidance prior to the volunteer work, whereas all the school coordinators reported guidance of the senior volunteers. This training was delivered by teachers, the school principal or her assistant, activity organizers, and other organizations (i.e., volunteer association, not for profit organization, Lewinsky Teachers’ Academy, or Brookdale program at Bar Ilan University). Ongoing guidance was reported by 66.7% of those who received guidance prior to participation and by 25.9% of those who did not. The ongoing guidance was either provided “when needed” (22.9%), or daily (8.3%), weekly (6.3%), or monthly (2.1%). Of the seniors who reported on the adequacy of guidance (n = 27), most (77.8%) found it sufficient, as did a similar proportion (80%) of the school coordinators. Only 12% of the teachers reported receiving guidance on how to work with the volunteers; this increased to 36.4% among the school coordinators.
SAP
Rules of conduct were discussed with children volunteers by a representative of senior centers prior to activity initiation, as reported by most of the school coordinators (80%) and by one of the two senior center coordinators. All school coordinators reported that the children received sufficient guidance prior to the activity. The guidance was most often provided by the teachers (83.3%) and sometimes by the program coordinator (16.7%). Half of the coordinators reported matching the children to the seniors or to the activities they were to be involved in. Of the school coordinators, two thirds reported receiving guidance for the activity, and one of the two senior center coordinators reported receiving guidance.
Perceived Program Benefits
Seniors
Perceived benefits to seniors
The seniors in the SVP and SAP both reported experiencing more moments of joy as a result of their volunteer work to a similar extent (89.1% and 89.7%, respectively; see Table 2). All seniors in the SVP reported an intention to continue volunteering in the future, almost all (95.7%) at the same venue compared with most, but a smaller percentage, of seniors in SAP (72.7%) on a statistically significant level (p < .001, McNemar test). A greater percentage of seniors in SAP indicated an interest in changing venue in the future (21.2% vs. 4.3%, respectively), and a few (6.1%) reported an intention to discontinue volunteer activity.
Perceived Program Benefits.
Note. SVP = senior volunteer programs; SAP = shared activities programs.
Encouragement and acceptance allows them to succeed, increasing general knowledge, insufficient tutoring to make a difference, supervising the kids but afraid of them, building maintenance.
Increasing awareness of the needs of others, the children feel good about contributing to the seniors.
Perceived benefits to children and school
Most seniors in SVP felt they contributed to the school (93.5%) and provided support to the children (72.9%). As might be expected due to the nature of the activity, the greatest perceived benefit was to academic performance (83.3%; Table 2). Other contributions in class included practical assignments (20.8%), managing the class (14.6%), understanding the children’s background (14.6%), providing emotional support for the teacher (10.4%), and connecting with children’s parents (4.2%); 10.4% saw no contribution. The benefit noted most frequently by seniors in SAP (70.3%) involved contributions to the children’s emotional well-being; this was at a level similar to that reported by seniors is SVP (68.8%; Table 2).
Teachers and school coordinators
Perceived benefits to children and school
Teachers and school coordinators of SVP reported similar patterns of perceived benefits to children. Academic contribution was noted by most (100% and 91.7%, respectively), followed by emotional benefits (61.5% and 66.7%, respectively), and social benefits (about a third of each). According to teachers and school coordinators, the program had multiple positive effects relating to academic performance, affect and behavior, and other benefits to the school (specific areas of benefit are noted in Table 3); only one teacher noted no improvement (4.4%). School coordinators noted benefits in the relationships between the school, children (36.4%), and parents (27.3%), and improved school atmosphere (27.3%). School coordinators of SAP (n = 6) reported improvements in children’s self-confidence (83.3%) and, to a lesser extent, mood (33.3%). Perceived effects regarding an improvement in school atmosphere (16.7%) and decreased violence (16.7%) were relatively low. None reported no improvement. The mean school rating of the benefit of both programs by the respective school coordinators was high (Table 2).
Perceived Benefits—SVP.
Note. SVP = senior volunteer programs.
Program Difficulties and Intergenerational Attitudes
SVP
Teachers and school coordinators
Teachers perceived very few program difficulties or concerns, with the most highly rated concerns being that the volunteer may not have the judgment to keep private information to himself—M (SD) = 1.23 (0.815); on a 1 to 5 scale, lower rating represents less concern—not use appropriate methods for managing the class—1.35 (0.69)—and having to dedicate more time helping the volunteers than they actually help—1.35 (0.69).
Intergenerational attitudes
The teachers rated the presence of volunteers very favorably, 4.73 (0.53), found the class makeup suitable for the addition of a volunteer, 4.60 (0.71), and moderately agreed with the volunteer having been matched to the classes, 3.65 (1.03).
SAP
School coordinators
In general, the school coordinators reported low levels of concern about multiple aspects relating to the program or to intergenerational relations and potential hurdles. For example, they were little concerned with seniors experiencing difficulties in answering children’s questions, M (SD): level of concern, 1.60 (0.89), seniors’ judgment in their conduct with children, 1.40 (0.89), seniors being strong enough to participate in a dynamic environment with child volunteers, 1.40 (0.89), and seniors not being aware of the rules and methods used in class, thereby jeopardizing educational goals established throughout the school year, 1.40 (0.89).
Intergenerational attitudes
All six of the school coordinators completely agreed that establishing a relationship between older people and children is a good idea, and that a relationship between the older person and the child can benefit the child. They also agreed, though to a lesser degree, that older people can be helpful to children because they know children and love them, 3.80 (0.84), and that a grandparent figure reduces violence among children, 3.00 (0.71).
Preferences and Suggestions
Volunteer task
A list of tasks SVP volunteers are currently engaged in, would prefer to discontinue, or would like to do is presented in Table 4. The largest group of participants were involved with helping children with difficult subjects, such as English or mathematics (n = 25), followed by helping the teacher generally (n = 15) or with specific children (n = 15). The activities volunteers were most likely to wish to discontinue were tutoring conversations throughout the school day (n = 8), helping with difficult children (n = 7), or homework (n = 6). Yet, other volunteers were interested in switching to these same activities, such as helping with homework and helping the teacher with specific children. There was also an interest in helping with activities that were not in common practice, such as clubs, computers, or extracurricular activities. Of the volunteers who did not meet other volunteers, 47.1% would have liked to meet other volunteers.
Volunteer’s Interest in Changing Tasks—SVP.
Note. SVP = senior volunteer programs.
Activities location
A greater proportion of participants in SAP wanted to change location in comparison with volunteers in SVP, χ2(1) = 4.94, p < .05. Of the volunteers in SVP, most (81.8%) found the location of the activity suitable; some would have liked to change the activity location but either never checked for other options or reported there seemed to be no other option (6.3% each), no space available other than the corridor (4.5%), or space that was noisy (i.e., library). In contrast, of the seniors participating in SAP, 63.6% would have liked to change the location, one senior due to difficulty walking and another preferred a more quiet location.
Qualitative Analysis of Open-Ended Comments
In this section, we summarize the responses to the open-ended questions soliciting teachers’ perceptions of the most important contributions of the volunteers and all participants’ perceptions of ways to improve the program. Regarding the contributions of the volunteers, several teachers in SVP spoke about love, and some spoke about help for special students; others mentioned the advantage of students getting personal help.
Regarding how the program can be improved, some seniors in both groups and many school coordinators expressed satisfaction with it as it was and thought the program needed no improvement. When improvements were mentioned, both teachers and school coordinators in SVP expressed the need for increasing the number of volunteers or the number of hours they dedicate. They, along with the seniors in SVP, also stressed the need for better coordination and preparation prior to and during the program, and for better communication and transfer of information. Some seniors wished for better accommodation of their preferences concerning assigned tasks. School coordinators in SVP noted the need for increased space to accommodate more volunteers, and seniors in SVP mentioned the need for provision of improved space arrangements, such as the provision of quiet work areas. Both of these groups also mentioned the need for increased guidance and the importance of recognition of the volunteers and expressing appreciation. This was illustrated in the comments of one volunteer: “There is a need for guidance and enrichment, which will be provided at times, in addition to the appreciation. Even though I would continue volunteering without guidance or enrichment, but not without appreciation.” School coordinators in SVP noted the need for a designated coordinator.
Seniors in both groups expressed a desire for increasing the scope of activities to include extracurricular activities, especially activities outside of school. This was echoed by teachers in SAP. Teachers in SAP also felt that there was a need for increased guidance and flexibility and better matching the activities to the participants, as well as insuring continuity of activities.
Some of the seniors in SAP indicated a desire to develop deeper relationships with the children; however, they simultaneously voiced a fear of separation anxiety “that the child will leave, and it will bother me that I will never see him again.” Difficulties with the program involved a concern of seniors with their own deficiencies, for example, “my own lack of knowledge,” a lack of patience on the part of the children, and their own inability to keep up with the children. As a way of adapting or compensating for their limitations, some seniors suggested the provision of written material on the topics to be covered so that they could take these home and prepare. A concern with transportation difficulties was also noted.
Discussion
Scope of Intergenerational Programs In or With Schools in Tel-Aviv
The results of this survey highlight the scope of intergenerational activities in the schools in the Tel-Aviv area. Fewer than 30% of the schools that responded to our survey reported having senior volunteers, and less than a quarter of the schools had children participate in activities with seniors. Even when programs did take place, they were small and only involved a few seniors. Inclusive of both programs, 178 seniors were contacted with 85 participating in this study. The current data represent the rate of school-based intergenerational programs encountered in municipalities of over 600,000 people where more than 97,000 are 65 years old and over (Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, 2009, 2004). This can be compared with the rate of 40% reported by Ayala et al. (2007) for organizations, other than schools, offering intergenerational programming in Calgary, Canada, a mid-sized North American city with a population about twice the size of that of Tel-Aviv, albeit with a lower rate of residents over the age of 65 (Statistics Canada, 2014; rate of persons over 65 was over 15% in Tel-Aviv municipality as compared with 9.8% in Calgary). Even when programs did take place, they were small and only involved a few seniors. Indeed, the need to increase the scope of intergenerational activities was noted by seniors, teachers, and organizers.
Types of Intergenerational Activities
We found two types of programs offered by schools: SVP and SAP. Seniors volunteering in SVP in the schools were mostly involved in one-on-one tutoring, where the seniors most often tutored the children. Yet, a wide range of alternative potential roles emerged, including group tutoring, playing with children or reading to them, library work, and helping with school administrative work. Although we have described the SAP as shared activities, in reality, activities most often involved the children tutoring the seniors. However, some activities centered on joint conversations regarding the personal history of the senior and his family, and/or the history of the State of Israel. Some of the seniors characterized these conversations as tutoring the students. There were also cases of joint art, sport, and gardening activities. In view of this, SAP can best be considered a hybrid of youth serving seniors and shared activities programs.
The Impact of the Programs
Both programs were reported to have beneficial effects for seniors and children. The greatest benefit of the SVP for children was academic, with an important contribution to emotional well-being and somewhat to social well-being. In contrast, it was the emotional aspects and improvement in mood that were reported most often as the benefits of the SAP, with social and academic benefits mentioned less frequently. In both programs, seniors noted increased joy in their own life and a perception of helping the children.
Although all stakeholders consistently considered the programs to have academic and emotional benefits, perceived benefit to school atmosphere, by comparison, was rated less highly. This may perhaps be due to the small number of volunteers at each school. Glass et al. (2004) speak about the necessity for a critical mass of volunteers, which they designate as an absolute minimum of 15 seniors per school. If the number of volunteers is below this critical mass, they suggested that, while benefits might be seen with individual students or classrooms, an overall improvement in school climate is less likely to be observed.
Comparison Between SVP and SAP Programs
While both programs involve seniors and schoolchildren, they represent very different models and appear to attract different types of participants. SVP participants are more likely to be male and to have higher levels of education than SAP participants. Yet, the sex ratios reported (42% males in SVP and 22% in SAP) appear to be representative of their respective populations: Males in Israel represent 44% of those 65 years and over (Israel Demographics Profile, 2014), and approximately three quarters (70%-75%) of senior center participants have characteristically been female (Jellinek, Pardasani, & Sackman, 2010; Krout, 1989; Laense & Wagner, 1975; National Council on Aging, 2012). And it is not surprising that those with less education would not be attracted to programs in schools that are specifically directed toward academic activities. However, SVP volunteers appear to be more committed in that they have been volunteering for a longer length of time than SAP volunteers and spend more hours per week volunteering. They also report a greater willingness to continue to volunteer in the same venue, although some may wish to change tasks. Some of this may be due to a difference in agency of the two populations, with volunteers in SVP being a group who pursued volunteering on their own volition and SAP volunteers representing persons who join a senior center and are presented with activities, rather than pursuing them independently.
Intergenerational programs are often characterized in terms of who is the service provider and who is the service recipient (Kaplan, 2002). In SVP, it is clearly the adults who are serving youth, whereas in SAP, this relationship is more ambiguous, as both groups serve as both providers and receivers. Kaplan (2002) has noted that programs in which seniors provide service for the young seem to have an especially strong impact on their views of themselves and their lives. This may, perhaps, be particularly true in programs related to academic activities. These programs may tap older adults’ desire for generativity, as first expressed by Erikson, that is, the need to nurture a younger generation, to extend wisdom and knowledge, to leave a legacy, as has also been noted by other authors (Bishop & Moxley, 2012; Glass et al., 2004). This may help to explain the greater commitment observed in SVP participants.
SAP volunteers, in contrast to SVP, report more interest in changing venue or in stopping volunteering. Reported benefits, however, do not appear to be less for SAP volunteers, as they note the same degree of joy from volunteering as their SVP counterparts. There is some concern that the role reversal inherent in such programs—where the child becomes the teacher, or senior and child share equal status—may deprive seniors of a sense of agency, making them feel as if they are losing their self-respect. Gamliel and Gabay (2014), however, have noted that a flexible sharing of roles of teacher/student allows knowledge exchange between both parties: Children teach seniors how to use computers while seniors serve as instructors by imparting the knowledge they have gained through life experience. This can result in a sense of empowerment for both groups. Kaplan (2002) similarly notes that both providers and receivers actually benefit from the interaction. What may be of more consequence here are the reports that only one half of the coordinators matched children to volunteers or to tasks. Assignment to volunteer tasks needs to take into account a senior’s interests, skills, and preferences; seniors need to participate in activities that they themselves find meaningful (Kaplan, 2002). Increased attempts at matching may help retain volunteers. It is also possible that SAP activities are less structured and goal oriented than in SVP. It needs to be noted, however, that approximately 30% of older adults discontinue volunteering after 1 year (Foster-Bey, Grimm, & Dietz, 2007), which corresponds to the percentage of SAP participants indicating dissatisfaction with their current activity. Longer length of time and a greater number of hours per week spent in volunteering increases the likelihood of continued volunteer activity (Foster-Bey et al., 2007). These factors can account for some of the differences in retention seen between groups. Additional conditions that can help retain volunteers and reduce turnover include recognition of volunteers and effective and regular supervision of activities, all issues that were suggested as necessary for program improvement by the different groups of respondents.
Opportunities for Improvement in Current SVP and SAP Programs
While most participants from both programs seemed to benefit, this was not universal. A small percentage of the seniors did not find it rewarding, and a small percentage of seniors, teachers, and coordinators did not find the activity beneficial for the children. This suggests a need for monitoring to identify those activities that are not beneficial and provide either guidance or a change in assignment. There is also need for structural and programmatic improvements, including designating physical space and coordinators to the program and allocating teachers’ time, as mentioned in the open-ended comments. This falls in line with previous findings that scheduling (Young & Janke, 2013) and transportation logistics can be concerning and challenging for older adults participating in intergenerational programs (Ayala et al., 2007; Holmes, 2009).
Most informants seemed to find the amount of guidance sufficient; there was, however, a substantial minority who thought additional guidance was needed. Guidance may be especially called for with seniors who wish to switch tasks. The discrepancy between the SVP volunteers who stated they did not receive initial guidance and the school coordinators who reported guidance may be due to some confusion over what guidance was provided and who provided it. Initial training was reported as being done by various school personnel or by an assortment of other organizations. This raises the question of whether there was a standard training module that was employed or whether training might have been more informal and varied among volunteers.
The issues of both monitoring and guidance speak to the program infrastructure. Coordination of the program is done voluntarily by the teachers involved, and the program runs on either no money or on a shoestring budget, with no dedicated space, and with the involvement of volunteers amounting from one to a few hours a week. This is contrasted by a program such as Experience Corps® (Frick, Carlson, Glass, McGill, Rebok, et al., 2004), which runs at an average cost of $3,613 per volunteer and requires a minimum commitment of 15 hr a week. Underfunding results in a low level of involvement, which likely dictates the need for increased guidance, supervision, and coordination in the current model in the Tel-Aviv area. Yet, teachers request an increased number of hours from the volunteers. Future research needs to examine the feasibility and benefits of different models.
Strengths and Limitations
This study has several strengths. It mapped the whole population of schools in the designated area, thereby providing a good estimate of the existing programs. In addition, it queried multiple informants regarding the activities, obtaining the point of view of seniors, teachers, and teacher coordinators. The fact that the responses of the different sources of information often converged validates the results. In terms of limitations, the relatively small sample sizes resulted in estimates that may not be as robust as desired. While some of the bias that stems from using retrospective self-report is rectified by the use of multiple informants, there is an additional bias in that all participants (volunteers, teachers, and school organizers) are self-selected. They willingly chose to participate in intergenerational programs and also chose to respond to the questionnaires. It is likely that most of those who had negative feelings about this experience had discontinued their involvement and are therefore not represented. Another limitation is the absence of responses from the children due to the logistic difficulties in accessing schoolchildren for research.
Conclusion
The current findings suggest that intergenerational programs are greatly underutilized in schools in the Tel-Aviv region in Israel. According to the reports of the multiple informants, intergenerational programs are perceived to hold major benefits for participants, both younger and older, and for school settings. Programs in which older persons had a more active role (SVP) were those in which volunteers were more committed to continuing their volunteer activities, but this may be attributed to different background characteristics or to participants’ sense of meaningful contribution. Finally, findings suggest that additional attention to participants’ specific wishes and needs is required, which the system does not have the resources to assess or address. Empowering the senior volunteers to be involved in the organization of such programs may provide them with further meaningful opportunities. Seniors could be provided with leadership roles giving them a larger role in program planning, operation, and evaluation. Allocating resources to system improvements relating to the design and application of intergenerational programs is warranted to increase capacity for such programs and to improve processes to facilitate a fruitful integration of children and older persons.
Footnotes
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank “Yadid L’Hinuch” and “Beit Hatfutsot” for their help in recruiting participants for this study.
Authors’ Note
The ethics committee of Tel-Aviv University and the Ministry of Education Chief Scientist Office approved the study.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded in part by a grant from the Ministry of Senior Citizens in Israel (Grant 300009673).