OLD GUYS SAY YES TO COMMUNITY

This issue of Studies in Adult Education and Learning features five contributions that are the result of three years of research carried out by the partners of the Old Guys Say Yes to Community project.1 In Slovenia, Estonia, Poland and Portugal, partners used similar starting points to study the low participation rates of older men in educational and learning programmes as well as in the community. Applying similar guidelines to research these phenomena, we carried out the following activities: first, we sought out the best practices in our countries relating to the informal learning of older adults in the community, focusing on older men. The main aim was to gain some insight into the real situation of men’s learning in the community. Second, we carried out an in-depth investigation. Each partner interviewed a sample of 90–100 men aged 60 years or more in selected communities. In addition, focus-group debates were organised in these communities, which included local decision makers and members of civil society organisations. The project’s organisational team prepared scripts for the semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Nevertheless, each partner had some freedom to adapt the research instruments according to local contexts if necessary.