Our overall goal was to meet the learning needs of older individuals with lower basic skills (such as low (health/digital) literary) and minimize socio-economic disparities. We had three objectives: The first being the development of a flexible, pedagogical approach and learning trajectory that centers on the actual learning needs of older adults throughout Europe. Secondly, we aimed to provide older European citizens living in more disadvantaged conditions the right tools to access and interpret information in such a way that they are better prepared for future obstacles (life events) but also crises such as the COVID pandemic. To meet both objectives we proposed an innovative non- traditional learning approach, using co-creation and based on meaningful play and collaborative learning. Our third objective was to create awareness about the learning needs of seniors with fewer basic skills amongst professionals and volunteers working in the field of adult education and build a community of potential trainers. This was done by involving local stakeholders throughout the project and by delivering a guideline, hand-outs and micro-learning and an freely available and accessible platform for professionals.
With the LoLit project, our consortium of five interdisciplinary organizations aimed to increase knowledge about aging, literacy and digital skills, self-management and active engagement of senior citizens with fewer basic skills such as low literacy. About 24 to 40 million older Europeans have low literacy; i.e. difficulty with reading and understanding an instructional leaflet, and often coincides with lesser digital skills. Low literacy is linked to negative health behavior and poor outcomes, wellbeing, mental health and societal engagement. Although this group of seniors is clearly at risk of adverse outcomes, they are considered to have limited learnability, are not included in current educational offers and are approached mainly for what they can't do. On top of this, often they do not consider their literacy as main problem but rather the anxiety, communication problems, lack of confidence and social contact that result from this. In recent years, education for this group has virtually disappeared, whereas an appropriate educational approach is needed and desired for this target group to foster inclusion, participation and basic skills for them.