The announcement was made by Education Minister Barbara Nowacka and Senior Policy Minister Marzena Okła-Drewnowicz at a press conference on Monday, coinciding with the European Day of Intergenerational Solidarity.
"In the atomized world we live in, full of internal migrations and busy schedules, we forget how important it is to live together, to be together, how important intergenerational solidarity is," Nowacka said during a press conference at a primary school in Warsaw. She emphasized the benefits for children in learning from the experience of older individuals and their historical knowledge, while also noting the value of youth teaching seniors how to navigate the digital world.
Nowacka also stressed the need to nurture intergenerational solidarity, encouraging schools to foster collaboration. "We are launching initiatives for an intergenerational school, an open school, where education also involves incorporating older individuals and supporting youth in learning from them," she announced, highlighting the project's potential to transform schools into centers for intergenerational cooperation, particularly in smaller towns and rural areas.
Okła-Drewnowicz outlined the project's specifics, including opening schools for various activities with seniors, such as digital skills classes. "Schools will open their spaces so that children, youth, and older individuals can work together," she explained.
Nowacka recalled previous pilot programs in which over 120 schools participated, opening their doors to seniors in the afternoons and evenings, and emphasized the need to expand beyond digital activities to a variety of initiatives. "Older individuals, particularly in small towns, are often lonely and lack the means to reach cultural institutions or community centers," she noted.
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Source: PAP