New school program helps bridge generation gap

A new program called Generations of Value has been introduced in Catholic primary schools across Australia at the start of term 3. The program aims to help children appreciate the unique contributions of people at all stages of life, showing them how society is stronger and more vibrant with generations working together.

The program was developed by Mercy Health Foundation, Australian Catholic University (ACU), Catholic Development Fund and Catholic Health Australia. One of the main instigators, the foundation’s partnerships manager, Mark Trayling, says the thinking behind the program stemmed from a comment by his grandfather, a naval man, that when people lose their last parent, they become a ship without a rudder.

‘I appreciated the sentiment because it underscored how much we rely on previous generations for guidance,’ Mr Trayling says.

‘But upon reflection, I’d modify that image: while growing up, it’s helpful to have two hands on the tiller and someone pointing to the North Star—so that later in life, we’ll know how to steer on our own. Generations of Value is a reflection of this sentiment.’

Older people now are healthier, more educated and more involved than they ever have been.

ACU Professor of Healthy Ageing Laurie Buys is another of the program’s creators and explains that one of its goals is reshaping the narrative around ageing. ‘A stereotypical way of looking at ageing is that ageing is a “deficit”—that when you grow older, you “decline”, physically and cognitively,’ she says.

‘And that’s a very traditional and old-world way of looking at ageing. In fact, older people now are healthier, more educated and more involved than they ever have been in the community. [Babies born now] are likely to have a hundred-year life, so we need to really challenge that view that you’re old at 65.’

Generations of Value consists of eight sessions, each focusing on a Bible verse and activities that encourage reflection on the different roles and generations within a family.

Grandparents give a lot to their grandchildren, but they also get a lot.

‘The Bible encourages mentorship and the sharing of wisdom, enabling older generations to guide and support the young,’ says Mr Trayling. ‘More than that, it honours both giving and receiving in relationships.

‘We don’t need to reinvent the wheel in our teachings. Christianity already offers rich, time-tested lessons.’

At the start of the program, children create a ‘Relationship Constellation Map’ to visualise their connections with friends and family. This unit revolves around a verse from the Psalms:

One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts. (Psalm 145:4)

Children note the number of generations within their family group and discuss something they’ve learnt from an older member, whether parent or grandparent or, if they’re lucky, a great grandparent. For homework, they ask an older person to tell them a story about when they were young. Later sessions revolve around outings and games with their older relatives.

‘A lot of the activities are designed so that the kids go out and interact with their grandparents and other older members of the community,’ Professor Buys explains. ‘It’s encouraging those really healthy and engaging conversations and reciprocal relationships—you give and you take and you create that bond.

‘Grandparents give a lot to their grandchildren, but they also get a lot from their grandchildren. [Building positive relationships] becomes a foundation of trust, a foundation of love and having someone who’s got your back, for both generations.’

One key theme is questioning misconceptions about ageing. In a session about challenging stereotypes of ageing by contrasting myths with reality, students contemplate the meaning behind a passage in the Book of Samuel:

The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. (1 Samuel 16:7)

The curriculum creators say the passage directly counters that ‘deficit mindset’ about ageing—that it is about being diminished as a human, rather than just another phase of life.

Prof Buys says if this generation of children will be living hundred-year lives, that myth needs to be cast aside. ‘Everyone needs meaning and purpose in their life. We really want to bring to the conversation with young people that meaning and purpose is vital to having a good life.’

She believes it is important to create that mindset from an early age, and that has to happen through intergenerational partnerships and relationships. ‘You’ve got to be part of the community and be active and engaged basically your whole life. You could be well and truly living into your 100s, so it’s important to have something that gets you out of bed and get up in the morning.’

It really is around living your best life.

The program draws inspiration from the New Map of Life, developed in Stanford University’s Centre for Longevity, which reimagines ageing as a time of opportunity.

‘Our life is no longer linear,’ Prof Buys says, referring to the ‘traditional’ path of birth, school, work, marriage, death. ‘That sort of trajectory no longer occurs in that there’s a lot of different transitions and pathways.

‘[Stanford researchers] say that learning doesn’t just occur in school and at uni, that it occurs throughout your life. The New Map of Life talks about the different ways we’re going to work, the different opportunities that will become available.

‘What I like about the New Map of Life is it doesn’t pit the generations against each other. It encourages everyone to work together. So it’s a really nice way of demonstrating that we all need each other.’

The program’s final session celebrates community, with children sharing their completed maps and envisioning ways to create spaces where people of all ages feel welcome. The intention, Prof Buys says, is to change the narrative around the opportunities that come with longevity.

‘And it’s exciting. It really is about living your best life up until the very, very end of it.’