This study aimed to develop a prototype strategy for school ageing (Fig. 4). Presidential Decree Number 88, which concerns national ageing, is the most important legal document for establishing an EGAS. An important document at the provincial level is Regional Regulation Number 5, promulgated in 2007. The District of Malang followed up by publishing its District Regulation Number 10 in 2015. Such legal support for the welfare of the ageing is needed from both the provincial and district levels if the elderly are to obtain better educational resources. Implementing activities is intended to benefit the elderly, helping them to prosper. The existing legal documents are a true honor to the elderly. At the grass-roots level, there is an institution for the elderly called ‘Karangwreda’, whose activities include education. Among 33 sub-districts, nearly half are associated with such forums for the elderly. To respond to the goodwill expressed in the legal documents, their legal formalities must be implemented at the grass-roots level, which requires supervision.
The robust elderly, as we saw, are those people aged 60 or older who can positively adapt to the ageing process. These individuals can be expected to remain healthy physically, socially, and mentally and also to remain active, productive, and self-reliant throughout the ageing process. The robust elderly is characterized by their performance in the seven dimensions discussed earlier. There is no single, fixed indicator to serve as a proxy for those seven dimensions. Rather, the theory suggests that in the ideal case, a robust elderly person would perform well on physical, intellectual, social, spiritual, environmental, vocational, and emotional parameters.
The environment, as we saw, is positively correlated with a senior citizen’s motivation to attend the elderly school. The local environment is likely to be crucial for older persons, arguably even more so than for younger people, since the milieu in which they live can either create or hinder opportunities for ageing well (Phillips et al., 2004). As people age, their health and quality of life – especially concerning their ability to live independently and preserve their well-being and attachments within the community – are increasingly connected to their immediate home environment (Oswald et al., 2005).
Consumer behavior can be explained by concepts, theories and findings in psychology, and like people of other ages, the elderly tend to act in accordance with their relative benefit (Ajzen, 2008). The goal here is to investigate ways of improving the elderly’s spiritual, physical, social, and economic condition. Nevertheless, comprehensive skills, materials, time, and appropriate social norms are needed to attract senior citizens to the school. Perceptions, behaviors, and experiences in turn will determine an individual’s attitude and decision about attending the elderly school. It is generally believed that joining the school can help senior citizens become healthier and more prosperous; and if the school is well monitored, offering services customized to the needs of those attending, more people will be interested to attend. Furthermore, after joining the school, the elderly can be expected to share their feelings about it, and their comments could persuade other older people to attend.
The elderly’s physical and emotional health is strongly impacted by family figures, the household’s functioning, and its members’ interactions, including those parents and children. Parenting patterns and reciprocal social support play their roles, and each family member and relative influences the elderly family member’s health. Relationships among adults are vitally important as well, impacting elderly health and prosperity (Bell & Bell, 2012).
At the community level, providing social support is one easy way to promote health and prosperity for the elderly, increasing their quality of life. To promote comprehensive social support, it is essential that the elderly’s needs be identified promptly (Moghadam et al., 2020). An effective and sustainable model for improving the elderly’s health and quality of life requires group support and family involvement in group activities (Riasmini et al., 2019). When we define the ageing process from childhood through adolescence, adulthood, and old age, we need the right plan and resources to help people at different stages of the process. The right plan will help people experience the ageing process more smoothly. With full respect and support, the elderly can attain higher expectations for their lives within the community.
One challenge of the ageing process is that many elderly people face the challenges of coping with comorbidities. Comorbidities can strain the government’s healthcare budget. Providing proper health care and facilitating prosperity for the elderly requires expertise, skills, and long-term financial support. The process should involve all parties, including the government and the community (Koris et al., 2019).
Policy at the national level is the most relevant legal aspect of the situation, and yet a national plan of action must follow the policy. Each legal effort should emphasize the government’s commitment to realize self-reliance for healthy and active senior citizens who are able to remain productive. That commitment, together with community participation at the grass-roots level, could eventually reduce the government’s financial burden. Guidance by young people, who are typically in better health, could also influence the elderly’s productivity. This is suggested by differences in student outcomes; students who received learning guidance performed better than those who did not. Elderly people who are in poor health or living with a disability might improve through activities that have intergenerational participation and support (Bell & Bell, 2012). Therefore, integrative management through education and training for the elderly is essential.
This study used a conceptual-framework theory for determining whether to accept or reject a new idea. Decision-making about some innovation is a mental process by which an individual strives to reach a settled attitude (Rogers, 1983). People’s behavior indicates whether they have accepted or rejected the innovative idea. People may also state their intentions before performing an action, indicating how satisfied or dissatisfied they are with the innovation. This process depends on other, supporting influences. If the intended innovation offers strong enough benefits, it will be accepted (Ajzen, 2005). This study’s result indicated that majority of the elderly participants (88.3%) were ready to attend the EGAS. Such a high incidence of positive responses indicates a vibrant spirit and interest in learning. Senior citizens who are not involved in an activity can experience a decline in cognitive function. By the same token, elderly people with dementia tend to experience cognitive improvements once they begin participating in routine activities (Erwanto & Kurniasih, 2020).
A Russian researcher found that the elderly’s likelihood of joining educational programs is influenced by both internal and external factors. The external factor was the availability of governmental and non-governmental support for the elderly’s education and social and demographic status. The internal factor was the individual’s motivation, including the resources the person could muster, as well as the objective of the school activity. The researcher found that the external factor had a stronger influence than the internal factor (Sorokin, 2020).
Concerning the internal factor, there is seven dimension which the results shows environmental dimensions were the only significant dimensions due to the good condition either physics (school of ageing) and non-physics environment (family, society, and friends) so they would have been motivated to join and contribute to their environments. However, empowering the elderly through the environmental dimensions may help solve the issues they confront and also spur the school’s founding. In addition, the EGAS can be expected to generate new ideas and provide health services. According to a study of retirees’ physical and mental health, enthusiasm is prevalent among elderly people who are healthy and active; the study’s participants remained motivated to socialize and engage in other positive activities throughout their old age (Helman et al., 2015). That study also considered the seven dimensions and reported that for the greatest proportion of people, the spiritual dimension was the most important. A spiritual emphasis tends to increase enthusiasm for educational activities among the elderly; indeed, religion or other spiritual pursuits tend to reduce anxiety (Dein et al., 2010). Elderly people who placed great emphasis on spiritual matters experienced better mental health when compared to their less spiritual peers. Religion and spirituality have the ability to either promote or damage mental health. A nurturing relative can contribute to optimizing the health and prosperity of a senior citizen living with the family (Sorokin, 2020). The senior citizen may benefit especially from a relative who understands the ageing process, living circumstances, and daily activities (Friebe & Schmidt-Hertha, 2013).
Life-long learning requires physical as well as mental activity and it must be implemented as part of the individual’s daily routine. It should include learning about science and technology. Educational achievements are positively correlated with social mobility and can improve the social status of an economically-disadvantaged family’s later generations (Driouchi & Gamar, 2016).
The EGAS is intended to provide a non-formal education that can be implemented and sustained by the community itself with support from other stakeholders. To slow the loss of functional abilities, activities that maximize intrinsic capabilities and promote active, healthy, and productive ageing should be implemented (Rekawati et al., 2019). The elderly school program is expected to empower elderly people. Elderly empowerment is marked by three principal characteristics: learning, the spirit to adapt, and acclimation to the school environment. Stakeholders need to collaborate to ensure the school’s success, and their common interest in empowering the elderly and providing resources suitable to their interests and needs will ensure that collaboration (Artisa & Kirana, 2021). The elderly, meanwhile, need to think positively, without expecting their age to impede learning. They should become accustomed to innovations, especially those in knowledge and technology, and also learn to utilize technology in their daily lives. For example, they need to be able to access the internet and use their own devices without assistance. Having independent internet access through empowering the elderly can help increase their knowledge. That knowledge will include an understanding of their own health status and conditions, which will enable them to protect their health and increase their productivity. According to one study, successful ageing is associated with physical and mental health, the ability to adapt and cope with age-induced changes and diseases, the preservation of independence, life satisfaction, and active involvement in relationships (Ferrario et al., 2007).
Motivation among the elderly to attend the EGAS was influenced by knowledge of the school program. Respondents who knew the program relatively well agreed to attend the school, while those who knew less about the school tended to refuse. In general, school as social support are environmental factors that play an important role in increasing the productivity of the elderly (seven dimensions of robust elderly). Since increased social support leads to an improved quality of life, it is vital to identify the elderly’s needs promptly and promote comprehensive social support (Mohebi et al., 2018). A study in Korea indicated that demotivation in some areas did not necessarily mean a negative attitude overall; for example, someone discouraged when attempting to learn the English language might experience increased motivation in other areas or improvements in other psychological parameters (Kim & Kim, 2015).
The reciprocal interaction that characterizes parenting is not exclusive to the parent-child relationship but also exists in relationships with the elderly. Family support is needed from siblings and relatives who are concerned for the elderly person’s mental and physical health. The intensity of such relationships can have a powerful impact on an elderly person’s health and prosperity (Bell & Bell, 2012). Quality of life is strongly influenced by family support, which includes interaction with siblings and assistance in participating in community activities.
The positive effect that intensive family support can have on a senior citizen’s health has been shown by research on long-term elderly care (Schulz et al., 2018). The availability of health services and other humanitarian resources, which was promoted by cooperation at the national and community levels, improved the elderly’s quality of life (Charles et al., 2017). In nursing homes, the model of elderly empowerment that works with the family’s needs has been proven to increase knowledge and promote positive attitudes and skills among caregivers. This was accomplished through well-designed training and routine group meetings (Lu et al., 2020).
The EGAS’s curriculum was designed to promote the seven dimensions of well-being for the elderly, including the rural elderly. Individuals who already draw some income from a home industry might expand their economic activities, using ‘senior branding’ to promote all of their products. Such vocational activities could benefit from intergeneration support since younger generations are usually more familiar with information technology and devices. Concerning sustainable development goals, there is an unclear term for the elderly group instead of an adult group (Seldadyo et al., 2022). Since every young person can expect to become a senior citizen in the future, promoting the concept of nurturing and doing so today will also benefit the current generation of young people in future when they may be in need of nurturing; this is connected to the concept of dependency ratio, mentioned earlier. Thus the government should encourage intergenerational support for development plans.
The district, sub-district, and village regulations that govern senior-citizen services are among the most important legal issues to consider when establishing the school. These legal regulations are necessary for channeling the interests of multiple stakeholders (Kpessa-Whyte, 2018). Especially in developing countries, it is important to provide geriatric care and help the elderly thrive while respecting the interests of intergovernmental stakeholders. When regulations are implemented, they aim not only to support basic needs but also to promote independence and self-reliance through education and training. The EGAS is an alternative strategy that proposes to help the elderly through the ageing process by developing a model for a non-formal school. To implement this in the best manner, handicap factors need to be evaluated (Kpessa-Whyte & Tsekpo, 2020). In ecological modeling, the most significant factors for changing health-related behaviors include (1) the community, (2) institutions and organizations, and (3) public policy (McLeroy et al., 1988). These three, interconnected factors contribute to harmonizing the perspectives of the senior citizen, the family, and the program managers or stakeholders. The expected output is a shift in the elderly’s behaviors towards increased activity self-reliance and healthier, more productive actions. The approach must accommodate the senior citizen’s needs on demand and within the community. A comprehensive approach is needed to respect policy and accommodate the existing program.
To develop the model school for senior citizens, this study applied the Strength – Weakness – Opportunity – Threat (SWOT) analysis. Both the external and internal factors have roles for each component of the analysis. Concerning the first component, external strengths include the legal documents supporting elderly welfare, the commitments made by local officials associated with existing programs for the elderly, and the commitments made by non-government organizations. An associated strength is the opportunity to manage the development of the elderly program in an integrative, holistic manner that harmonizes the various stakeholders’ commitments. Internal strengths include the elderly’s motivation and their capabilities for income-generating activities.
Weaknesses include the narrow motivation for establishing the EGAS, namely, the benefit of the elderly’s own institution; and the limited nature of the elderly programs’ local commission activities. Some senior citizens are not motivated to promote their health and prosperity and some of them lack skills and knowledge in information technology. The elderly program is not mainstream yet.
Concerning opportunities, an opportunity arose during the research study to work with industries that receive community service responsibility from surrounding factories. That could perhaps compensate for the existing village budget, which is too limited to provide all the resources needed for the elderly program. The study also revealed the potential for some senior citizens to embark upon micro-entrepreneurship, which could lead to the development of a senior brand associated with various home industries and services.
Finally, a threat is posed by rigid bureaucracy. In particular, the regional head, who is oriented towards the existing senior program, could perhaps threaten the establishment of the EGAS. Thus, the school for the elderly will depend heavily upon the government and other organizations (Sorokin, 2020).
Currently, Indonesia Elderly Friendly continues to operate under the university foundation, which has shown itself effective at the national and international levels. The study conducted in 2020 indicated that after joining the school, the elderly’s knowledge about their health underwent a statistically significant increase (0.72%) (Erwanto & Kurniasih, 2020). The school’s establishment has been supported by the women’s organization and some very influential public figures, all of whom play important roles in the community (Zulkarnain et al., 2022). In light of this, the elderly program should prioritize senior citizens’ productivity in the near future. The community, the private sector, and various stakeholders must cooperate, working harmoniously towards an integrated, holistic policy. Social security, health services, and elderly care should be better integrated under more responsible management. It may be beneficial to review the policies of all countries having a high proportion of elderly people, including both those that fund health services through insurance and those that use government funds. Additionally, program managers and stakeholders working on the elderly program must cooperate in providing services to senior citizens.
The completed component of this study suggested that elderly education, health services, and community empowerment must all be promoted. The model under development as part of the ongoing study anticipates that the robust elderly will improve their knowledge of technology and its applications, thereby becoming more self-reliant. Meanwhile, lifelong learning processes should improve their quality of life and their satisfaction with the way they confront impending social change. The school will work with the seven dimensions and especially in rural areas, it will promote health education.
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