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Migrant families often invite grandparents to move to Australia when babies are born. In order to provide support to their families, many of these grandparents have to retire from their own professional careers and migrate to Australia to start new lives. Some speak English as an additional language, with or without formal education, prior to arriving in Australia. Once in Australia, these senior migrants can only access limited government-funded English learning, and they are frequently left to capitalize on informal learning. This paper discusses a case study of two Chinese-heritage senior migrants and the role English plays in their lives, and grandparenting in Australia. We argue that having the English capability for everyday activity within the family is key to their overall well-being, and that drawing directly on their past experiences and learning strengths can enhance their quality of life.

Data specifically comparing outcomes for people with and without intellectual disability is limited. This paper reports perceived health and wellbeing of older Australians resident in metropolitan and rural locations in New South Wales and Queensland. Respondents were community-residing individuals with intellectual disability and mainstream age peers [age = 60]. Measures included SF12; Cummings well-being scales; DSSI; Adverse Life Events; and financial hardship status. The sample was composed of 391 adults with intellectual disability and 920 age peers. Adults with intellectual disability were significantly more likely to note adverse life events, worse mental health, and lower levels of social support, but reported higher mean wellbeing scores and had higher scores for physical health. Results indicated higher likelihood of adults with intellectual disability reporting comparative disadvantage across multiple key areas when compared to age peers.

This specially themed ""Getting of Wisdom," Learning in Later Life" Edition of the "Australian Journal of Adult Learning" ("AJAL") is not so much concerned with the issue of ageing itself, but more about quality of life regardless of age. It is about taking, but also giving back as best as possible at any age. This special issue is a result of the one week "The Getting of Wisdom Exchange", a collaboration between around 100 adult education practitioners and researchers from ten countries from Australia, New Zealand, Asia and Europe. In this issue, papers are presented from Sweden, Ireland, Aotearoa/New Zealand, Australia, Slovenia, Poland, Germany, Portugal and the United Kingdom. Papers cover different topics and open questions about various issues in older people's learning.

Translingual identity, as a part of the trans-paradigm, refers to linguistic, sociocultural, ethno-racial, and religious practices, which are negotiable, fluid, and in motion, transcending mainstream boundaries. This paper expands the translingual literature from the perspective of sociolinguistic disparities of culturally and linguistically diverse Eastern-European immigrant women in Australia, as they become victims of the perpetual foreigner stereotype in their host communities. Using the linguistic ethnography methods, such as open ethnographic observation and semi-structured interview, the study reveals that due to biographical accent, name, and the country of origin, as aspects of translingual identity -- "Australian-by-passport," those women become the victim of the perpetual foreigner stereotypes, such as 'perceived as different' and 'Russian bride,' which led to their feelings of inferiority and social inequality. By expanding the scope of the translingual identity and how it is perceived in Australia, this study provides a necessary contribution to the translingual literature, while simultaneously advocating for the quality of life and justice for translingual immigrants in their new home.

Background: This study investigated perceived quality of life (QoL) of community-dwelling middle-aged adults (30-50 years) with an intellectual disability and/or developmental disability living in rural or urban areas in New South Wales and Queensland, Australia. The specific aim of the current paper was to provide a descriptive evidence base of QoL and its specific domains by various key demographic characteristics of middle-aged individuals. This cohort is likely to have either experienced or reached adulthood during and after large-scale deinstitutionalisation in Australia. Methods and procedures: A cross-sectional design was utilised, based on the QoL-Q survey, testing domains of satisfaction; Competence/Productivity; Empowerment/Independence; and social belonging/community integration. The survey included demographic questions and was distributed to participants through disability support agencies across two states. The final sample included 291 respondents. Results: The overall QoL-Q scores ranged from 3.0 to 29.5 (Mean = 20.4, SD , 4.1), with considerable variation in mean scores both across and within domains. The two demographic areas that showed greatest predictive value for QoL were work status and accommodation issues. The loss of agency and control in choice of co-residents influenced perceived QoL for empowerment and independence domain of QoL-Q. Conclusions: The findings highlight QoL issues associated with policy decisions and support programmes for middle-aged adults. The two key recommendations arising from the project are that future planning for post-retirement or reduced working hours needs to commence at a much younger age than currently expected, and more attention needs to focus on facilitating individual decision-making and choice within shared accommodation options.

Using data from national socio-economic panel surveys in Australia, Britain and Germany, this paper analyzes the effects of individual preferences and choices on subjective well-being (SWB). It is shown that, in all three countries, preferences and choices relating to life goals/values, partner's personality, hours of work, social participation and healthy lifestyle have substantial and similar effects on life satisfaction. The results have negative implications for a widely accepted theory of SWB, "set-point theory." This theory holds that adult SWB is stable in the medium and long term, although temporary fluctuations occur due to life events. Set-point theory has come under increasing criticism in recent years, primarily due to unmistakable evidence in the German Socio-Economic Panel that, during the last 25 years, over a third of the population has recorded substantial and apparently permanent changes in life satisfaction (Fujita and Diener in "J Pers Soc Psychol" 88:158-64, 2005; Headey in "Soc Indic Res" 85:389-403, 2008a; Headey et al. in "Proc Natl Acad Sci USA" 107(42):17922-17926, 2010). It is becoming clear that the main challenge now for SWB researchers is to develop new explanations which can account for medium and long term change, and not merely stability in SWB. Set-point theory is limited precisely because it is purely a theory of stability. The paper is based on specially constructed panel survey files in which data are divided into multi-year periods in order to facilitate analysis of medium and long term change.

This paper examines the complex constellation of conditions that turn many young people into "exiles" from schooling. From the vantage point of young people, the paper traces out a profile of the conditions that need to be brought into existence for these young people to find a way back into learning. The paper argues that current educational policies are deeply hostile to young people in the ways they position them as "silent witnesses" and exclude them from having a voice in the important decisions about what they learn, how, with whom, and with what effects. In contrast, the paper explores six alternative programmes in Australia, warehoused from within the same systems that "damaged" these young people. Paradoxically these programmes are seen as providing these damaged young people with the spaces in which they can become powerful "active agents" in re-forming an educational identity for themselves. Where these alternatives depart from the damaging policy regime is in the highly context-sensitive way they enable young learners and local policy advocates who work with them, to effectively contest exclusionary and undemocratic neoliberal policies.

This paper is concerned with the general issues of ageing, learning, and education for the elderly. It also examines the more specific issues of why, how and what elders want to learn. The world's population is ageing rapidly. For example, it is estimated that by 2020 20% of the population in the USA will be 65 years old and over. It is predicted that 24% of the Hong Kong population will be over 65 years old by 2025 (Bartlett & Phillips, 1995). The phenomenon has been described in colorful terms as the "silver tsunami" (Pew Report, 2001 cited in Summer, 2007). Ageing has an impact on all aspects of human life including the social, economic, cultural, and political domains. Understanding and providing for ageing is, therefore, an important issue for the twenty-first century. The World Health Organisation ([WHO], 2002) has proposed a model of active ageing based on optimizing opportunities for health, participation, and security in order to enhance quality of life for people as they age. The focus in this paper is on the education and learning aspect of participation as people age. (Contains 1 table.)

Learning is an important aspect of active ageing, yet older people are not often included in discussions of the issue. Older people vary in their need, desire, and ability to learn, and this is evident in the context of technology. The focus of the data analysis for this paper was on determining the place of learning and technology in active ageing. The paper describes results from 2,645 respondents aged from 50 to 74+ years, in Australia, to a 178-item variable postal survey. The survey measured aspects of learning; work; social, spiritual and emotional status; health; vision; home; life events; and demographics. There was also an open-ended question about being actively engaged in life. Ordinal regression analysis showed that interest in learning, keeping up to date, valuing communication, being younger, and being male are predictors of learning about technology. The results are at variance with an earlier analysis of our data which showed that women are generally more interested in learning. The open statements contained mentions of learning about technology for the purposes of communication, learning, family links, keeping up to date, enjoyment, staying mentally alert, and just using the computer. These results are discussed in terms of the subtle but important differences between needing and wanting to learn about technology and the opportunities for such learning by older people. A list of sample websites for seniors is appended. (Contains 3 tables and 1 footnote.)

The implementation of action learning workshops in three nursing homes in rural Victoria, Australia has been critical in the re-visioning of how care can be enhanced for residents. The workshops were designed with the intent of improving quality of care for residents by providing health care staff with opportunities to learn together and effect cultural change. Valuing what was accomplished well in these nursing homes was the starting point. The project was funded by a Commonwealth Government Rural Education Grant and was based on "My Home Life" a popular programme that promotes quality of life and delivers positive change in care homes for older people across the United Kingdom. This paper provides an account of the project including key components of the action learning workshops and subsequent evaluation of the programme conducted in Australia. The lessons learnt throughout this project have provided the impetus to continue using appreciative inquiry and action learning to involve participants in reflecting on their practice, valuing what they do well while identifying areas that require change. Working together in a safe and respectful space provides participants with opportunity to harness their own collective wisdom and as the health professionals in this project experienced, also learn valuable skills that support progressive action that makes a difference to older people's lives.

Multiple imputation (MI), a two-stage process whereby missing data are imputed multiple times and the resulting estimates of the parameter(s) of interest are combined across the completed datasets, is becoming increasingly popular for handling missing data. However, MI can result in biased inference if not carried out appropriately or if the underlying assumptions are not justifiable. Despite this, there remains a scarcity of guidelines for carrying out MI. In this paper we provide a tutorial on the main issues involved in employing MI, as well as highlighting some common pitfalls and misconceptions, and areas requiring further development. When contemplating using MI we must first consider whether it is likely to offer gains (reduced bias or increased precision) over alternative methods of analysis. Once it has been decided to use MI, there are a number of decisions that must be made during the imputation process; we discuss the extent to which these decisions can be guided by the current literature. Finally we highlight the importance of checking the fit of the imputation model. This process is illustrated using a case study in which we impute missing outcome data in a five-wave longitudinal study that compared extremely preterm individuals with term-born controls.

This paper explores the impact of a student learning activity involving service learning. As part of a vocational course in the Academy of Health Sciences at a Western Australian TAFE (Technical and Further Education) institute, Allied Health Assistant (AHA) students participated in a service learning program focused on work-based learning in residential aged care. Students delivered a therapy program for residents at the facility, and then completed evaluation questionnaires on conclusion of the study. Of 121 students completing the questionnaires, 91% thought the experience challenged their way of thinking, while only two percent disagreed. The majority of students (93%) reported the experience interesting and engaging and a similar percentage (93%) reported that they felt better prepared to enter the workforce. The major themes in qualitative analysis related to the positive learning experience, increased confidence for future working career, improved knowledge and practice of aged care, and improved resident and student quality of life.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the talk of older athletes, with particular focus on how the context of sport helps them negotiate the ageing process. It draws on personal stories provided by 44 World Masters Games competitors (23 women; 21 men; aged 56-90 years; "M" = 72). Four themes emerged: "There's no such thing as old" (a story of avoiding old age); "Keep moving" (a story of fighting the ageing process); "Fun, fitness, friendship... [and] competing" (a story of redefining self and "old age") and; "Making the most of your life... with the capabilities that you still have" (a story of adaptation and acceptance). Together, the four themes show how through sports participation older individuals can simultaneously resist, redefine and accept the ageing process. These stories of a "sporting later life" allow for alternative meanings to the dominant "declining body" narrative of ageing. Therefore, these narratives present the possibility for personal, pedagogical and social transformation.

This paper explores the main satisfiers and dissatisfiers for international students in Australia's higher educational sector. Using a critical incident technique, this study is conducted with international students of higher education in Australia. Four categories of satisfiers and dissatisfiers emerge from the data which are related to individual performance, quality of the educational service, socialization, and living conditions.

As a consequence of local population ageing, which is more pronounced in rural areas, the issue of maintaining a positive quality of life for rural older people is attracting significant attention. While environmental psychology theory has advocated the role of place identity in defining the self, there has been little applied research exploring how this occurs in later life. This exploratory, qualitative study (n = 16) utilises 6 and 7 identity process theory to investigate how rural older Australians (retirement migrants and long-term residents) use place to sustain and build a sense of self at a time when many are susceptible to age-related loss. The paper draws on the concepts of distinctiveness, continuity, self-esteem and self-efficacy in order to explore how place identity is supported and maintained. Findings suggest that rural places are beneficial in terms of identity maintenance, with differences between long term and more recent rural residents. Furthermore, findings also highlight that place-related change or growth can potentially threaten older people's identification as a "rural" person. (Contains 6 tables and 1 figure.)

Food allergy impairs the health-related quality of life of both the affected children and their families. In particular, parents and children become anxious about the potential risks and consequences of food allergy, including disruptions in families' and children's social activities, the need for constant vigilance, children's safety, and the daily management of children's health and illnesses. These anxieties tend to increase during children's transition to school because of the increased risks outside the home, as outlined in the review of literature in the present paper. However, there is a gap in research on the concerns and support needs of families and children when starting school. Attention to parents' and children's needs and concerns is vital to ease their smooth transition to school.

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the prevalence of smoking amongst university students in Brisbane, Australia and associated risk factors. Design/methodology/approach: A cross-sectional design was used for the study. A sample of 2,414 university students aged 18-30 was examined to estimate the prevalence of tobacco use. Smoking was measured by means of an online survey that inquired about current tobacco use, socio-demographic characteristics, self-rated physical and mental health status and attitudes toward smoking. Findings: The prevalence of tobacco use was 24.9 per cent among male students, 16.6 per cent among female students and 18.8 per cent overall. Low to medium level stress is a strong predictor of smoking in male students. Age and income are significantly related to smoking in female students. For both male and female students, disengagement coping strategies to deal with stressors, feeling not bothered by exposure to smoking, and knowledge of the effect of smoking on health were found to be independently related to smoking. Research limitations/implications: Factors associated with an increased probability of tobacco smoking were: stress in male students, disengagement coping strategies and holding approval attitudes toward smoking, acceptance of exposure to smoking, and poor knowledge of the effect of smoking on health in both male and female students. It is recommended that active coping strategies, such as exercise and social participation, are the most effective ways of enabling students to cope with smoking cessation and other stressors. Practical implications: Future initiatives may need to focus on increasing the environmental supports to assist students to actively cope with life stressors, In addition, the implementation of health education programmes, which are designed to modify behaviour via a change in attitudes and beliefs in university, should be examined. Originality/value: The association between cigarette smoking and morbidity and quality of life among university students is not well documented in Australia. The contribution of this paper is to increase understanding of the association between smoking and life stressors, coping strategies, attitudes and knowledge about the effects of smoking on health in Australia university students. (Contains 4 tables.)

This paper presents findings from a landmark Australian study investigating the experiences and perspectives of young people in residential care. Data from a representative sample are analyzed to identify young people's satisfaction with various aspects of their residential care experience: their sense of safety, normality, support, comfort in general living environment, participation in decision-making, and improvements in well-being. Findings point to strengths and weaknesses in current service delivery. The vast majority of respondents felt safe and well-treated and satisfied with the care and support provided by staff. Respondents were less commonly satisfied with the care and support provided by caseworkers, their participation in higher order decision-making, their sense of normality, and the amount of contact with their families. Compared with older respondents, younger respondents less commonly expressed satisfaction with various aspects of their care. Similarly, those reporting more placements were less satisfied with their care and support than those reporting fewer placements.

Medical students experience various stresses and many poor health behaviours. Previous studies consistently show that student wellbeing is at its lowest pre-exam. Little core-curriculum is traditionally dedicated to providing self-care skills for medical students. This paper describes the development, implementation and outcomes of the Health Enhancement Program (HEP) at Monash University. It comprises mindfulness and ESSENCE lifestyle programs, is experientially-based, and integrates with biomedical sciences, clinical skills and assessment. This study measured the program's impact on medical student psychological distress and quality of life. A cohort study performed on the 2006 first-year intake measured effects of the HEP on various markers of wellbeing. Instruments used were the depression, anxiety and hostility subscales of the Symptom Checklist-90-R incorporating the Global Severity Index (GSI) and the WHO Quality of Life (WHOQOL) questionnaire. Pre-course data (T1) was gathered mid-semester and post-course data (T2) corresponded with pre-exam week. To examine differences between T1 and T2 repeated measures ANOVA was used for the GSI and two separate repeated measures MANOVAs were used to examine changes in the subscales of the SCL-90-R and the WHOQOL-BREF. Follow-up t-tests were conducted to examine differences between individual subscales. A total of 148 of an eligible 270 students returned data at T1 and T2 giving a response rate of 55%. 90.5% of students reported personally applying the mindfulness practices. Improved student wellbeing was noted on all measures and reached statistical significance for the depression (mean T1 = 0.91, T2 = 0.78; p = 0.01) and hostility (0.62, 0.49; 0.03) subscales and the GSI (0.73, 0.64; 0.02) of the SCL-90, but not the anxiety subscale (0.62, 0.54; 0.11). Statistically significant results were also found for the psychological domain (62.42, 65.62; p less than 0.001) but not the physical domain (69.11, 70.90; p = 0.07) of the WHOQOL. This study is the first to demonstrate an overall improvement in medical student wellbeing during the pre-exam period suggesting that the common decline in wellbeing is avoidable. Although the findings of this study indicate the potential for improving student wellbeing at the same time as meeting important learning objectives, the limitations in study design due to the current duration of follow-up and lack of a control group means that the data should be interpreted with caution. Future research should be directed at determining the contribution of individual program components, long-term outcomes, and impacts on future attitudes and clinical practice.

Spiritual well-being is reflected in the quality of relationships that each person has in up to four different domains, namely with self, with others, with the environment and/or with God. This study investigated how secondary students perceived relationships with family, friends, school and church community (including God) impacted on their spiritual well-being. This paper reports the views of 1002 secondary school students aged from 12- to 18-years-old in Catholic, Christian community and other independent schools in Victoria, Australia. ANOVA and multiple regression analyses of students' responses on the Quality Of Life Influences Survey developed in this study, and the Spiritual Health And Life-Orientation Measure, a spiritual well-being questionnaire for secondary students, revealed significant differences in perceptions students held about influences on their spiritual well-being. A case study illustrates how these instruments can be used to inform pastoral care of young people. (Contains 3 tables.)

Background: Changes in residential accommodation models for adults with intellectual disability (ID) over the last 20 years in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States have involved relocation from institutions primarily into dispersed homes in the community. But an evolving alternative service style is the cluster centre. Methods: This paper reports on the relocation of a matched group of 30 pairs of adults with moderate and severe IDs and challenging behaviour who were relocated from an institution into either dispersed housing in the community or cluster centres but under the same residential service philosophy. Adaptive and maladaptive behaviour, choice-making and objective life quality were assessed prior to leaving the institution and then after 12 and 24 months of living in the new residential model. Results: Adaptive behaviour, choice-making and life quality increased for both groups and there was no change in level of maladaptive behaviour compared with levels exhibited in the institution. However, there were some significant differences between the community and cluster centre group as the community group increased some adaptive skills, choice-making and objective life quality to a greater extent than the cluster centre group. Conclusions: Both cluster centre and dispersed community living offer lifestyle and skill development advantages compared with opportunities available in large residential institutions. Dispersed community houses, however, offer increased opportunities for choice-making, acquisition of adaptive behaviours and improved life quality for long-term institutionalized adults with IDs.

Constant change necessitates lifelong learning for those in the workforce, if they are not to fall behind in the skills and knowledge needed as their occupations evolve. Learning new skills and knowledge remains a part of life for those no longer in paid employment. Not only is learning essential in order to keep up with changing needs and opportunities, and with new technologies used by businesses and service-deliverers, but also many retired persons feel that engaging in learning activities improves their quality of life. In some locations, an avenue where retired people seek "adventures in learning" is the University of the Third Age (U3A), thereby also meeting some of their social needs. This paper reports on a small research project investigating the impact of a provincial U3A on some of its members. An update on current participation and activities is included, along with suggestions for further development.

This paper investigated the prospective predictors of mental health after breast cancer diagnosis among mid-aged Australian women (initially aged 45-50 years). Two waves of data collected 2 years apart from a longitudinal population-based survey of 12,177 women identified a group of 63 women who reported onset of BC between T1 (T1) and Time 2 (T2). The measures of interest in the current analysis were the sub-scales of the SF-36, a standard self-report measure of health-related quality of life, and three demographic variables (having a partner, speaking English at home, and having paid employment). Multivariate regression analysis with T2 mental health as the outcome variable revealed that both T1 mental health and bodily pain contributed significantly to mental health at T2, with mental health being the greatest contributor. It was concluded that the experience of breast cancer is not damaging to mental health per se, but such a life stressor is likely to impact most on the mental health of women who already had less robust mental health. (Contains 2 tables.)

The Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) is being developed for the cross-cultural measurement of subjective wellbeing (SWB). This paper reports the findings of its utility with the Hong Kong Chinese and Australian populations. An item on affect, "satisfaction with own happiness" was also investigated to determine whether it should be added to the index. Three-hundred and sixty participants (180 per country), with equal representation from groups aged 18-35, 35-64 and 65 years and above, were recruited from each country. The PWI demonstrated good psychometric performance in terms of its reliability, validity and sensitivity, which are comparable in both countries. The item "satisfaction with own happiness" was found to contribute significantly to the scale's psychometric performance in Australia but not in Hong Kong. Cultural differences in the perception of the concepts "satisfaction" and "happiness" were suggested as an explanation for this finding. The PWI data are also consistent with homeostasis theory, which proposes that each person's SWB level is maintained within a limited positive range. For the Australian population, their mean SWB level fell within the established Western range of 70-80, on a scale from 0 to 100. The Hong Kong population, however, fell below this range. Cultural response bias was identified as a plausible explanation for the differences between the Hong Kong and Australian samples.

This paper reports the initial findings of an exploratory, qualitative study of the life and work of people who are working full-time and also caring for a child with chronic illness. The demands of such a lifestyle are significant. Respondents--all women--often reported "doing-it-all" while constantly being frustrated and challenged in their mothering role.

The late 20th Century saw the rapid rise of quality assurance and effectiveness measures in most industries and organisations. These trends were very much reflected in education at all levels. An associated emergent trend in primary and secondary education in Australia was growth in the use of standardised measures of student achievement that increasingly served (and continue to serve) as a major source of data in judging school effectiveness. While cognitive measures are important outcomes of schooling, it is reasonable to argue that interpretations of quality and effectiveness that do not include affective measures are too narrow. In particular, these criteria sacrifice what may be regarded as more complex and aesthetic measures of quality and effectiveness, such as student perceptions of aspects of their life at school. This paper has developmental, theoretical, and philosophical dimensions. The developmental dimension is based on a definition and articulation of a potential future of education advocating a re-aligning of academic and affective student outcomes. Affective measures are identified as important components of school effectiveness and quality assurance as well as the associated implementation of school reform and school improvement to enhance these measures. The theoretical dimension relates to definitions, clarifications, and links between school effectiveness, effective schools, school improvement, school reform, quality education, quality schools, and quality of life. The philosophical dimension aims to ensure high student quality of life, an enhanced mentoring role for educators, and a focus on children's future, health, equity, and access issues. (Contains 1 figure.)

This paper describes an initiative launched in New South Wales, Australia, in 1989 to help students with disabilities move from school to community settings. The program established partnerships among schools, communities, service providers, and government agencies, resulting in smoother transitions and improved postschool options and quality of life for students with disabilities. (Author/PB)

The views of 24 Australian university faculty interviewed about the way higher education's recession has affected their work reveals a widening gap between academic ideals and institutional realities. Comments focus on: teaching, students, research, colleagues, career prospects, the university, and the quality of academic life. (MSE)