European societies experience significant demographic change. Age profiles in European countries are changing as well as models of family structures. In the discourse about these changes it is argued that they might have influences on the learning between different generations, which used to happen implicitly within families. A concern is noticeable, that this implicit learning will decrease and therefore should take place explicitly in educational organisations (cf. Klerqc 1997: 87). On the background of those assumptions concepts of intergenerational learning in schools and adult education have been developed in the recent years (Franz et al. 2009, Marquard et al. 2008).

The existing research concerning intergenerational learning has to main research fields:

-          On the one hand research projects focus on the transmission of knowledge within families. These studies analyse – often on the background of Bourdieus capital-theory (cf. 1983) – the transmission of family knowledge, habitués and success by qualitative research designs (cf. Büchner/Brake 2000; Brassett-Grundy 2004).

-          On the other hand efforts have been made to evaluate intergenerational programs beyond family relationships, which have a long tradition in the United States and the United Kingdom (cf. Hatton Yeo 2006). These studies measure attitudes of younger and older participants (cf. Couper et al. 1991; Gorelik et al. 2000).

Nevertheless the emerging field of intergenerational learning in adult education is still a very young field of practice with little extant research. On the background of that context the empirical study is situated. It focuses on those who arrange intergenerational learning for different generations in German adult education didactically. Therefore the research questions of the empirical study were:

-          What do adult educators think about intergenerational learning?

-          How do they arrange intergenerational learning within institutions of adult education?

These questions will be answered by a qualitative research design (see methodology). For the discussion of the empirical results a theoretical framework, which includes the works of Friedrich Schleiermacher and Karl Mannheim, was taken into account.

In Schleiermachers well known question “What does the older generation actually want with the younger generation?” (Schleiermacher 1966/1826, p. 9 translated) an unidirectional learning process between generations is implied. Knowledge, skills and experience of the older are transferred to the younger generation. Likewise the German sociologist Karl Mannheim emphasises on the need of a dynamic change between transmission and renewal of knowledge by intergenerational exchange generations (cf. Mannheim 1928/1952). Both theorists show that intergenerational learning is not a new and a still important topic in the philosophy of education and in sociology.

For societies who experience dynamic changes on different levels the strong connection between age and knowledge, which Schleiermacher proposed for his times, is no longer adequate. In a so called postmodern condition of societies (cf. Lyotard 1979) knowledge is divided and not a privilege of the older generation any more. Every generation can therefore learn from another. In such societies intergenerational learning becomes increasingly important and is institutionalised in primary and adult education. This will be highlighted within the presentation.

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