Lifelong Learning

Research group

The Lifelong Learning Research group interests in lifelong learning and teaching through the life span, including older adults and intergenerational interactions between older adults and young learners.

Aims

• To understand the intergenerational interactions between older and younger students

• To characterize teaching strategies appropriate for teaching older adults

• To characterize third-age learners, as reflected in their educators' perspectives.

• To promote the knowledge about teaching courses on lifelong learning

• To understand the impact of participating in courses about lifelong learning

• To understand the impact of participating in science courses on older learners

Projects

• Examining intergenerational interactions between older students and younger students in a course held in the academy

• Identifying teaching strategies appropriate for teaching science to older adults

• Characterizing third-age science learners, as reflected in their educators' perspectives.

• Developing and evaluating a lifelong learning course for pre-service and in-service teachers

צוות המחקר

Dr. Sara Pe'er

peer@oranim.ac.il

Sara Pe'er is a retired senior lecturer in biology and science education at Oranim Academic College of Education. She taught botany, ecology, environmental science and research in science education in graduate, undergraduate and in-service programs until 2019. She received her Ph.D. in plant pathology from Bar- Ilan University and was a post-doctorate fellow at the Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Her research interests focus on education for sustainability, older adults' education and ultra-orthodox teaching in higher education.

Selected publications

Peer-Reviewed Journals:

Herscu-Kluska, R., Pe’er, S. (accepted). The effect of documentary-based assignments on teachers' perceptions of older adults and aging: A case study. Teaching and Teacher Education.

Goldman, D., Pe’er, S., & Yavetz, B. (2020). Sociocultural anchors for incorporating sustainability in youth movements: Comparison among secular, religious, and ultraorthodox movements. The Journal of Environmental Education, 51(3), 183-199. https://doi.org/10.1080/00958964.2019.1646203

Goldman, D., Pe’er, S., & Yavetz, B. (2017). Environmental literacy of youth movement members – is environmentalism a component of their social activism? Environmental Education Research, 23 (4), 486-514. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2015.1108390

Peer-Reviewed book Chapter:

Pe'er, S., Goldman, D., & Yavetz, B. (2020) Sustainability in youth movements: snapshot, challenges, and action directions. In: N. Michaeli & G. Gertel (Eds.), Youth movements in Israel: A hundred years of distinctive education (pp. 183-205). Tel Aviv: Mofet Institute & Youth Movements Council. (in Hebrew)

Conference Proceedings:

Herscu-Kluska, R., Pe’er, S., & Shafir, S. (2021). How to teach science to older adults? An educator's perspective. In J. Walker, G. Maestrini, & S. Smythe (Eds.), Adult Education in Global Times 2021 Proceedings (pp. 241-246). University of British Columbia.

Herscu-Kluska, R., Pe'er, S., & Shafir, S. (2019). The study of science courses among third age learners. Proceedings of the 9th Conference of the ESREA network Research on Education and Learning of Older Adults (ELOA). University of the Algarve, Faro, Portugal [11-13 October 2018 (pp. 157-170)].

Dr. Ronit Herscu-Kluska

ronit_k@oranim.ac.il

Ronit Herscu-Kluska is a lecturer in chemistry and science education at Oranim Academic College of Education.
She received her Ph.D. in inorganic chemistry from Ben-Gurion University. Dr. Herscu-Kluska's research interests focus on teaching and learning chemistry and science across life from early childhood to the third age and older adults' education. She teaches in Oranim courses related to STEM and research, in graduate, undergraduate and in-service programs. Dr. Herscu-Kluska is a member of the Israel Chemical Society, EARLI and EAPRIL.

Her recent publications:

Peer-Reviewed Journals:

Herscu-Kluska, R., & Pe’er, S. (accepted). The effect of documentary-based assignments on teachers' perceptions of older adults and aging: A case study. Teaching and Teacher Education.

Klemer, A., Segal, R., Miedijensky, S., Herscu-Kluska, R., & Kouropatov, A. (2023). Changes in the attitudes of mathematics and science teachers toward the integration and use of computerized technological tools as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 19(7), em2295.‏ https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/13306

Dori, Y. J., Allouche, A., Herscu-Kluska, R., Herscovitz, O., Yarden, H., Blinder, Y., & Levenberg, S. (2023). Biomedical Engineering Students’ Question Posing Skill Based on Reading Scientific Articles. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 1-17.‏ https://doi-org.mgs.oranim.ac.il/10.1007/s10956-022-10015-y

Shwartz-Asher, D., Raviv, A., & Herscu-Kluska, R. (2022). Teaching and assessing active learning in online academic courses. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 6(1), 100341.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2022.100341

Simha, P., Barton, M. A., Perez-Mercado, L. F., McConville, J. R., Lalander, C., Magri, M. E., Dutta, S., Kabir, H., Selvakumar, A., Zhou, X ., Martin, T., Kizos, T., Kataki, R., Gerchman, Y., Herscu-Kluska, R., Alrousan, D., Goh, G., Elenciuc, D., Głowacka, A., Korculanin, L., Tzeng, R.V., Ray, S.S., Niwagaba, C., Prouty, C., Mihelcic, J. R., & Vinnerås, B. (2021). Willingness among food consumers to recycle human urine as crop fertiliser: Evidence from a multinational survey. Science of the Total Environment, 765, 144438.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144438.

Conference Proceedings:

Herscu-Kluska, R., Pe’er, S., & Shafir, S. (2021). How to teach science to older adults? An educator's perspective. In J. Walker, G. Maestrini, & S. Smythe (Eds.), Adult Education in Global Times 2021 Proceedings (pp. 241-246). University of British Columbia.

Herscu-Kluska, R., Pe'er, S., & Shafir, S. (2019). The study of science courses among third age learners. Proceedings of the 9th Conference of the ESREA network Research on Education and Learning of Older Adults (ELOA). University of the Algarve, Faro, Portugal [11-13 October 2018 (pp. 157-170)].

Dr. Edna Nahon Crystal

edna.nahon@gmail.com

Edna Nahon Crystal is a lecturer in the Department of Science and the Department of Science Teaching at Achva Academic College. She received her PhD on "Characterization of Ho Endonuclease and Design of Targeted Endonucleases" from Ben Gurion University.

Edna was part of a group who studies VDAC1 protein which responsible for the life and death of the cell. At the recent years Edna's research interests focus on making complex science accessible to different ages, integrative learning of literature and science, and multiculturalism.

Recent publications:

Peer-Reviewed Journals:

Hayak M., Nahon Crystal E., and Segev Y. (in press). Multiculturalism in teacher training: The Israeli case. Israel Affairs.

Verma A., Shteinfer-Kuzmine A., Kamenetsky N., Pittala S., Paul A., Nahon Crystal E., Ouro A., Chalifa-Caspi V., Kumar Pandey S., Monsengo A., Vardi N., Knafo S., and Shoshan-Barmatz V. (2022). Targeting the overexpressed mitochondrial protein VDAC1 in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease protects against mitochondrial dysfunction and mitigates brain pathology. Translational Neurodegeneration 11(1), 58. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40035-022-00329-7

Shoshan-Barmatz V., Anand, U., Nahon- Crystal E., Di Carlo, M. & Shteinfer-Kuzmine, A. (2021). Adverse effects of metformin from diabetes to COVID-19, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and aging: is VDAC1 a common target? Frontiers in Physiology, 12:730048. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2021.730048

Shoshan-Barmatz V., Nahon-Crystal E., Shteinfer-Kuzmine A. & Gupta R. (2018) VDAC1, mitochondrial dysfunction, and Alzheimer's disease. Pharmacological Research 131, 87-101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phrs.2018.03.010

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