ABSTRACT
This chapter establishes the claim that access to educational gerontology - that is a specific form of education for older people - ought to be accorded a high priority in public policy. There are two major strands to the claim: one is concerned with the fact that as people age they become increasingly marginalized by society in economic, social, political and cultural terms. The other is, the sheer size of the numbers involved, coupled with the fact that existing disadvantages associated with race, gender and class are exacerbated by those associated with advancing age. To justify any claim within a context of social justice two dimensions have to be considered. The first concerns the establishment of the claim; the second, its implementation. The chapter argues that gerontological education is a public good with a comparable moral status to that of health care and it is equally necessary both for promoting individual opportunity and a sense of public wellbeing.
