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Nov. 10, 2006
Keeping up with kids
Winnipeg seniors gaining computer know-how.
REBECA KUROPATWA
Keeping current and active are the growing names of the game for
more and more seniors in Winnipeg. The Gwen Secter Creative Living
Centre is offering basic and advanced computer classes to senior
students, who are exploring a whole new realm of possibilities.
"I don't consider myself a senior, as people think of a 'senior,'
" said Sheila Levine, who took the computer course. "I
am 68 years old, but I am always active and am always learning new
things."
Since Levine has taken the class, she loves to play memory games
like Scrabble on the computer every morning.
"It sure beats doing laundry," she joked. "I do a
lot of computer graphics, like making greeting cards and creating
brochures. I even have my own e-mail and website."
Levine said most Winnipeg seniors are very involved in the community.
"We have 82-, 94- and 95-year-olds who are all staying active,"
she said. "Computers are a great way to connect, and it opens
up a new world to seniors. I know many seniors in their 90s who
use computers – especially for communication. Computers are
great for people who have family and friends outside the city [with
whom] to keep in touch, and it is also a great tool for searching
for information."
Marilyn Regiec, executive director of Gwen Secter, suggested to
the board of directors that their disused library be converted into
a computer lab. The centre has been offering the computer class
for seniors since the lab was set up in November 2004.
Regeic said the seniors' reaction to the idea of learning about
computers "included some trepidation, but for the most part
involved enthusiasm about 'getting connected' and being a part of
the Internet world. The class enables them to keep in touch with
family and friends in other cities, research information and share
photos, jokes and greetings."
"I am a senior of a different generation," said participant
Ruth Katz, "a generation of people who are afraid of computers.
Even though I have worked – and I do work in offices with computers
– I don't get very involved."
Taking the course at Gwen Secter has helped familiarize her with
all the basic tools she needs.
"My sister is always getting tons of e-mails, and does word
searches on the Internet," said Katz. "But me, my favorite
thing is playing computer games – it keeps my mind active.
I like to play solitaire. My best advice to other seniors is to
stay active and motivated."
Teacher Sheldon Itscovich took a fresh approach to the class when
he began volunteering at the centre two years ago. Previously, college
students had been trying to teach the seniors computer skills, with
limited success. "Many of these students were young –
in their late 20s or early 30s – and moved too quickly for
many of the seniors, some of whom didn't even know how to turn a
computer on," said Itscovich. "The seniors were quickly
and easily lost or overwhelmed. The drop-out rate was high."
Itscovich started his courses "with the understanding that
the students knew nothing about computers. We moved slowly and I
allowed lots of time in each class for Q and A."
Many of his students now own their own computers.
"The seniors enjoy being able to do the basic things, like
sending and receiving e-mails from far-away family and friends,"
Itscovich observed. "They are, in general, anxious to be within
the 21st century, but felt that they wouldn't be able to operate
something as 'complicated' as a computer. They saw [newly] that
they could do what their grandchildren could."
Rebeca Kuropatwa is a Winnipeg freelance writer.
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