SeniorNet Horowhenua

A Facility for the Community

Roy James

In 1992 the first Seniornet was established in Wellington under the sponsorship of Telecom which holds the franchise for Seniornets within New Zealand. The aims of Seniornet are to improve computer owner's skills, not only in the use of the Internet but also in the general use of Microsoft programs. Fifty Seniornet groups are now established in New Zealand with over 11,000 members.

In Levin at the beginning of 1999 an interested group formed a Steering Committee (later to be ratified as the Executive Committee) to introduce the concept to elderly residents in the community. It was suspected that many members of the community had family overseas and wished to communicate with them over the e-mail network but lacked the skills, although they had computers. There were, no doubt, others who had, or would have in the future, computers and who were interested in the use of Word Processing and related programs. Furthermore there was, as confirmed later, a need to impart more detailed information to those who wanted to increase their knowledge in the operation of the equipment.

An inaugural meeting was arranged, and fee paying members were sought, with a positive response that resulted in the establishment of a training school within the town shopping area. Details of the courses that the members desired were also canvassed at the meeting and this information led to the formation of a database from which an indication was gained on courses that should be initiated.

Due to the inadequacy of the classroom Internet facilities and the lack of member's program knowledge it was proposed to initially begin classes in Word Processing as a requirement for a later e-mail course. With only 5 computers, the number being decided by the concentrated manner in which training would be conducted, and an opening membership of over one hundred the demands on the facilities were strong but classes were run every weekday morning and afternoon for a maximum of 8 weeks per course.

At the inaugural meeting tutors for the courses were enlisted from volunteers who had some experience with word processing and who were prepared to undertake a teaching role. An assistant to each tutor was also appointed from the group of volunteers who felt they had something to contribute but lacked the experience to take on a tutor's role. Additional tutors were later found, sometimes amongst the members who had completed courses.

After the start date of 17 May, 1999 courses were structured to cover Word Processing 1, Word Processing 2, File Management and Computer Basics. At this stage e-mail courses were not entirely feasible without the installation of additional equipment. Although a connection to Xtra was provided by Telecom the facility for interconnection of the 5 computers to allow e-mail traffic to flow between them was lacking. It was therefore decided to install network cards in the computers and to join them together via a hub. This would allow the computers to access each other's files and to connect to a single printer that was available. In order to complete the configuration a "gateway" computer was installed which acted as an intermediary between the hub and the single Internet connection. In this configuration each computer was given a unique e-mail address and could send and receive traffic from the other computers as well as from the Internet itself.

Within 10 months a total of 170 courses had been completed although there were still 144 courses to be scheduled to meet the requirements of the current members.

At this stage the members of Seniornet who had completed courses were more skilled and confident in the use of the programs they were using and had benefited from exposure to others who had the same lack of skills and confidence. E-mail courses had shown that, using simple procedures, communication with addresses overseas can be conducted with just as little effort as sending a message to the computer alongside them in the training room.

Tutors also benefited from their exposure to the classes as they mastered the tricks and tips that became apparent as they tutored. This was most noticeable when the response from tutors asked to conduct further courses was overwhelming.

Communication with the members was carried out using Newsletters which were produced every 2 months highlighting events and passing on useful information. Meetings and addresses, although not very regular, provided feedback from the members and were a useful source of information for both the Executive and the tutors. Class visits by Executive members, and in particular the Course Co-ordinator, were always worth while for judging the effectiveness of the courses and allowing modifications to be made to the teaching approach.

However Seniornet Horowhenua was not without problems. Equipment failure did feature in the early stages but were quickly overcome. A minor problem of maintaining set-up integrity, usually the result of "experimenting" by the pupils, was always present but also quickly remedied.

A major problem that was not envisaged was the great variation in the members computer programs. Although Seniornet was primarily for those members using the Windows 95/98 operating system and the Works integrated program, many members were using older equipment handed down from family which caused some confusion and restricted their practice at home after class. Also, because most members attending class were computer illiterate, even minor problems tended to be brought to class for the tutor's advise or for the Technical Director to find a solution.

Challenges still exist. Operating systems are constantly changing and program updates seem to be the norm. As the classes are dependent on the use of self instruction manuals written by Seniornet Wellington any changes in the program being used in class can be a problem. With the introduction of program suites being included with new computers the latest software can create confusion to new users who have been trained on an older version and visa versa. This is particularly evident with the introduction of the Works 2000 suite which uses Word as the word processor and not Works as in previous bundles. The provision of new manuals for Seniornet groups is not only high in cost but also involves considerable input in man-hours. The different Internet browsers being used by members also cause difficulties for the tutors as additional tuition is required for those who are not using Internet Explorer5/Outlook Express, the classroom standard and the program covered by the instruction manual.

Membership within Seniornet Horowhenua has risen from 105 since inception to 180 today. In order to keep the interest of members and to encourage new members to join a concerted effort will need to be made. As member's requirements are satisfied the need to rejoin tends to diminish. However it is proposed that additional interest groups be formed within the next financial period which should retain the involvement of members.

Membership to Seniornet is restricted to those over 55 years of age and we do have active participants over the age of 90 in class. Some of the members are corresponding with their relations overseas on a regular basis since they have learned new skills. A few of them are writing books or detailing their genealogy using their skills. Most, however, are using their computers to write letters and correspond with friends. They are pleased to have had the experience in class where they have gained confidence in the use of the computer, especially in the area of File Management and e-mail. Some will continue to struggle with older technology but the experience should give them confidence if they decide to invest in new equipment.

We look forward to the future with enthusiasm and will continue to deliver the excellence in our training that the results to date confirm.