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The Internet Made Simple for SeniorsBy Vasil J. Pappas, Jr. Why has the Internet revolution bypassed so many seniors, especially when technology allows people to communicate with their loved ones regardless of age, distance, or physical limitations? Computers are everywhere--in the office, in the home, packed in a briefcase. But even as computers and their use for Internet communications soars, there is a gap between those who use the Internet and those who don't. The gap, called the digital divide, is wide for seniors. Only 16% of Americans aged 65 and older have used the Internet, according to a recent industry study. The remaining 84%, 21 million people, aren't destined to learn how. As facilities that cater to this population get Internet ready, they find their residents aren't. Teaching Seniors the Internet Generations on Line™ (GoL) is a Philadelphia-based nonprofit organization founded in 1999 to help seniors overcome the digital divide. It studied this digital divide and researched why elderly people are such reluctant learners. Founder Tobey Dichter, who had taken early retirement from her job as vice president for communications and public affairs at SmithKline Beecham, asked a 70-year-old friend to round up a group of her peers to discuss Internet use. There were no takers. "So I said, 'Don't ask about computers, ask how they communicate with their grandchildren," Dichter said. That approach brought in 21 people who gladly exchanged their joys and frustrations of writing to family members, and this popular technology. Focus groups and research continued. GoL found research from IBM that defined three barriers that kept the elderly from using the Internet: skill, access, and intimidation. With those findings, GoL set out to create an easy-to-use Internet service designed exclusively for first-time, elderly computer users, and bring that service to places where seniors live and congregate. After testing the program at seven sites, GoL launched its services nationally in September 2000. The program is now in more than 300 senior sites in 34 states and Canada. Generations on Line is a service for access and a product for learning. It provides specially programmed self-training software to assisted living facilities, retirement homes, senior centers, libraries, and other locations where older people congregate. Facilities pay a one-time charge of $250 for the software, and seniors use it for free. Using familiar images and large-type instructions, the program guides elders who have no computer experience through four basic Internet functions: e-mail, discussion (threaded chats), multi-lingual searches using Alta Vista, and links to other sites. The mission is similar to SeniorNet, a 16-year-old nonprofit based in San Francisco, that sets up computer training labs within senior centers and community centers. Unlike SeniorNet, GoL is a self-teaching tutorial. The software simplifies and teaches computer basics as an introduction to the Internet, and is designed for seniors who are reluctant to join a class. Computers with the GoL program and supporting documentation are placed in common rooms where seniors are most likely to be. This increases the likelihood that reluctant users will see others using the computer and experience the Internet. Overcoming Fear At Friendship Village, a continuing-care retirement community in Schaumburg, Ill., GoL is on seven computers in the computer laboratory and on two library computers. According to Debbie Getty, activities director, having GoL in the library helps seniors overcome their fear as they see other people using it. "When they eventually venture into the computer laboratory, the first thing I say is 'Congratulations, you made it in here and it's very hard to mess the computers up. Unless you pick them up and drop them or spill coffee in them, you can't hurt them.' Having a staff person or volunteers in the room also helps," she says. Getty adds that GoL is easier than other free services for e-mail, because of its full-size type and on-screen instructions. GoL's intergenerational chat section, Memories: Generation to Generation, spurred Friendship Village to establish a similar program with a nearby school's 5th and 6th graders. They've started a pen pal program they call a "key pal" program. Scott Hendricks of Dock Woods Community in Lansdale, Penn., learned about GoL just as the Mennonite-run assisted living community had committed to setting up a computer center last year. "GoL is designed for teaching seniors how to use the Internet, and that's why we were building the computer center," he says. The center has seven computers, all of which link to GoL. Two computers in the facility's library also have GoL. After a few training sessions, residents formed their own computer group where seniors teach the classes themselves. GoL is used as the introductory course to the Internet, and many avidly use it. "In January, 366 visitors signed in to use the computer laboratory and 130 on library computers. About half of them use GoL," he says. The computer group teaches a course for GoL users on how to use Hotmail, a free Internet-based e-mail service that, unlike GoL, permits attachments. In Greenville, Del., GL is used on computers in the Internet Café at the Methodist Country House, an assisted living facility. "For a lot of people in their 80s and 90s, and particularly in assisted living, it's most meaningful to be able to communicate with their far-flung family," says Cheryl Cobb, a spokesperson with Peninsula United Methodist Homes. "Writing letters has fallen on hard times, and now e-mail has revived that. It doesn't have to be long. A short paragraph suffices. And then you get answers--sometimes in just a few minutes." GoL is often used as an introduction to e-mail, Cobb says, adding it often opens the door to web surfing and other Internet use. "They realize how much more there is to the Internet." Four Internet Applications GoL is a full-fledged Internet experience; its web-based applications are presented in a format that is less intimidating for first-time users. Instructions use a large font and common English words to guide new users through the challenges of the keyboard, mouse, and Internet clicks. There is no advertising on the site, thereby avoiding confusion or distraction. The self-teaching program is designed to help a novice user learn independently, but it works best with the help of a teacher. It comes with on-screen help pages and with printed instructions that can be placed by the computer. Additionally, a monitor border is provided that reinforces the most common instructions: how to use the scroll bar, back and home buttons, cursor, and mouse. Because GoL contains a tutorial, individuals can learn at their own pace. If residents can read and follow simple instructions, they do not have to rely on instructors who may not be available when they want to learn or use the Internet. Although users of GoL can surf the Internet, e-mail their friends and family, and conduct searches powered by AltaVista, it's not intended to be the exclusive gateway to the Internet for seniors. Once they become Internet literate, they can be confidence that their skills will take them wherever their curiosity leads. This month, GoL will receive the ASA/MetLife Foundation Award for Outstanding Older Adult Learning Programs at the Joint Conference of the American Society on Aging and the National Council on the Aging. Vasil J. Pappas, Jr. is chief operating officer of Generations on Line. For more information on Generations on Line log onto: www.generationsonline.org.
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