| Never too old to learn - SeniorNet Christchurch |
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| Written by Belinda Carter | |||||||||
| Monday, 03 March 2003 | |||||||||
NZ Macguide Issue 8 Once upon a time, older Mac users were being turned away from SeniorNets because they did not have IBM-compatible PCs running Windows 95 or 'better'. This unfortunate circumstance led Allan Rutherford and others associated with the local Apple users' group in Christchurch to approach Grant Sidaway, the man behind the introduction of the SeniorNet concept to New Zealand, to ask if a SeniorNet facility catering solely for Mac users could be set up. He agreed and in December 2000, SeniorNet Mac was set up in Christchurch - this is believed to be a world first. Meanwhile in Auckland something similar was happening (see later). Rooms were quickly organised in the Cramner Centre, the former Girls' High School building in Central Christchurch, and a learning centre was set up using PowerMacs loaned by a local Apple retailer.
Senior Net itself is quite a phenomenon. "The aim is to provide people over the age of 55 with confidence, skills and encouragement to learn new technology," Grant Sidaway says. He was working for Telecom a decade ago when called on to address a group of retirees in Wellington. He had read about SeniorNet in magazines and raised the idea with them. Ten years later, there are 100 New Zealand clubs, including the two Mac ones, catering for between 21,000 and 26,000 members - that's more SeniorNet clubs per head of population than any other nation. The whole thing began in the United States in 1986, as a non-profit organization aiming to help over 50s catch the new technology wave. SeniorNet now has branches in Belgium, Sweden, Brazil, Japan and Australia. According to Grant, the United States' counterparts tend to be more academic, run with different types of sponsorship and some of them have dual learning centres or subgroups for Mac users. SeniorNet clubs in New Zealand each receive a $1500 startup grant, two free phone lines and an Xtra Internet account (usually dial-up). Classes were started in April, four months after the initial idea was mooted. When the official launch took place in July that year SeniorNet Mac was already well underway. Macs for success Easy to follow notes with plenty of screenshots have been prepared within the club by the tutors or else adaptations have been made from materials produced by SeniorNet PC and other sources. The initial course notes were modelled on the Wellington SeniorNet PC courses, modified for Mac. Although there is a minimum age requirement for members, tutors do not have to be members or over the age of 55. "Most of us are not teachers," says course co-ordinator Tom Mitchell. "We don't stand up at a board and declaim it." Notes are handed out. "The tutor is there to help them when they are going wrong, but some people can work it out themselves." Classes are small, limited to six students with two tutors, which means there is a constant need for more tutors. There are 17 tutors on the list but it isn't always easy to get people to volunteer. Contrary to the preconceptions some may have of senior citizens, many have all sorts of others interests. As one member put it: "Since I have been retired, I have never been so busy!" Short workshops on a range of other topics including genealogy and graphics. A Friday morning session answers any questions that might arise from using the programmes and an occasional social is held around the city. A small monthly newsletter is available by pdf or in print, keeping everyone in touch.
For those who cannot make it to classes in the centre, the Christchurch group offers a distance learning programme, organised by Brian Henderson. Two dozen people, most of them North Islanders, have joined up for this reason while some Christchurch people, unable to attend classes, have also chosen to learn this way. A free CD and course notes gets them started, and supplementary notes, containing tips and tricks, make up for the lack of byplay - an assigned tutor is contactable by email, mail or fax. The Christchurch society is encouraging PC SeniorNets to refer Mac users to the Mac groups or to the distance learning programme. Any seniornet group wanting to support Mac users faces organisational and financial challenges to do with teaching space, equipment and particularly with tutors and teaching materials. "The problem in New Zealand is that many of the SeniorNet PC groups may only have one or two Mac people (or inquiries) and they have no instructors available. It is the availability of instructors that is the problem, together with having sufficient Mac users to make it viable in a SeniorNet PC group," Brian says. More than two years on from the inaugural meeting and SeniorNet Mac is already on the move into new rooms on the same site, making way for a language school in the main building. The new rooms are larger with better facilities. With ten hours of courses, various workshops and occasional social the group is thriving. Funding from lottery grants and other organizations has meant the society has managed to replace a number of the PowerMacs with iMacs and to add additional equipment. There are now five iMacs, plus two of the original 6360s running a range of operating systems from 8.5 to 10.2.
Meanwhile, north of Taupo Two years later, on retirement, he advertised in the local paper for Mac owners interested in starting a Senior Net. From the eleven people who replied an action committee was formed and the Mac Senior Net Auckland was incorporated in February 2001, just days after the Christchurch group. Auckland has been busy ever since running courses, attracting new members and raising funds. A basement room in Howick has served as the group's learning centre but, with the membership numbers growing beyond 100, the Auckland group is looking for new premises. "When obtained we will be able to expand the services available to members." A digital camera, video camera, G3 iBook, Sony projector and photo printer were purchased recently with a view to offering tuition in digital photography and video editing. Four iMacs and one Centris are used during the Tuesday and Thursday sessions, with the emphasis on one-to-one tuition and working at the student's pace. Monthly get together's are held in an Eastern Bays' community centre and a pdf newsletter keeps everyone up-to-date and clued up with brief tips. These two SeniorNet Mac groups in New Zealand are believed to be the only 100 percent Mac-based computer groups catering for older people in the world; a New Zealand solution to the Windows bias. With the option of a SeniorNet Mac group in two of our major cities, and the availability of distance learning courses, older Mac learners no longer need to feel left out in the cold.
© Parkside Media 2003
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