[projekktor id=’17396′]
Six hamilton seniors are back in the classroom to learn something that was decades from invention when they went to school. Today was the first session of a program that’s teaching seniors to use iPads. They have fewer buttons so they’re pretty user friendly. Some of these students have never used the internet before, so they’re starting from square one.
94 year old Muriel Mckenzie signed up for ipad 101- formally called “ilearn ilive well”- so she can browse travel websites online. Beatrice Simpson is more interested in social media.
In a six week course, they’ll learn both. The project is aimed at helping seniors connect with family, friends and new experiences. It’s funded by the Geras Centre at St. Peter’s Hospital, but students supply their own tablets.
Every session, instructor Rachel Weldrick, introduces a new function of the iPad, starting with the basics. Weldrick says she never assumes anything is common sense. She understands that her students grew up in a different era. Still, they’re already asking to download apps.
