TV film crew at The Lawns, Monday 30 January 2012.
A film crew from the Daybreak TV program will visit Agewell Computer Club next Monday afternoon. They want to include us in a wider piece about digital inclusion. They especially want to talk to people who are learning about the Internet for the first time. So …
- If you are up for a TV show, come to The Lawns a bit earlier than usual. The front shutter will stay down until 2 pm, but the back door will be open from 1:30 pm.
- If you are nervous about being on TV, come anyway as usual. They will not film or interview anyone who is reluctant.
- If you are really keen to be interviewed, you can reserve a place by sending an email to acc@lawns.org.uk .
The Daybreak website is itv.com/daybreak .
Another welcome message (25 Nov 2011) from Helena Sustar, who did part of her doctoral research ‘Design a Better Computer for Senior Citizens’ at The Lawns …
Some news from me: In August I started my job at the Sheffield Hallam University as a Research Associate. I quite like my job and at the moment I am working on two research projects. One try to improve self management at teenagers who have Diabetes type 1 and the second one is looking in helping overweight pregnant women to maintain their weight during their pregnancy. It is good that I can use a lot of my knowledge that I gained during my PhD. I did not move to Sheffield permanently jet and I am keeping my room in London at the moment.
Do you remember Keeping Connected competition where I was asking you for a help. Well, Stoke Newington School got the competition and final award of £5000 pounds. As far I know they started at this school with series of events where older people are engaged as cooking, dancing and gardening mentors.
I wish you and all Hackney Silver Surfers nice Christmas and Happy New Year 2012.
A note from us.
Helena is the first author of ‘Creativity in Older People Designing Digital Devices’ – an academic paper based on her PhD work at City University. Anyone who would like a copy can ask Rick. Below is the abstract …
Digital devices, such as mobile phones, are often hard for older people to use, and uptake of such devices amongst the older population is currently low. Our aim is to increase understanding of the way in which older people can be more involved in designing digital devices to suit their own needs. We describe a creative process involving designers and older people in completing cultural probes and participating in creative workshops. We analyse the creative process based on our observations of stimuli and blocks to creative thinking during the workshops. Our results indicate that the most productive way to involve older people in the design of digital devices for the older population may be to have older people working alongside designers during the creative design process.
A message from Lisa Johansson (Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design) …
Our names are Lisa Johansson and Gianpaolo Fusari, we are research associates in the Age & Ability Lab at the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, Royal College of Art. We focus on inclusive design and aim to always put people in the centre of our process.
We are currently looking into understanding what are the different roles people may have in improving local communities, and how digital media, such as computers, internet, smart phones etc, can help them.
Digital technology and the internet have completely changed the way we communicate and also the way we form, maintain and participate in communities. Staying in touch, sharing and collaborating has never been so easy and as a result many communities now exist as online communities.
From our research we have found that limited skills and frustration with fast changing technologies can result in some groups having less of a presence in local projects and initiatives. Civic participation and creative entrepreneurship are increasingly important to society, government and business.
What we would like to talk to you in particular is your experiences in life in general and with technology in particular. We have a couple of easy exercises that help us talk about how you engage with community and technology and this is what we would like to do.
This project will investigate ways of enhancing daily life for people in their communities through digital media.
Note from Agewell Computer Club.
- This project is exactly what Agewell Computer Club is all about – finding ways to use digital technology to enhance the lives we already have, and strengthen the communities we already live in. By the way – digital technology means the Internet, computers, smartphones, and almost anything with ‘digital’ in its name – new ways to make contact between people cheaper and faster. We know it is easier than many people think – but it should be a lot easier than it actually is.
- Lisa will be visiting us at The Lawns next
Tuesday 6 December 2011, at 3 pm.
- To make sure you can share your opinions and experiences with Lisa, please reserve a place by sending an email to acc@lawns.org.uk (and please don’t forget to mention the reason for your email).
A message from Lan Ly (City University) …
Lifelong learning.
Are you aged 55+ years? Are you interested in learning a new skill?
If you have answered yes to both these questions I would love to hear from you!
I am a student studying at City University and I would like to find out the following from you:
- What do you want to learn?
- Why do you want to learn?
- How do you want to learn?
- How familiar are you with technology? (such as TV, computers, Internet, Audio book etc).
- How do you feel about learning using technology?
- Is there anything you want to learn using technology that you can’t find? (such as learning a new language through TV).
I am looking to arrange a focus group for this topic. This group discussion will provide valuable input for my university project. My project focuses on finding out whether the learning needs of those 55+ years old are being met by current technology.
If you would like further information on my research, I can be contacted by email: Ngoc.Ly.2@city.ac.uk .
Note from Agewell Computer Club.
This sort of research into the needs of older people is very important, so we hope as many people as possible will help Lan Ly. She will visit us to explain everything at the next Agewell Computer Club, Tuesday 22 November 2011, at 3 pm. Please come and hear what she has to say, and then you can consider if you would like to join the focus group.
A message from Jaimes Nel, Sidekick Studios …
About Us.
Sidekick is a team of designers that specialise in developing exciting new services to make things better in society.
Pick Me Up is a new project we are developing that aims to make it easy for families with older members to share activities and information.
How it will work.
The idea behind Pick Me Up is to help older people stay active and involved in the community by sharing their needs for things like shopping, activities and household chores with their friends and family through SMS and the web.
At this stage, our research aims to simply explore this idea using a little creative licence!
The Trial.
If you and your family member or friend agree to take part in this trial lasting 2 weeks, we will telephone you several mornings each week (at least 3 but as often as you’d like). Each call will last no longer than 15 minutes and we will simply ask you:
What are your plans today?
We will capture those plans, for example about meals, and create a ‘shopping list’ of things. We’ll then send your family member (and anyone else you’d like) a list of these items, along with some suggestions, for example where to get items, local deals on those items or healthy alternatives. If they can help with any of the things on the list, they simply let everyone else know using the online list or a single SMS to us.
At the end of the 2 week trial, we’ll give you a slightly longer call (or a visit if you’d like) for an hour to chat about what the experience was like.
Fingers crossed, your feedback will help us launch the real version of our service very soon!
Why do we need you?
We’re still at a very early stage of building Pick Me Up and are looking for several people (between 65 and 80) with a family member or friend that’s happy to be involved, that has an interest in new things and a little imagination! As a thank you for your involvement, we are offering £75 to both you and your family member for taking part for two weeks.
If you would like to take part, or know someone who might, please get in touch with Jaimes at Sidekick Studios on 078 9980 5212 or jaimes@sidekickstudios.net .
A message from Lucy Purdon, BBC …
Did you contribute to the BBC project “People’s War” in 2004-2006?
The BBC are looking for participants to be part of a follow up film celebrating the project.
Did you become a regular user of the internet after taking part? Has getting online made life easier for you? Did you enjoy the experience of telling your story to young people?
If you have a story to tell about being involved in the project, please contact Lucy Purdon -
- Email: lucy.purdon@bbc.co.uk .
- Phone: 07966 798 831 .
Best regards,
Lucy Purdon, Researcher, BBC Learning.
NB from Agewell Computer Club:
A message from the Foundation for Assistive Technology (FAST) …
Can you help us make the Web more usable for everyone?
With the Web now being available on desktop computers, mobile phones and even TVs, it is more important than ever that Web sites are created so that they are accessible for everyone, including older people and people with disabilities.
The “Inclusive Futures – Internet Web Services” Project (i2Web) is looking for people to help us in evaluating a range of new Websites and services to better understand the accessibility barriers they could introduce. We are interested in how you surf the Web, what types of things do you do on the Web, and when you encounter something that is difficult, how do you try and work around the problem to find the information you need. We are definitely not testing your ability to surf the Web, we are interested in how clearly websites present things to real people.
Specifically, we are looking for:
- People over 60,
or
- People who have low vision and who are experienced using a screenreader or screen magnifier to surf the web.
- People who are deaf or hard of hearing.
- People who are restricted in the range of movements they can undertake on keyboards, remote controls or mobile phones and/or use an assistive technology to work with these devices.
If you fit into one of these groups, are over 18 and would like to participate please contact Sam Collin at the Foundation for Assistive Technology (FAST) on 0300 330 1430 or sam@fastuk.org .
We will contact you as soon as possible to set up a short phone interview regarding your web experience and technology preferences. If selected you will be invited to our evaluation suite in Tower Hill, London, or arrange to meet you at a convenient venue, to work with a variety of different technologies and websites for approximately two hours. Your travel expenses will be reimbursed and we will offer you a gift voucher for £30, because your input and feedback are important to us, and your time is valuable!
This will take place in March or April.
If you have any questions, please contact sam@fastuk.org . If you would like more information about the i2Web project in general then please visit our website at i2web.eu .
FAST is a small charity that works to improve the way equipment is designed, promoted and provided, and to ensure that it reflects the needs and wishes of older and disabled people: fastuk.org .
A message (7 Feb 2011) from Helena Sustar, who did part of her doctoral research ‘Design a Better Computer for Senior Citizens’ at The Lawns …
I would like to let you know that I passed my viva with minor amendments last week.
At that occasion I would like to thank you for all help at my studies and for encouraging Hackney Silver Surfers members to participate. As well, I would also to thank Michael, who allowed me to observe at the computer course. Finally, I am very grateful all members of the Hackney Silver Surfers Centre who participated in observations and all others studies.
In the future I am planning to write some conference papers; however, I will sent you them when they will get published.
For now I am staying in our centre until I will finish all changes, and then I am thinking to apply for postdoctoral position in Sweden or Finland.
Let’s keep in touch.
All the best,
Helena.
A message from Beth Eastwood & Fiona Roberts, BBC Radio 4 …
A BBC Radio 4 series launches next spring, presented by Joan Bakewell, following people at the forefront of the Baby Boom generation. Often pioneering in spirit, they’re tipped to redefine older age.
If you’re 65 next year (born 1946), we’d love to hear from you.
- Email: sixtyfive@bbc.co.uk .
- Post: Beth Eastwood & Fiona Roberts, PO Box 76, The Strand, London, WC2B 4PH .
Please include how you heard about us, and your phone number.
Many thanks.
NB: ‘how you heard about us’ means ‘Agewell in Hackney’.
A message from Kritika Samsi, Social Care Workforce Research Unit, King’s College London …
We conducting some research about people’s experiences of making plans and decisions in later life. We are keen to speak to relatives of people who have memory problems and people with memory problems themselves about the everyday decisions and plans they make or are thinking of making. We would like to ask about types of decisions, how help is given and received and what, if anything, is useful. People we talk to, in strictest confidence, will be able to talk in as much or as little detail as they like.
Do you know anyone who might be able to help us?
We can arrange the interview at a convenient time and place. Taking part is entirely voluntary.
If you or someone you know would like to hear more about the study and consider taking part, please contact us at King’s College London.
- Kritika Samsi and Jill Manthorpe .
- by telephone: 020 7848 1665 .
- by email: kritika.1.samsi@kcl.ac.uk .
We look forward to hearing from you – thank you for reading this.
We saw this on Enabled by Design …
Do you use voice recognition software or keyboard navigation (ie. do not use a hand held mouse) or live with colour blindness and are within one hour of London? Are you interested in giving feedback on your experiences of using websites? Are you available during August/September 2010? If so, this opportunity might be right up your street. Our contact, her name’s Kath by the way, is friendly, flexible and happy to meet somewhere that’s mutually convenient for each feedback session. A session is likely to last an hour or so and you will receive £50 to thank you for your help and time.
If you can help, please visit ‘experts wanted and yes that does mean you’ on Enabled by Design.
A message from Claire Dunn, BBC …
The BBC is co-ordinating a campaign around ‘Get Online Week’ which is 18 to 22 October 2010. We are keen to generate stories at a national level, as well as at a local level and to this end, we are seeking case studies for each of the different regions around the UK. This is where we are asking for your help, as we are trying to find around 6 case studies for each of our local radio stations.
Some examples of the kind of ‘case studies’ we are looking for:
- Individuals who have only just finished a beginners’ computer course so we can talk to them about what were their fears and concerns before completing the course.
- Any special success stories.
- Individuals who have been coming along to course for a while and are now very competent. They are really happy on the internet and would recommend other people to learn how.
Best wishes, Claire.
So … please consider getting involved in this if you are willing to be interviewed by a local BBC radio station during September or October. The BBC are not expecting spectacular stories — they just want to hear from older people who are new to the Internet, or whose lives have been changed for the better by using it.
Unfortunately, their deadline is close — Friday 4 September 2010!
If you can help, please email acc@lawns.org.uk (or phone 020 7254 2183) with your name, postal address and phone number to be passed to Claire at the BBC. If you prefer, you can contact Claire directly — her phone number is 0208 008 1105, and her email address is claire.dunn1@bbc.co.uk .
Filming for the BBC Digital Literacy campaign in October.
On Wednesday 11 August, we will be hosting a BBC film crew producing material for a BBC campaign in October. They would like as many of us as possible to drop in for a mini-interview that will be edited down to an even shorter clip, and might be broadcast during the campaign week. This will be an all-day event, and we hope that all Agewell members will join us. We are also going to invite non-Agewell people whom we know will impress on camera.
The BBC pitch.
A message from Katharine Waldrum (Red Bee Media) …
We are making a BBC television campaign which will be shown on BBC TV channels which aims to encourage older people to go online and to show them that, as an online user “You are not alone”. This will go out many times on BBC TV to support their push to get older people learning computer skills.
We are looking to recruit 100 people who are enthusiastic about going online. This will involve two meetings, the first of which will be at The Lawns on Wednesday 11 August with myself, Katharine (a researcher) and Joan (the director). We will take your name and contact details and film a brief interview with you to make sure you are happy being on camera and ask you simple questions based around what you like doing online. We would also ask you to deliver the line “You are not alone” and we will record that. This will take no more than 15 mins total. If you are interested then contact Rick at the centre.
Those who are chosen to film with for the final piece will receive a payment but you will need to be available some time during the week after the bank holiday weekend — between Tuesday 31 August and Friday 3 September.
This second meeting, we would come to your home and film you saying the line “You are not alone”, or possibly some more lines if you are chosen as a main character, so it’s very simple. The reason we would need to come to your home is so that we have a variety of backgrounds. You would then appear as part of a patchwork of faces which would aim reassure others they are not alone as they go online.
I hope this all makes sense and we look forward to meeting you on Weds 11 August. Talk to Rick about a suitable time to meet.
Thank you, Katharine and Joan.
This is what will happen.
- On Wednesday 11 August, the normal Agewell Computer Club session will be extended from the morning to the whole day. Kim’s Level 1 class has finished, so there would otherwise be nothing happening at The Lawns.
- The BBC film crew will be here all that time, hoping to interview as many people as possible.
- We will open one hour earlier than usual, at 9.30 am.
- The ‘Computer images for beginners’ class will begin at 10.30 am as usual. In the circumstances, we will probably not finish everything we intended to do — but it doesn’t matter because we will be continuing the course in September.
- We are inviting all members of Agewell in Hackney to come to The Lawns to be filmed on Wednesday — not just the Agewell Computer Club regulars. You can come in at any time after 9.30 am. You don’t have to know much about the Internet. In fact, you don’t have to know anything.
- All you have to do is be yourself for a few minutes, and say what you use the Internet for, or — if you are a beginner — what you would like to use it for. People who are selected for further filming later will receive a payment.
- This event will help to showcase the Agewell Computer Club to a larger audience in Hackney and beyond. It will be very good for all of us. We hope you will be able to attend.
- If you have any questions, please email acc@lawns.org.uk or phone 020 7254 2183.
A message from Yiu-tung Suen, Dept. of Sociology, University of Oxford …
What does being single mean to you now, in the past and in the future?
I am interested in the topic as there has been so little research on the subject and although there are many speculations, very rarely we listen to the experiences of people who are single themselves.
If you are male, aged over 50 and have spent most of your life time not in a relationship, I would very much like to invite you to take part. The research is solely for academic purposes.
I am interested to listen to your experiences. Participants of different backgrounds, including straight and gay men, men of all ethnicities and beliefs are welcome. All information will be anonymized and confidential.
The format will be a conversational interview for around 1.5 – 2 hours. You can also choose a place that you find most comfortable. Again, all information will be anonymized and confidential.
Your contribution will be important for the research. Please contact me at any time at 07942 582 142 or yiu.suen@sociology.ox.ac.uk. Look forward to hearing from you!
On Monday afternoon, 18 January 2010, ITV are going to bring Martha Lane Fox, chairman of the Digital Inclusion Task Force, to the Agewell Computer Club session at The Lawns.
ITV want to interview her about her role in an appropriate effervescent setting — so the feature will be about ‘digital inclusion’, not us — but of course, they will all be interested to see how we manage to be so successful, despite our tiny budget.
The weather forecast for the next two weeks is dismal, but it’s always sunny inside The Lawns — so we hope for, and expect, a good turnout for the event.
Agewell Computer Club regulars (and others who are not so regular) will be able to reserve places. We will announce how that is going to work soon.
A message from Moji Sanghir, Middlesex University …
Digital communication tools are becoming more and more pervasive in our daily lives and staying in touch regardless of time or location has become an important part of our living. Also, with the creation of social networking technologies, we can see that people are developing ‘cyber relationships’ locally and over long distances with friends and families.
I am one of those people who uses social networking websites such as Facebook or instant messaging programs to stay in touch with friends and family back home, but are current Information Communication Technologies suitable for the need of those senior adults who are not computer literate?
For instance Skype is one of those media rich tools that provides us the means necessary to establish a textual, audio and video communication. I use Skype to talk to my parents regularly since it is a cheaper and more effective way of communication. Simply being able to see one another through a webcam and video makes a huge difference on family relationships, it gives the user the feeling of closeness. But at the same time, if there is no one to help my parents to set up the computer and run the program, they will not be able to interact with the computer — therefore will not be able to use the technology for its intended purpose. So another big issue here is the usability of human-computer interactions and the use of the technology for the senior users which I would like to investigate in more depth.
Moji will visit the Agewell Computer Club Monday 10 August 2009 (2.30 pm) to tell us about his ideas, and arrange some workshops.
