Seniors outsmart smartphones during weekly appointments

By Margaret Taylor
Posted 7/19/18

By MARGARET TAYLOR Learning about technology can be complicated. The Pilgrim Senior Center is trying to help simplify it. The local senior center is currently participating in the URI Engaging Generations Program. URI's website explains that the program,

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

E-mail
Password
Log in

Seniors outsmart smartphones during weekly appointments

Posted

Learning about technology can be complicated. The Pilgrim Senior Center is trying to help simplify it.

The local senior center is currently participating in the URI Engaging Generations Program. URI’s website explains that the program, which trains college students to mentor older adults in the field of technology usage, benefits all. Students participating in the program can receive internship hours, independent study credits and experiential education hours.

In return, seniors receive the know-how to take on an increasingly technological world.

“The program has had a tremendous benefit for our seniors so far,” said Kathleen Bennett, Center Manger of the Pilgrim Senior Center, in an email last week.

That benefit can be seen every Tuesday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., when URI student Brynne Costa opens up shop for a series of one-on-one, hour-long appointments.

“It’s really opened ended. They can come in with any technology they’d like, whether it be a focus on social media or just using their phone,” Brynne, a student at URI, explained. “Most are primarily concerned with using email and Facetime to stay in touch with their families.”

On Tuesday, Peggy Martira was ready for her hour-long appointment, with both her phone and computer. She had previously taken a computer class at the center, and when she was told that class had been cancelled for the summer, this program was offered as an alternative. While she knows a few basics about her phone, the main goal of her appointment was to learn a bit more about its functions. With her computer, she hopes to figure out what she should do about the pop ups that are interfering with her Internet use.

“I’m here because I know the basic stuff, but there is so much on there, I don’t really know what to do,” she said.

The center asks that each senior sign up for one appointment at a time to leave room for as many appointments as possible, but Martira thinks she’ll have no problem signing up again if more questions come up.

Brynne is a pharmacy student, fulfilling the outside exposure portion of her degree. This summer, she must complete forty hours of outside volunteer type credit. While students were offered a variety of options, for her, working with older adults was a perfect fit.

“It’s been awesome, I’m really enjoying it,” she said in between appointments. “Especially after this, I would absolutely consider working with seniors.”

The URI program partners with more then eight different senior centers to carry out their mission of using intergenerational experiential learning to benefit all involved, old or young, creating social ties that span beyond years. The program’s website explains that this learning opportunity gives students “valuable skills useful for health and human professionals, including teaching, communicating, problem solving and working with older adults.”

The local Rhode Island program first launched in the fall of 2015 and works in collaboration with the international organization Cyber-Seniors, which provides a curriculum to train college students to be cyber mentors.

The seniors take a survey upon entering and exiting their appointments, data that is then utilized by URI. For Brynne, the responses have made the job worthwhile.

“There’s one line on the survey where you have to finish a sentence. It says ‘This generation is…’ and the responses have just been really nice; so appreciative.”

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here