Coffee, cake, internet – for the seniors in the tablet courses of the Kiel research project titled ‘CONNECT-ED’, these things go together well. In small groups of up to ten participants, they learn how to find information on the internet using search engines or how to send emails with photos.

Everything is explained in these groups, for example what is meant by “more information in our app” in the news. The learning content is adapted to the participants, and the concept is developed further based on the research results. The courses are led by students of the Kiel University of Applied Sciences.

Social participation through learning together

People over 65 years of age learn about the free course offer with tablets from nursing services, doctors or pharmacists. The demand is high. Since May 2017, a total of 60 senior citizens from various cultural backgrounds have already taken part in the training courses in Kiel. In spring 2018, the initiative will start in two rural regions of Schleswig-Holstein. The Institute for Interdisciplinary Gender Research and Diversity (IGD) at Kiel University of Applied Sciences, AWO Kiel e.V., Türkische Gemeinde in Schleswig-Holstein e.V., Jüdische Gemeinde Kiel und Region e.V., Karl-Heinz-Howe-Simon-Fiedler-Stiftung, the State Senior Citizens’ Council and the association SeniorenNet Kiel are involved as partners in the project.

In old age, vision, hearing and mobility decline. Many people rarely leave their homes and become lonely. The aim of the project is to develop a concept to introduce older people to digital information offers and to support them in building up social networks. Thus, independence can also be strengthened in their living environment. The behavioural changes of the participants in the courses are evaluated by the researchers. If, for example, older participants arrange to meet up with each other to explore the range of tablets available in electronics stores on their own, then their self-confidence to tackle new challenges has increased. Just offering a course is not enough. In moderated “open meetings”, participants work together to practise what they have learned. How low-threshold media education offers must be designed and supervised in order to build up social networks will be the result of this project. With the help of an online manual, it is also possible for partners in other regions to implement the concept.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research is supporting the CONNECT-ED research project with about 360,000 euros within the framework of the SILQUA-FH funding line as part of the Research at Universities of Applied Sciences programme.