Get Online Week 2012 in Germany was organized and coordinated by Stiftung Digitale Chancen (SDC) as the national partner, in cooperation with the mobile network provider E-Plus, the National Libraries Association and several other partners, such as Senior Computer Clubs and telecentres.
SDC launched during Get online week a new project with Tablet PCs for senior citizens. 70 tablet devices (with telephone function) and free mobile access are given for one year to individual seniors and to senior organizations. The aim is to evaluate if a Tablet PC can stimulate the use of Internet and useful apps among groups that are not online.
While most seniors are not familiar with PC and keyboard, they face problems with eye- hand-coordination when using the mouse. Therefore it is assumed that a touch screen device can help to overcome these problems and motivate them to use the tablet PC to access the Internet.
Get Online Week 2012 in Germany was organized and coordinated by Stiftung Digitale Chancen (SDC) as the national partner, in cooperation with the mobile network provider E-Plus, the National Libraries Association and several other partners, such as Senior Computer Clubs and telecentres.
A major success was the placement of the GOW button on one of the top city websites in Germany www.hamburg.de during the Get Online Week. This caused a very high rate of clicks, and although not all users subsequently filled in the questionnaire, they all got familiar with the event and idea of GOW.
Overall 4.417 online participants filled the online survey and another several hundred people took part in other online and offline activities. Examples are the “Geh’ online with Cleo Clever Quiz” and the online debate regarding Life Long Learning in the Information Age and the subsequent round-table discussion with experts.
With a relatively high Internet penetration of 74,7 percent of the German population aged 14 years and older [1], the potential for new people going online during the Get Online Week event is lower than in other countries with a lower Internet penetration at all.
[1] Initiative D21. (N)ONLINER Atlas 2011, p. 10, www.nonliner-atlas.de
That’s why SDC focused on two major tasks during the Get Online Week 2012:
» evaluate if new products can successfully tear down technical scepticism, especially among older people
» discuss whether the concept of Lifelong Learning has changed in the information society, which role e-skills are playing for employability and see which efforts public libraries can take to qualify their employees for taking an active role in facilitating internet usage
Overview of the activities:
- Contest for Telecentres regarding the highest number of clicks on the GOW button placed on their own website. Although the information about the Get Online Week was sent to 7.847 telecentres in Germany, a special invitation was sent to 1.000 telecentres to place the GOW button on their own website. 160 telecentres took part in the contest. A tool was developed to count from which site the clicks came, the winner was awarded an Android tablet PC sponsored by the industry partner E-Plus.
- SDC launched a new project with Android Tablet PCs for senior citizens.
70 Android tablet devices (with telephone function) and free mobile access are given for one year to individual seniors and to senior organizations. The aim is to evaluate if a Tablet PC can stimulate the use of Internet and useful apps among groups that are not online. While most seniors are not familiar with PC and keyboard, they face problems with eye-hand-coordination when using the mouse. Therefore it is assumed that a touch screen device can help to overcome these problems and motivate them to use the tablet PC to access the Internet.
» read more on this project at the community site - SDC organized an online debate via a web interface and an iOS-App around the questions:“Are computer skills a pre-condition for employability?”
“What role can computer skills play in the concept of Life Long Learning?”133 persons commented the 5 statements.
- Following the online debate, SDC organized a round-table discussion about “Life Long Learning in the information society” where they invited 30 experts to discuss if the libraries can even handle that task or if libraries are the wrong institutions to facilitate digital literacy.
The main conclusion of the roundtable discussion was, that libraries in Germany are often not visited by marginalised people or by groups at risk and that they have certain difficulties in reaching the target groups.
The experts recommended, that the libraries need to raise the society’s awareness of all courses and possibilites that the libraries are offering, since only a few people really know what the libraries are doing
.» read more on this round-table discussion at the community site - Training inclusive internet
As a follow up of the governmental initiative “Experiencing the Internet”,
that SDC is responsible for, they offer the training courses “inclusive internet” to all types of social institutions and welfare organizations. During the Get Online Week, one training took place at the “Werkstatt Bremen” – an inclusive institution, that is offering employment for disabled people.» read more on the contents of this training at the community site - Get online with Cleo Clever Quiz
» Download the complete report of Get Online Week 2012 in Germany
» [photo essay album] by Sven Weber
» The Internet? It´ll pass! (in German) | At missile base – Are you up to it? (in Spanish with English subtitles) | e-participation and accessibility (in German with English description)
