Surfing Together, the national project launched by Telecom Italia with the aim of promoting the use of new communication technology amongst the over 60, reaches Bari on the 28th of February. The youngsters from the local secondary schools will accompany their grandparents on their journey to discover the hidden secrets of the internet, through the use of simple language and a series of multimedia interactions which will make the first contact with the information technology easier for users of all ages. In what will be a real generation swap the students will take on the role of teachers and guides as they talk about the Internet, the social networks and the infinite opportunities offered by digital devices.
‘Surfing Together’, created in collaboration with Informatici Senza Frontiere, Auser and Confragricoltura pensioners, will involve 12 Italian cities: Bari, and then, Turin, Milan, Trento, Venice, Parma, Pisa, Ancona, Rome, Cagliari, Naples and Palermo. In each city a free web browsing “gym” will be set up in which the over 60 audience can experiment with the use of digital media and receive assistance and be accompanied by specialized staff during their journey of discovery.
Bari will host “Surfing Together” courses at each of the six schools which have volunteered to take part in the project: the Elena di Savoia Institute (where the course will start on 16th March and then again on 13th April), the Romanazzi Commercial Technical Institute (28th February and 20th March), the Domenico Cirillo National Convent (21th March and 2nd April), the Prince of Piemonte School (both courses on 7th March), and the Tommaso Fiore Middle School (on 12th April), It is possible book a place on the courses, which last three weeks, by sending an email to navigareinsieme@telecomitalia.it or by calling the free call number 800563669.
The aim of the “Surfing Together” project is to support elderly users as they break through the wall of first contact with the Internet, help them overcome any fear or residual doubt they might have about the digital world and aid them discover how the web can change anyone’s life and that is the philosophy with which the didactic material, which is already available on “navigareinsieme.org”, has been prepared in collaboration with Informatici Senza Frontiere and the Holden School of Turin.
The course will teach people how to access an email inbox, how to chat with friends, how to book a holiday online and even how to communicate with the public administration for free thanks to the Internet. The topics will be introduced by the four protagonists of the sit-com “Siamo Nonni Smart” (We’re Smart Grandparents) purpose made for Surfing Together: ten episodes are available on the ‘navigareinsieme.org’ website, which on the one hand explores the relationship between different generations with a grandfather who develops an appreciation for the new digital devices and on the other his complicity with his grandchild on all the issues in the daily life of two modern teenagers.
The ‘navigareinsieme.org’ is also the source of a series of information-blogs, entirely dedicated to the relationship between the elderly and the internet. Furthermore a community on Facebook helps users stay constantly updated and allows them to appreciate all the possible interactions with the other social networks involved in the project, such as Twitter and YouTube.
Bari, 23rd February 2012
