Older people and the Internet

The new information and communication technologies, especially the Internet, directly and indirectly affect the everyday life of each and every individual, as well as the entire society. This also applies to the strongly growing group of the elderly.

The rate of Internet usage of people over 60 is now about 33%, while among the 14 to 19-year-olds it is over 90%. Here a digital division of society becomes clear. The ZAWiW had set itself the task of informing the elderly about the Internet and reducing the obstacles. Already in 1997 it was awarded with the "Deutscher Seniorenpreis Multimedia". Since then, the ZAWiW has started a whole series of model projects for the Internet access of people aged 50 and over, the nationwide campaign "Senior-Info-Mobil" and the networking of senior citizens' Internet initiatives in Baden-Württemberg are just two examples.

With the model project "Senior Internet Helfer/in", should now a support structure for elderly be set up. This happens within the Internet campaign "Mit Gießbert ins Internet" under the coordination of the SWR4.

Further the ZAWiW has developed different Internet training materials for "people from 50 ... and before", such as the CD-Rom "Internet-know how!" for self-learning aspects and tutors. Innovative model projects for learning over the net can be found in under "virtual learning".

The Internet offers excellent opportunities for self-directed learning or learning together, and a quick and cost-effective discussion of the results, as well as to make these learning processes available to other interested parties. But learning with the help of new information and communication technologies can also be learned in this way.

The projects of the ZAWiW are intended to show how the new techniques give new expressive possibilities to older people and so open up new perspectives and views to topics of their interest as well as new fields of action for engagement and participation.

The model projects in this area are supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the Federal Government Commission.

• Spatially and temporally decoupled research-based learning as the engine behind a new learning culture, called "gemeinsam lernen übers Netz”
• Online-Journal for General Education - "LernCafe"
• senior online editor (SOR)