The Golden Years: An IT Programme for Senior Citizens

I was the chairman of Tembusu Alumni from March 2003 to April 2005. The alumni was formed by us Life Inspiration award winners a few months after our return from Shanghai in late 2002. (For more details please go to www.tembusu.org )

Soon after the formation, I mooted the idea of setting up an IT centre for senior citizens keen to improve their computer skills and knowledge. I asked CS CDC (Central Singapore Community Development Council) to support Tembusu Alumni in setting up an IT centre. My reason is that the centre will enable senior citizens who have completed IDA's basic computer course ( NITLP) to practise what they have learnt and to continue to improve their IT skills under experienced trainers who are seniors themselves. The centre will also be used to train seniors good at IT to become trainers themselves.

The idea was thought to be a good one, but the request to set up an IT centre at CS CDC's headquarters at Toa Payoh was turned down mainly because of space constraint.. The Alumni also tried but failed to find a community club in Toa Payoh with an IT centre available for Tembusu to run training and practice sessions for seniors..

Though disappointed, I did not give up the idea of finding an IT centre suitable for seniors to practise their computer skills. To cut the story short, some time in May, 2004, we managed to get the manager of Bishan North e-Club to agree to meet up with me to discuss the possibility of conducting weekly learning and pratice sessions for seniors. After holding several meetings with the eClub manager, the board of management and chairman of Bishan North Senior Citizens Executive Committee, I managed to convince them to collaborate with Tembusu to try out the IT project.

After a long delay, the first three-hour learning and practice session was finally launched at Bishan North e-Club at 2.30pm on Thursday 30.09.2004 with 16 participants, 1 trainer and 4 tutors. There were no hitches and the participants were pleased and satisfied with the 3-hour lesson and wanted to come again to learn more. As more seniors came to know of the IT class, another class was opened early December to meet the good response. Since then, the eClub has reserved Thursday afternoons and its two IT rooms for seniors to learn more and practise their computer skills.

Today, nearly one year after the launch, our IT project at Bishan North is still going strong with two classes running at the same time. Our concern now is how to get new trainers. As you know, I and my fellow trainers are not young and cannot go on manning the classes forever. Sooner or later we have to call it a day. And who will take over? It is for this reason that I'm developing a suitable train-the-trainers programme and a 36-hour course for beginners. I plan to train the students who have been learning from us for nearly a year to be helpers and later trainers. And the 36-hour course notes will serve as a guide for the new trainers. In this way the project will go on even without us the first lot of trainers.

Here are some photos showing you some of our activities.