Retired teachers head back to the classroom to learn computer skills
By Mary O’connor
The Galway Education Centre and the Digital Enterprise Research Institute (DERI) at NUI Galway have joined forces to run computer courses for local retired teachers.
Brendan Smith, course tutor and DERI outreach officer, says many of the course participants retired prior to when computers became an important element in primary schools.
“Hence they missed out on the range of IT support classes currently on offer to teachers at the Galway Education Centre. Its director, Bernard Kirk, and the Galway Retired Teachers’ Association chairperson Mary Kyne, got together to look at ways that the centre’s advanced learning facilities could be used to benefit retired members of the teaching profession. They requested DERI to provide a tutor to educate older people on current developments in digital technology and more importantly on the practical everyday applications of the world wide web. That task fell to myself! I am proud to say that the former teachers have taken to the IT classes like ‘fish to water’, relishing in surfing the net, setting up their own blogs and enjoying the wonders of video conferencing!”
As part of the institute’s contribution to NUI Galway’s ongoing community outreach programmes, DERI is also heavily involved in promoting intergenerational digital projects in County Galway schools.