CONNECT - Canada's Resource Publication on Technology & Adult Literacy - Feb./March '03

Community Computer Donations - Continued from Page 1

The computers that were donated were sufficient for the uses that were required of them. Many of the people who received a refurbished computer were adult learners attending upgrading courses. A simple word processing program and a few educational programs were all that was required of the PC’s.

Soon, ten, twenty, thirty refurbished computers were given to new owners. Although they were thrilled to receive a recycled computer, many applicants had little to no computer skills. It became evident that some of the participants who would be receiving or who already received a computer did not have enough skills to use them. An application was submitted to British

Columbia’s Ministry of Advanced Education and the National Literacy Secretariat the following year, to offer a basic computer literacy project. With granted funds, a sister project was developed called Basic Computer Training Workshops, where individuals participated in a fivehour workshop. At the end of the workshop, for anyone needing a computer, we would pack up the computer they worked on during the class and they took home the entire working computer, complete with a printer, that same day! Four different workshops were held on Saturday afternoons, and over twenty participants learned the very basics of computer management.

We have been happy to provide a service to those with limited computer skills, as well as organize new homes for older, but still very reliable, computers. A volunteer still works on older computers, and we still have donations trickling in, two years after the initial project was developed. Overall, with a little coordination, a lot of donations, and a handful of volunteers, we were able to find homes for outdated computers and promote computer literacy!

Tanya Clary-Vandergaag is the Community Literacy Coordinator for the Fort St. John Literacy Society in Fort St. John, British Columbia. The Literacy Society is affiliated with the Northern Lights College and runs a Contact Center and a family literacy program, as well as yearly projects, such as the Basic Computer Training Workshops.

Computers in Literacy Programs
BY JOHN MURRAY

illustration of two men at a computer Last year my knowledge of computers was very basic. That is to say, I knew my way on and off the Internet and could check my e-mail (a good friend had to set this up for me). My system was only used about once a week.

Then, I entered Doorways, a literacy program in Burlington at The Centre for Skills Development & Training.

Since then, I’ve learned a variety of different computer programs and skills such as Word, Excel, spreadsheets, cut and paste, designing business cards, faxing letters, keyboarding and many other skills that might seem easy to some, but was first time knowledge to myself and my classmates.

Coming out of an occupation where I didn’t need to use computers, I really didn’t feel it necessary to learn about their capabilities. However, now that I have an opportunity to learn more about PC’s and the endless amounts of information they provide, I feel that computers are essential to literacy programs. As our world grows bigger and faster everyday, it is very important that students young and old gain these marvelous skills of computer operation.


Previous Page	Table of Contents	Next Page