A
study in reciprocity: Minimizing the digital divide and the
intergeneration gap - Children tutor seniors at computer and
internet skills and get a lesson in history - Prof. Edna Aphek,
Jerusalem, Israel - 2
3. Evaluation and reassessment
On-going evaluation of the program, and reassessment at two
major points:
At the end of first 5 weeks and at the end of the entire program.
The Ebooks: sample material
As previously mentioned, a key issue in the program is the
co-writing of a"mini- ebook", based on a chapter
in the personal history of the participating senior.
All the seniors who participated in the project this year
wrote "mini ebooks" based on their past history.
Most of the seniors chose stories connected to major events
in their life.
The children were learning history from living resources,
and they were taking part in its recording.They were fascinated,
captivated by the personal element of the stories and at times
ecstatic about their new role as "history writers".
Excerpts from two ebooks
1.A chapter from an ebook written by ZIP 65+ and Y. a boy
in 6th grade
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Chapter
I : The Nurse
Jerusalem, 1936. It's the time of the MEORAOT : shootings
and acts of terror.
We live in a southern neighborhood, not far from Beit
Zafafa.
My mother went to a hospital in the city ( Jerusalem)
to have me delivered.
In
light of the shooting, getting to Hadassa Hospital on
Mount Scopus, was impossible.
A maternity ward was set up in the center of the city,
and there
I was born-MAZAL TOV ( congratulations-Hebrew)
Fifteen minutes after my mother gave birth to me, a
red headed baby girl, a terrorist's head appeared in
the window.
My mother panicked. Her hands were paralyzed.
My father went looking for a nurse in Beith Zafafa.
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Y.
who has been working with z. was stupefied : why didn't they
give you a formula and that's it? He asked, why go and look
for a nursing woman? Z. gave Y. a lesson in history. She told
him about the very many things that abound nowadays, but which
didn't exist sixty+ years ago.
2.An
excerpt from Shaul's digital book
Shaul was born in Argentine in 1930.
Here is the first chapter from his digital ebook written together
with A. 6th grade.
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Its
1936, my first day in first grade ; I am going out of
my parent's home, walking for about 500 meters and now
I am waiting for the tram to take me to school. The
distance is 4 kms.
My father is taking me to school, on my first day.
My father is teaching me how to get on the tram, how
to pay and where to get off.
The ride lasts 25 minutes.
On the second day I am doing the same, only this time
I am riding alone.
I
keep looking through the window in great fear : lest
I'll get off at the wrong stop.
But then as I am looking out of the window I see my
father riding his bike just behind the tram.
I am relieved. I arrive at my school.
Today , its very different. My grandchildren don't have
to worry about a thing. A bus comes to pick them up
and a twenty kms. The ride lasts no longer than 20 minutes.
Life on the whole nowadays is much faster, much more
stressful. I wonder whether today's generation enjoys
the beautiful things I used to enjoy when I was young.
I used to watch the huge locomotives let out the black
smoke unto the sky and whistle…
Well, I do think they'll ( my grandchildren ) will be
successful as they have better tools than those we had.
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A discussion followed, a lesson in relativity and about what
is important.
Different points of view at different points in time…different
centuries…
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