Tag Archives: Examples of Elder Technology use

Arctic Hip Hop

In our discussion this module about stereotypes and critical media anaylsis, I came upon the organization BluePrintForLife which runs the program “Social Work through Hip Hop.” Through the medium of hiphop, this program facilitates social work development and healthy indigenous communities in the Arctic North. Projects are designed with specific communities in mind, but generally deal with issues such as anger, violence, sexual abuse, addictions, positive outlets.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5Q9EpqgfF0&feature=player_profilepage[/youtube]

Elders, adults, and youth are encouraged to participate side by side in fun events such as throat-boxing (Inuit throat boxing combined with beatboxing) as well as complex discussions of  anger, violence, sexual abuse and addictions.This program addresses the multigenerational healing of communities – take the Elder DJ component for example; a way in which Elders can model positive risk taking along with opening dialogue through sharing a laugh.

Aboriginal Elders Online

Aboriginal Elders Online – Unique challenges facing Aboriginal Elders
http://www.slais.ubc.ca/courses/libr500/10-11-wt1/www/J_Loyer/challenges-elders.htm

This is one of my favourite finds so far!  This site ties in well with my topic of Elders and Technology.  It is well designed, aesthetically pleasing, user-friendly, easy to navigate and organized into challenges & benefits of technology, social media and elders, tips, references and credits and contact information.  This site does a great job of addressing challenges Aboriginal people encounter with technology as well as unique challenges Aboriginal Elders face and challenges facing seniors in general (as comparison) and will be a great reference for my future work and anyone else, including Indigenous Peoples, that would like to learn more about Indigenous Peoples, their culture, traditions and technology.  I really liked how this site cleverly includes strategies to encourage Elders to explore and experiment with computers and other technology tools (hand-held devices).  Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Skype are social media sites are described as great motivators to encourage internet use by Elders.  This site also describes challenges that caregivers to Elders and seniors are faced and to accommodate for these challenges, tutorial videos and links to relevant sites and other examples of Elder technology use are included to help ease the anxieties.  The site provides advice for Elders on the Tips page: challenges and benefits, approach with caution, get educated and take advantage of accessibility technology.