Teaching Technology Through Tradition - TTTT -

Author : Barbara Allen
Date added : 2003-09-26

Brief Project Background

The Resource Opportunities Centre -ROC-, formerly the Terence Bay and Area C@P Site, is a dynamic, non-profit, community based volunteer organization established in 1998, located in the community of Terence Bay, 25 km from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

In the 5 years since our inception we have grown from a rural Community Access Site-C@P- providing basic public access to a 10 workstation LAN with Internet connectivity into a vibrant Community Development Association working with numerous community groups, individuals, our local schools, and government toward a healthy thriving community.

Since 1998 we have created 60 plus temporary positions for local residents through partnerships and projects.

During this time we have been successful in connecting area residents to the Internet and Information Communications Technology skill development through traditional workshops and open access. We provide 50 hours per week community access to technology to area residents and our school community.

However, despite our successes we recogonized that we were not reaching a section of the population, mainly older residents, who seemed unable to find relevance in their lives to technology.

Through our work with local seniors and Historical Societies we believed that interest is growing in gathering family and community histories. We designed our Teaching Technology Through Tradition project to capture, digitize and record the unique rich cultural heritage of the area to share locally and globally in celebration of the past through the use of today’s technology.

Our Project, Teaching Technology Through Tradition has taken our past experiences, extensive network of community connections, to create learning opportunities and strengthen our sense of community, through the use of technology and the collection and digitization of our rich heritage.

ROC serves primarily rural communities spread over a 40-kilometre radius from Goodwood to West Dover, including adjoining villages, side roads and subdivisions. Each community is discreet and self-contained.

Although all of these communities are now formally part of Halifax Regional Municipality, many are still relatively isolated with regard to access to services, employment, and available opportunities to develop new skills-for adults and youth alike.

Our project seeks to unite these diverse groups in a project to preserve, promote and celebrate the distinct culture; traditions and history of this area in an interactive Heritage Web Site and CD-ROM, to be created through full community volunteer support and participation, under the administration of the Resource Opportunities Centre. Funding approval was given through the Labour Market Development Agreement in December 2002.

Many valuable community connections were already in place to make our projects successful. Partnership and support from all levels of our local schools, HRM, local seniors groups, Halifax Regional School Board, local historical societies, Halifax Regional C@P Association, Halifax Regional Development Agency, Department of Community Services, Industry Canada, Human Resource Development Canada, as well as our established community connections with many other local community groups and organizations.

The area served by the Centre encompasses communities along the Prospect Road, including Prospect, Shad Bay, East and West Dover, Brookside, Blind Bay, Bayside, Lower Prospect, White’s Lake, Hatchet Lake, and Goodwood. Our TTTT project took up the challenge of uniting these diverse communities. The TTTT project was designed to break down barriers such as lack of transportation, childcare, fear, and prohibitive costs, to enable residents of all age groups to access to high quality ICT learning and resources.

It was our intention through our present TTTT project to promote collaboration between communities, and to develop valuable ICT skills in local residents that will equip them with the tools needed in today’s labour market.

Through the creation of an interactive website and a heritage CD-ROM documenting our area’s history, culture, traditions, and folklore, which will forge a stronger sense of unity and develop a healthy community spirit for our larger geographic area.

· New technologies were used to revive, celebrate and share the cultural and fishing heritage of our community with the world
· Sharing of information between partners relied heavily on electronic communication of all kinds.
· Technology was a vital componant in every aspect of this project, from propoal writing on a list serve to networking with likeminded individuals, groups and agencies.
· The digitization process exposed JCP staff, volunteers, project participants and community members to the versitility of ICT.
· Staff used many means to share TTTT project progress and encourage participation through posting design ideas on the web, promoting project in quaurterly newsletter mailed out to 3000 local homes and businesses.
· ROC project staff designed and distributed a survey through the seniors network to 100 plus residents.
· ROC LCD projector was used in various locations to demonstrate project progress at community venues and meetings of other local organizations.
· Workshops were conducted that covered topics from basic computer skills to web page design. JCP staff participated in training alongside volunteers and interested community members
· The Heritage Website will generate pride in local people and will attract tourists from around the world who will encounter the site on the World Wide Web. It will have the ancillary function of providing tourism links for this region which is in the process of shifting from a fishing-based economy to a potentially service sector/tourism-based economy.

Project Objectives:
· To research and exhibit the cultural and fisheries heritage of our communities in an interactive website and CD-ROM celebrating the traditions, history and culture of the area.
· To document, edit and organize the stories of community elders into a Macromedia format using the facilities and resources of the Resource Opportunities Centre and it’s community partners.
· To design job placements to ensure valuable work experience for Employment Insurance clients
· To teach local residents a variety of skills necessary for this undertaking, including research, interviewing, photography, digital audio-recording, writing, editing, word processing, computer publishing, web design, scanning, emailing, etc.
· To support and utilize local resources and existing community initiatives and partnerships, as well as to develop new partnerships among groups that may not have worked together yet, such as the SS Atlantic Heritage Park Committee, the Lower Prospect Resident’s Association, the Prospect Peninsula Rate Payers Association, the Village Green Association, the Seniors Recreation Association, and our Family of Schools
· To foster education and recognition of the importance of culture and heritage among residents in our community
· To revitalize and share our area’s culture
· To unveil the finished project in conjunction with a community gallery celebration
· To restore a unique sense of cultural heritage in a once bustling district that has fallen prey to the effects of a declining economy, and the transition into suburban/bedroom communities
· To create a Heritage CD-Rom to be sold through retail outlets to off-set the cost of this endeavor, generate further interest and increase the sustainability of the project

Results

The rewards of the TTTT project to date have been tremendous on many levels. The encouragement, interest and support from each of the many communities in the area lead us to believe that we have only been able to skim the surface of the wealth of information to be had by tapping into our community elders as valuable resources and capturing their life experiences for prosperity.

Through the TTTT project we have conducted informal and formal interviews with 40 plus senior residents. These interviews were obviously enjoyed by the Seniors, who have opened their homes and their treasured memories to project staff.

We have facilitated the establishment of the Prospect Road Area seniors Network, through which we have co-ordinated social and recreational opportunities for the seniors from the area. These include Bar-b-ques, trips and workshops many of which have had over 100 local seniors in attendance. We use these social opportunities to encourage seniors to tell stories of times past and to share memorabilia, such as photo’s and documents.

On these occasions we openly use our technology to record and share the events and remembrances. We feel great success when a seniors allows us to scan an old school photograph, show it on a big screen, through the lap-top computer and the LCD projector, to share it with their peers, for identification purposes of the individuals long forgotten by some.

The use of our technology and our rapture with the seniors has allowed us to provide a range of ICT skill development to local seniors, whether it is in order for them to more actively participate in the TTTT project or to keep in touch with family members who have moved away, the result is no less rewarding.

We believe that by these visits to the homes of our community elders and the group activities have stimulated opportunities for our senior residents both formally and informally. The validation of the senior’s life experiences as a tremendous community resource has contributed to a sense of pride in our communities past and future.

Over the course of the TTTT project lifetime 2 of our community elders who graciously agreed to be interviewed for the project have passed away. We were able to burn their interviews, in which they talk about their lives and the changes they have witnessed, and give copies to their family members to keep and cherish.


The TTTT project allowed the ROC to offer training and job placements for persons who require upgrading, technology exposure and work experience in preparation for entry into labour force, including 4 JCP participants.

We provided local residents with part-time employment as instructors of courses and workshops, and we have the ability to provide volunteer work placements for Community Service clients, students and other interested community members.

Through the TTTT project skilled local residents were targeted and hired to teach appropriate courses and workshops. This is another way in which the ROC provides job opportunities and work experience to local residents. Though the life of the TTTT project, over 1 dozen such positions were created, contributing to the local economy.


This project facilitated employment development in multiple ways: It provided a minimum of four unemployed individuals with invaluable experience, and on the job training, which will facilitate their future transition into the labour market. Our previous year’s LMDA project illustrated the success of the Job Creation Program initiative, as six JCP participants moved on to successful jobs during the term of their employment at the C@P Site and one returned to higher education.

Residents gained valuable skills in various software applications necessary in today’s work force, such as Microsoft Office Suite, Simply Accounting, Desktop Publishing programs, increasing their employability and professional development.

Many residents had their first experience of working collaborativley on a community project.

Many residents have come forward as community gatekeeper. These individuals have strong connections to their own villages and have become valuable community resources for our organization.

The project truely caputured local interest and allowed a diverse range of groups and individuals to work collaborativley toward a common goal.

This project gives community members the opportunity to contribute to the cultural life of our country
Through partnerships and public outreach, this project made connections among our citizens and deepen our understanding of one another

We are currently in the final stages of the TTTT project. Templates for the web page and it’s contents are being approved and edited. Audio clips are being enhanced through sound editing. Files are being optimized and prepared for the launch of the web site and companion CD Rom.

Although our links with our local schools are close we have not involved our local student population in this phase of our Digital Histories collections through the TTTT project. However, we plan to promote the Web Site to teachers and school administration as a means of community identification and to help develop a sense of belonging.

Video footage from a separarte joint ROC - local schhols project, funded through the 4c’s foundation will be used on our Web Site. This footage was shot and used in the project entittled “A Sense of belonging” a shows the Terence Bay Elementary school students celebrating their community heritage through song. This piece ties in beautifully with TTTT project work and will make a significant contribution to the appeal of the finished produces.

In today's borderless world, it is more important than ever that we make sure our children have the opportunity to see reflections of their lives, their realities, their stories. Our project will create and celebrate these reflections

Lessons

The most significant lesson learned has been that we have an extensive, rich, diverse heritage and that our senior residents are a huge community resource.

Over the course of the TTTT project we have mearly scratched the surface. The potential for the information gathering portion of this project is extensive.

Due to the nature of our organization and the unknown entity of the individual Job Creation Participanst skills and experience in the field, it was important to identify priority areas and establish a work plan and timeline early on in the project.

Time was allowed for staff to become familiar with ROC operations and to explore the surrounding community.

Communication of all kinds played a major role in promoting our TTTT project. Training and work experience in electronic communication, electronic filing, digitization, word processing, desktop publishing, use of portable equipment, editing, etc were the basis for our work.

Networking played a vital role, both within our community and beyond as staff researched other such community initatives for best practice methods. Never ones to reinvent the wheel, we were able to access an array of resources and benefit from previous projects of a similar nature.

We learned to set limits, and although we would not refuse to accept content, we advised that it may not be included in our final product for the TTTT project, but may be saved for use in the future.

Due to the nature of the Job Creation Positions, these staff members were continually encouraged to seek full time employment that would provide them with insurable earnings. On one hand the successful transtion of a JCP was a huge success, on the other hand it caused major diruption to project activities, to re-post and go throught the hiring process to fill the position, and then train the new individual.

We learned valuable lessons about the interview process, and eventually through the involvement of community volunteers who work in the media, formulated a script to work from. Staff and volunteers also had a workshop on interview technics.

Some of our early audio interviews had marvellous content, but became almost unusable as sound clips.

Sound editing workshops we held and a community speciallist provided his services and sound editing equipment at a greatly reduced rate for training and project use.

We discovered that sound editing is a time consumming task and we were unable to capture as much usable audio as we had hoped.

Administration and supervision of the TTTT project was well within the capacity of our organization. Regular monthly reports were created for all funding partners and the Board of Directors.

We learned that presentations of the digitized content to local groups were very well received and left most audiences enthusiastic abot the TTTT project.

We pursued certain community members who were known to have useful information and or life experiences in the area and designed our method of information gathering to that individuals unique circumstances. Many of our interviews were held in the homes of the seniors.

We learned no to have too many people in attendence at interviews. One reason being it made participants more nervous and it also made transcribing the interviews very labour intensive.

We learned to transcribe interviews as they were conducted, as a back log of transcribing became an onerous task.

Research and network with other web site designers to get approval for them to become possible links on our page.

We shall be going through another learning experience when we move to the production and promotion of the accompanying CD Rom version.

Advise to other organizations considering a similar project would be to:

Work with other community groups in the area, especially local historical organizations and individuals interested in geneology.

Research similar projects, network with the lead organizations invloved.

Hold regular project planning meetings.

Share information with key stakeholders on a regular basis.

Check facts and put a statement on any publication that you welcome public feed back and appologize for any errors or ommissions.

Have participants sign waivers. Waviers and copyright rules can be researched on the internet.

Be sure to be inclusive.

Make your web Site accessible.

Development Impacts

The future potential of this type of project is vast:
There is a clear lack of services and programs for youth in the area. In conjunction with volunteer staffing, the ROC has overseen the development of youth programs. We have worked with school staff toward intergrating ICT into the students curriculum through regular on-going school sessions.
We would like to see aspects of the Heritage Web Site developed by students across in all levels of our local schools that lead to further work in this field. We hope to develop a sequal’s to the digital collections carried out through the TTTT project and continue to fill in the gaps as new content is discovered through regular web site maintainence and upgrading.
Art work, poetry and stories can be included, and youth will be encouraged to contribute their own unique perspectives and skills to the project, in a series of workshops that would foster self-confidence, pride and technology skills base.
The Project will create and foster links between youth and seniors, as we employ the technological expertise of today’s younger generation to capture and preserve the traditions, heritage and customs of our elders.
It would be wonderful to tie connections between youth and seniors into other areas of the school curriculum to form positive change through intergenerational relationships. The spin off’s of which would be enormous. In today’s society many families are separated from each other by huge physical distances. Children no longer nesasserily grow up knowing their grandparents and visa versa. Through initaives such as intergration of digital collections with schools, students are presented with a smorgesburg of learning experiences.

The computer literacy of the area’s population base will increase through the outreach work that will occur hand in hand with the process of information gathering. This will in turn increase job skills capacity in those volunteers looking for further employment.

Previous projects in schools
The intention of our previous 4c’s project - “A sense of Belonging”- was to draw together the communities of three feeder elementary schools, and the junior high into which they feed through a series of workshops combining drama, puppetry and video work. The goal was to explore complex issues of identity, community, and belonging, and the relationships between them. Through movement, sound, art, drama, video, and puppetry, the children worked to generate a common language to express concepts such as respect, identity, love, balance, self-esteem, self-confidence, and caring. In this way, children learned about experiencing and expressing different perspectives. Taken as a whole, the work was designed to give children a stronger sense of where they come from, and a more open, flexible sense of how they fit into the bigger picture. These goals would be similar if we were able to access funding to allow us to intergrate our digital histories collection work into the students learning.

The 4c’s project worked with students in late elementary and early middle school students. These age groups were chosen because they possess key influences in both the elementary and Junior High environments. As the oldest classes in the elementary schools, grade 5 students hold important peer influence, while at the same time, they are poised on the cusp of entering entirely new environments within a much broader community base. It is crucial to foster relationships between students from differing communities before they enter a larger arena where they may be easily influenced by pre-existing prejudices and opinions. The benefits of these relationships, in turn, branch out through the rest of the school environment and in the case of the Digital Histories collection the community as a whole.

If our schools became key stakeholders in the Digital Collections projects they may well be rewarded by gaining access to the volunteer resources that our seniors represent, for other school activities.

Many of our local school’s are constantly looking for volunteers from the community, but with most childrens coming from homes where both parents work, and they are isolated from Grandparents volunteers are hard to come by. By joint community projects many assets can be identified and gaps filled.


We have just recieved notification of funding to conduct a Community Asset Mapping Project to inventory individual citizens, businesses, groups and organizations, so that we can make effective use of our community’s remarkable talent and skill base, which will be compiled in a computer data bank. This will allow us to function more effectively in our unofficial function as the central hub of information exchange and education in the surrounding communities.

Many of the community groups who have actively evinced interest in the TTTT project have already agreed to volunteer their time and efforts to what they see as a wonderful celebration of our communities. There is communty support for the ROC to continue with this work.
In the future we hope that Community Members, importantly youth, volunteer in the interviewing and web site creation process. Nathanial Smith, a student who created the impressive Prospect, Halifax County, Genealogical Web Page (http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~prospect/), and also maintains the Halifax County site of the Nova Scotia GENWEB Project, has volunteered his time, experience and expertise in the construction of this site through the TTTT project. He too has express keen support to see the work continue.

In today's borderless world, it is more important than ever that we make sure our children have the opportunity to see reflections of their lives, their realities, their stories. Our project will create and celebrate these reflections

One of our goals is to introduce students to professional applications that will give them a strong ICT base, and an understanding of the range of creative possibility available through today’s cutting edge technology and software.

Project Information

Organisation : Resource Opportunities Centre Community Development Association,
URL : http://www.terencebay.com
Total budget in US$ : $103,000
Country of activity: Canada [CA]

Are there any partners involved : $40,000. Canadian
Project staff was provided through the LMDA by Human Resources Development Canada, under the Job Creation Program. -Value $48000. Canadian plus
$8,000. for expenses
Halifax Regional Municipality contributed
$4,000. Canadian
Nova scotia department of Tourism & Cultura
$3,000.

What is partners role?: We have invited community residents to become aware of our efforts and to become involved by sharing their unique skills and talents. Community volunteers have contributed their expertise in a variety of ways, such as by facilitating workshops in all areas of TTTT project design, participating in planning meetings, acting as gateholders to the various communites in the area.
We have developed rich, fruitful, mutually beneficial partnerships with the following groups, many who have already evinced a passionate interest in the development of this project: The following groups are supportive of our work through the TTTT Project and have freely shared their resources.

Contact Information

Barbara Allen
mail@terencebay.com
Terence Bay Elementary School 1714 Lower Prospect Rd, B3T 1Y6, Terence Bay, + - -

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