VITALAGELL-C - Vital AGEing - European Lifelong Learning Course

Community program

First contractor

NETTUNO - Network per l'Università Ovunque

Objectives

The project’s aim is to adapt the traditional course “Vivir con vidalidad” into distance teaching course, “VITAL AGEing” using NETTUNO’s teaching model and demonstrate the benefit of using ODL for the users’ groups involved (over-60s people).
The double objective is that of proposing an effective solution for enhancing life and face, using a positive attitude, the ageing process on the one hand, and approaching the world of the over-60s people to the new world of multimedia, on the other hand.
The project plans to realize a distance course by integrating the various technologies of the NETTUNO model (satellite TV RAI-NETTUNO-SAT, Internet, multimedia tools and web-based tutoring) and realizing 50 hours of videolessons, multimedia products supplementing the course that can be used through a dedicated website, download of the educational material, interactive dedicated website (forum, chat, e-mail) for online tutoring.
The project, lasting 2 year starting from March 2001, envisaged 2 main work phases.
The first phase saw:

The realization of the “course” product (50 hours of videolessons - 22 didactic units) in its original version (Spanish, English, Italian) and in a Spanish version based on NETTUNO standards and psycho-pedagogic model;
The realization of a dedicated website and of multimedia products and of the relative graphical material (1st year).

The second phase, instead, envisaged:

The identification of testing group in Spain;
The testing of the pilot course on the identified group;
Satellite TV broadcasting of the video course on the satellite channels, RAI NETTUNO SAT 1 and 2;
Its qualitative assessment in pedagogical and educational effectiveness terms proposing it as a good practice proposal to be spread at European level;
The assessment of the impact of the use of the new educational and communication technologies for the users’ group involved (over-60s people) (2nd year).

In addition, during the second year of activities, a video for dissemination video of presentation and promotion of the project to be used for the dissemination activities.
The realized distance teaching course is aimed at spreading knowledge on ageing to enhance over-60s people lifestyles and teach them how to use the new technologies as learning tools as well as communication tools.
The produced course includes 50 videolessons (30 hours of videolessons in Spanish, 12 hours of videolessons in Italian and 8 hours of videolessons in English), from an educational website on the Internet and written texts.
A version in the Spanish language also was produced and used by the Universidas Autonoma de Madrid in the testing phase carried out in Spain.
The videolessons deal with themes related to one’s own body care: physical exercise, a balanced diet; handling stress situations and anxiety, sexuality; one’s own brain care, how to develop creativity, wisdom, psychological well-being, inter-personal relationships, family and social relationships and on the way to face life’s end wisely.

NETTUNO role

During the project first phase (started in March 2001) NETTUNO identified and supplied the guidelines and the distance psycho-pedagogic model for realizing the course. In addition, training sessions on distance teaching and learning for the involved teachers were organized.
In order to assure a Pan-European reach to the initiative the partners selected teachers coming from Spanish, Italian, British and German Universities (8 Spanish, 7 Italian and 3 German ones) respectively in the different educational areas (gerontologists, nutritionists, sexologists, psychologists etc.) to identify and defining the educational contents, the academic texts of reference and the training material.
Each professor prepared a written text on which basis the slides for recording the videolessons were realized. All written texts and relative slides are available on the Internet in the Spanish, Italian and English version:

50 texts produced;
50 texts translated into Spanish, Italian and English;
2500 slides produced;
2500 slides translated into Spanish and Italian and 2500 translated into English.

NETTUNO, relying on its own structures and technological know-how, saw to the coordination and actual production of the whole video course (50 hours of videolessons) and of relative training material, to the realization of the educational website devoted to the project activities, based on the described model and to the satellite TV broadcasting of the video course on the satellite channels RAI-NETTUNO-SAT 1 and 2.
In particular, during the first year the following activities were carried on:

Phase 1_a) Definition of a didactic model and definition of course didactic contents

Design of a psycho-pedagogic model for distance teaching and guidelines for teachers;
Identification and definition of the didactic contents and of the curriculum of the whole course (22 didactic units - 50 hours of video);
Selection of didactic modules and of the Spanish, Italian and German teachers for each didactic unit;
Selection, production and approval of the didactic material;
Translation of the produced material (original texts and re-designed material).

Phase 1_b) Production of the graphical material and video and Internet production – Original version

Start of the video course production phase and, in particular, the preparation of the storyboards for each training content, selection and processing of the graphical material and recording of the 50 hours of course in its original version including 30 hours in the Spanish language and 12 hours of the Italian language and 8 hours in the English language;
Start up of the post-production phase and translation of the produced material
Realization of the Internet site devoted to the project in its Italian, English and Spanish version.

Phase 1_c) Production of the Spanish version of the course and its testing in Spain

Phase of production of the video course in the Spanish language for the experimental phase
Phase of post-production and translation of the material produced;
Realization of an Internet site devoted to the project in its Italian, English and Spanish version.

Phase 2_a) Testing session in Spain coordinated by UAM

Testing phase of the Vital Ageing video course through an testing design proposed to three groups;
Testing phase in Spain.

Experimentation phase in Spain – Activities carried out
1. Identification of the Elderly Care Centers in which testing the program
The project didactic director, in the person of Prof. Rocio Fernandez Ballesteros, and a manager of the General Direction for Elderly People of Madrid’s Community selected and contacted two centers for delivering the program:

The day-care center “Sagasta”;
The “Gran Residencia de Madrid”;

Both centers can be considered representative (as it regards the Project) of the day-care centers and of the residences in Madrid.

Duration

28 February 2001 – 28 February 2003

Partners

UAM - Universidad Autonoma de Madrid (E)
OU - Open University (UK)

Subcontractor: University of Heidelberg (Department of Gerontology)

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