Abstract:

This research aimed to present the virtual workshops built by Cybersrses Multipliers of Knowledge. The number of the elderly grows every year, as well as access to digital technologies. In this light, it is necessary to create digital educational materials (DEM) that allow new construction and knowledge sharing by the elderly. In this process, discussing permanent education during aging is fundamental for the empowerment of this population. Distance education (DE) may become a way of contemplating this need, besides enabling a social inclusion of the elderly public. In this context, Cyberseniors are elderly who have intermediate and/or advanced knowledge about technologies, are increasingly seeking to create and share materials, and therefore become multipliers of knowledge. Thus, the research was conducted from a qualitative approach, with multiple case study. The target audience were elderly over 60 years old with knowledge of computer science (Cyberseniors). The research instruments were: questionnaires, participant observation and technological productions of the elderly in VLE. In the course of the research an extension course was offered for older people so that they could build workshops and work as multipliers in the distance learning. Thus, 12 workshops were built, with different themes and three for data collection, which are: “Family Systemic Constellation”, “Digital Transformation Workshop”, “Barbecue Workshop”, “Craft Beer Workshop”, “Techniques of Handicrafts”, “Digital Marketing”, “Pizza Workshop”, “Steel that Makes Shadow”, “Let's Be Mentors”,“Suicide and its prevention” and “Technical Production Sheets for Gastronomy”. The collected data made it possible to analyze that there was empowerment of the course participants and that they have the potential to act as multipliers in the DE, which implies the expansion of materials created for this audience.

Keywords:

Digital Empowerment, digital educational materials, Cyberseniors.