Senior citizens are jumping on the Internet bandwagon in droves
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as the “baby boomers” hit retirement age, the U.S. senior citizen population will grow by as much as 40% and fully double to 90 million by 2050. In 2005, the Kaiser Foundation’s National Survey of Older Americansreported that only 31% of seniors over the age of 64 had ever gone online as compared to 70% of seniors between the ages of 50 to 64.
Today’s seniors are using the internet to send email, to conduct research (particularly, medical), to keep in touch loved ones, and to take online classes. Indeed, the use of social networking sites like Facebook.com and video conferencing facilitators like Skype.com among the senior population is skyrocketing.
Free programs to educate Denver seniors on the computer and the Internet becoming readily available through senior living facilities like Denver’sMorningStar Senior Living and North American based Holiday Retirement.
Companies like Denver based Modern Senior Technologies (MST) specialize in senior learning. Their entry level programs include basic computer and Internet 101, a full hour class dedicated purely to Facebook, and a course on basic security and virus definitions. MST Director of Marketing, Mike Fette said that they “additionally offer one-on-one fee based services for seniors looking beyond the basic.”
The Internet continues to grow faster than a speeding bullet and, much like the rest of us, seniors are quickly hopping on the bandwagon. Today’s generations of online seniors are able to access more information and communication than any demographic in the history of man.
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