Technology becomes a tool of knowledge and integration with CoHost, an Italian project for digital alphabetization. It involves high school student who become computer and social media tutors for migrants currently hosted in centers and shelters.
The project features informatics, civic education, linguistics workshops where Italian students from six schools in Rome, Naples, Catania, Reggio Calabria and Messina had the chance of meeting the migrants and tutor them. The initiative is sponsored by Microsoft Philantropies and promoted by Fondazione Mondo Digitale with the support of Italy's Interior Ministry. The project started in December 2016 and is soon set to conclude.Thanks to this experience, the students had the opportunity of hearing the migrants' stories, explaining the young migrants and refugees how to use a computer, social networks, or software they need to get in touch with families or write a resume.
Techologies against prejudices
"Technology can be a tool for mutual knowledge and growth - said Interior Undersecretary Domenico Manzione presenting the project in Rome -. We hope to export this model." "Meeting migrants and refugees through CoHost we learned what they went through before reaching Italy, listened to their stories", says Leonardo, a student in Rome's Leonardo Da Vinci high school. "To people of my age I would like to say: don't have prejudices. I had them before, then I learned they are just the result of ignorance", he says. According to Onah, 20, from the Ivory Coast, "CoHost was important: we learned so many things, from buying bus tickets, to how to look for work. Now I can do things on my own".
"The students taught us how to use computers and how to get in touch to our relatives through social media", says Abdul, from Somalia. "Activities like these help us meet people from other cultures and allow us to integrate," he adds.