Tech Is An Enabler for Elders But Are We Doing Our Bit To Train Them?

‘Beta, mere liye please app-taxi book karo’, 'Beta woh cab ka number kya hai', 'Beta woh cab driver ka naam bolo'. These are the constant interruptions we have every day from elders around us. However, most of us tend to ignore or not bother either because – we are busy, or lack patience or think that technology education for elders is a choice and not a compulsion. 

However, the pandemic has brought about a huge change; it has brought about a transition from the physical world to a virtual world. This transition is not applicable to selective people, it is applicable to EVERYONE. The need to know the virtual world is now a must for all elders as it will help them become independent and solve all their problems at the click of a button.

While teaching basic technology may sound easy to a lot of people, very few know the plethora of challenges which the older adults face. A common apprehension that the elderly experience is that if they click on something by mistake, or press a wrong button, they think “phone kharab ho jayega.” The real challenge lies in clarifying such doubts to people who have never felt comfortable with using technology. Because of the low / poor / no knowledge about technology, the elders are subjected to innumerable cyber frauds and scams. There are plenty of YouTube videos about the same but no real person to teach them why is it important to use a certain app and how can they stay safeguarded from the virtual world.

There is no real person to tell them about the number of advantages the online world has – if they use them productively.

How will the fear imbued in their minds get removed unless their children/ grandchildren encourage them to start afresh with technology and embrace its benefits effectively? Technology empowerment will give them another chance to engage themselves into learning something new, thereby improving their self-confidence and independence. 

I strongly believe that – “Learning has no age, whether at 20 or 80. Anyone who stops learning is old and anyone who keeps learning stays young”. Our elders deserve to be given a way to immerse themselves in the world of digital learning.

Mahima is the founder of the Social Paathshala