Out with the Old and in with the New???
These workshops are going to be pretty interesting! I enjoy teaching and helping my grandparents out whenever they need to know something. But there have been a couple of things I need to get off my chest.
I fell that sometimes as younger kids and adults we like to show off their computers skill while the older adults are left out felling they can’t connect with them. Haughtiness and arrogance rips each generation apart creating a wide gap. So has technology destroyed the family? Technology has its ups and downs when it comes to the family structure. It can reconnect people at a long distance and keep up-to-date the current family events. And the down side is that kids spend most of their time in front of video games and computers and don’t talk to their parents and grandparents. This same argument is parallel to watching TV.
I was talking to an old friend the other day about teaching Senior citizens. He believes it’s practically pointless. That’s some pretty selfish thinking. As young adults we are able to easily learn the latest technology. There thought process is not as shape as it once was. They have other skills that they have experienced throughout their long lives. Some of them have better reading and social skills with a little dose of wisdom. Having grown up without the internet they had better chances to develop sociable skills such as speaking, reading books (creating longer attention spans), family time, and value of patience. Now a day we have to have something now.
We should give them some slack they didn’t grow up with computers and they are not able to “soak” in the ability to adapt to the ever fast changing world of computers and the internet.
We will eventually get to the point at which we won’t be able to keep up with the latest technology, sadly.
So ending on that note let me conclude this post. We need to be patient and simple. We all have to start somewhere; everyone had to start out without knowing anything at first. We all can learn from each other. Each generation has something to say and give to one another, so let us pull our heads out of the sky and become sincere and humble.
It will be pretty interesting how these workshops work out!
How do you fell being looked down upon if someone knows more about computers then you?
I agree with you completely. I know how my parents feel about computers because they have never had to use them. I definitely can understand the frustration the older generation may feel with learning to use computers for the first time. I feel if we all displayed some empathy towards them the same will be returned when we're in the same situation trying to catch up.
ReplyDeleteJosh, excellent reflections! You have thought through the importance of understanding who your audience is by reflecting on your experience with your grandparents. Arrogance certainly can be harmful when trying to build rapport. Thank you for the article link. I immediately bookmarked it in Delicious, of course! Dr. Keane
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