Teaching Older Relatives: Digital Devices and Mobile Phones Usage

This essay reflects on the experience of teaching older relatives how to use digital devices, primarily mobile phones. The author details the process, beginning with explaining the benefits of digital devices like video calling, online shopping, and social media. The essay highlights both the advantages and potential drawbacks, such as addiction and mental health concerns, to ensure a balanced understanding. The teaching approach involved repetition, patience, and adapting to the learners' needs, considering factors like memory loss and loneliness. The author successfully taught basic functions like video calls and online shopping, while mobile banking proved too complex. The essay concludes by emphasizing the importance of a calm approach and the idea that learning is ageless, providing valuable insights into digital literacy for older adults.

HEADER: TEACHING OTHERS
ENGLISH

TEACHING OTHERS 1
Thesis statement: I will describe how I have taught my older relatives to use digital devices.
The discussion is prepared on the title ‘Teaching others’ based on digital devices. A digital
device is an electronic device that can receive, store, process and send information. The common
examples of digital devices are mobile phones, computer and laptop (Doberty, 2012). The first
section of the essay focuses on pros of mobile functions. The second section emphasizes on the
cons and possible adverse effects of high application of mobile phones. The next part lays
attention on the applied teaching elements. The last section provides brief description of the
attained results of teaching. The key purpose of the discussion is to pour light on the teaching
experience of Digital media. Additionally, it provides an opportunity to share my experience of
teaching mobile phone usage to my older relatives. Through, my teaching practices, I have also
gained a possible knowledge of behavior pattern of old age people.
Initially, I have acknowledged my older relatives with the benefits of a mobile phone (Digital
devices). Thereafter, I have shared its advantages by showing them its practical example. I have
showed them that how mobile phone enables social connectivity. I have revealed the feature of
Video calling, online shopping, mobile banking and entertainment (Androulidakis, 2012). Before
initiating their practical learning, I have taught them the meaning of these features. Thereafter, I
have showed them the live experience of video calling. I have taught them the procedure of
shopping via mobile phones. In order to initiate their learning of social media, I have developed
their user profile on Facebook and Whatsapp. It had enabled them connecting digitally to their
social groups. In order to foster their learning process, I have made them perform the required
functions by themselves. Further, I have taught them that with the usage of mobile phones, they
can remain more updated by having access to internet.
Despite sharing its benefits, I have also taught them the cons of using mobile phone. I have
discussed the negative results of excess usage of mobile phones. I have shared that its high
application can cause addiction (Walton , 2019). It has a major effect on the mental health of the
user. It also results in poor personal touch (Agar, 2013). In order to encounter them better with
the cons of high mobile usage, I have showed them the real life examples operating within our
family. However, I have not threatened them but instead aware them with its proper usage.

TEACHING OTHERS 2
In my teaching process, I have focused on various elements. As per my research and my
experience, I have acknowledged that old age individuals usually face the problem of memory
loss (Dunne, 2011). Therefore, I have decided to be repetitive in my teaching unless it will be on
their tips. Additionally, they often act irritable but I have taught myself to remain calm at such
situations. They also face the issue of loneliness (Luo, 2012). Thus, I have emphasized more on
the teaching of entertainment, as it will assist them to remove their boredom and loneliness.
Their curiosity was one of the major motivating factors for me to continue their learning process.
After successfully learning basic functions, they often act pleased and content. Therefore, it
encourages me to perform my activity.
In my teaching period, I have successfully taught them the procedure of using Video calling,
Online shopping, Facebook and Whatsapp (entertainment). I have also tried to instruct the usage
of Mobile banking. However, they did not able to gain its proper understanding and thus it
resulted in the loss of 4 US dollars. Thus, in order to prevent any future monetary loss, I decided
to discontinue their learning of mobile banking. During my teaching period, I have given them
limitless chance to perform the mobile functions. I used to give them tasks based on their daily
learning. This has assisted me in enhancing their knowledge. Thus, it has helped me to make
them understand the usage of mobile phone within the period of 20 days. Indirectly, it has helped
them in making their lives easier.
The above discussion summarizes my experience of teaching digital devices to my older relative.
It states that by developing a calm mindset, I have taken the right approach. It states that my
approach of teaching the old relatives. It provides a description of successful implantation of
teaching practice. Thus, from the above discussion, it is concluded that an individual can
successfully gain new knowledge at any age. Hence, learning is not based on individual’s age.

TEACHING OTHERS 3
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Agar, J., 2013. Constant Touch: A Global History of the Mobile Phone. Icon Books Ltd.
Androulidakis, I.I., 2012. Mobile Phone Security and Forensics: A Practical Approach. Springer
Science & Business Media.
Doberty, E.P., 2012. Digital Forensics for Handheld Devices. CRC Press.
Dunne, E..W.C..&.M.G.E., 2011. Goal disengagement, functional disability, and depressive
symptoms in old age. Health Psychology, 30(6).
Luo, Y..H.L.C..W.L.J..&.C.J.T., 2012. Loneliness, health, and mortality in old age: A national
longitudinal study. Social science & medicine, 74(6), pp.907-14.
Walton , A.G., 2019. Phone Addiction Is Real -- And So Are Its Mental Health Risks. [Online]
Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2017/12/11/phone-addiction-is-real-
and-so-are-its-mental-health-risks/#3f1f256513df [Accessed 25 September 2019].