When children are technology "teachers"

Technology helps parents and children become closer. Photo: DUNG PHUONG

Special Class

Ms. Mai, an office worker living in Hanh Thong ward (HCMC), said that she still clearly remembers the first time she received a text message from her mother over the phone. A few short words without accents, mostly mistyped, but she suddenly felt her heart tighten. She was both happy and moved. It was completely different from the familiar phone calls, and also different from the old handwritten letters her mother used to write. Something very modern, new, but still imbued with familiar feelings. Now, her family has a chat group called "Family Group", where her mother sends pictures of newly planted flower pots, her father asks about the health of the children. It is also a place where her siblings exchange information from buying clean meat to preparing for death anniversaries. They don't always talk, but the feeling of connection, being able to see each other and text each other at any time makes her feel like her family is much closer.

It all started one evening, in Mai’s small apartment, Duc Minh (14 years old, her son) was playing with his phone when his grandmother brought a smartphone given to her by her eldest son (Minh’s uncle) and asked her to show her how to use it. Since then, every night, the grandmother and her grandson huddled together over the phone. “Grandma can’t press anything, what’s that? Why does it keep showing up?”, she asked. Minh said softly: “Grandma has to turn off notifications by going here…”. The two of them worked together, one patiently instructing, the other attentively operating.

Such “classes” are appearing more and more in Vietnamese families, where children and grandchildren become reluctant “technology teachers” of their parents and grandparents. The elderly are starting to join the digital space, when smartphones, Zalo, Facebook, banking applications, online documents, surveillance cameras… become an essential part of life. Learning technology for the older generation is no longer a rare “trend”. And the instructors are often the children and grandchildren in the family, from showing them how to take photos, download applications, look up health, prevent fraud to “clicking stars to send stickers with music”.

Elderly people online, both love and worry

Ms. Ha Linh (32 years old, living in Dien Hong ward, Ho Chi Minh City) said: “I installed Facebook for my mother and showed her how to post. The first time, she took a picture of... a kettle and wrote the caption: "Refreshing the kettle every now and then". Not only that, she also mistakenly tagged my name as... the name of a cosmetics shop because she saw the beautiful words"! The whole family laughed out loud.

Many older people, when they first entered the world of technology, accidentally created “unbearable” situations. From replying to messages by writing… publicly, to sending the wrong photo, or even being tricked by bad guys… These “technological accidents” sometimes confuse their children and grandchildren, but also bring relaxation and intimacy between generations.

However, it is not easy to guide grandparents and parents to use technology. “You are pointing so fast, I can’t even see it”, “It’s all in English, how can I understand it” are familiar sentences that “technology teachers” have heard. Sometimes, a tutorial session can end in angry silence, because the instructor is frustrated, the recipient is… annoyed!

Although adoption is still slow, the elderly's entry into the digital space is bringing about many positive changes. Thanks to knowing how to use Zalo, grandfathers can video call their grandchildren abroad. On YouTube, grandmothers can listen to traditional opera and learn to cook with new recipes. Many adults also use social networks as a way to "rejuvenate": posting travel photos, showing off bonsai, telling stories about their youth...

Mr. Tu (65 years old, Thu Duc, HCMC) laughed and said: “Back then, I thought Facebook was only for idle kids. Now I have more than a hundred friends, I post anything funny. The kids even comment and praise grandpa for being a teenager!”

Of course, there are times when the enthusiasm for participating in social networks “goes too far”. Such as sharing fake news, harmful links, or “getting involved” in unverified online trading groups. At such times, the presence of children and grandchildren is a friendly and necessary “censor”.

Ha My (23 years old, student in Ho Chi Minh City) shared: “At first, I found it hard because I had to show my mother every step, but then I realized that thanks to that, we became closer. My mother now uses the food ordering app, checks her own flight tickets, and even teaches me how to make cakes.”

The technological exchange between generations, if nurtured with love and patience, will become a beautiful bridge. Parents and children have more reasons to talk, to get closer to each other, not only on the keyboard but also in their hearts. Because in a certain house, a grandchild is patiently showing his grandfather how to take a vertical photo, or a child is showing his mother how to use an app to schedule a medical appointment. Young people practice patience and care. And the elderly not only learn how to operate, but also learn how to open their hearts to the new world.

HOANG MY

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/khi-con-chau-la-giao-vien-cong-nghe-post811926.html