技术世界变化如此之快，以至于您十年前学到的日常技术技能今天可能已经无关紧要。如果你是 80 年代的成年人，那么计算机技能就没有现在那么重要了。那一代 30 多岁的成年人现在已经到了退休年龄(retirement age)，如果他们没有自觉地跟上时代的步伐，现代技术可能会令人生畏。
从智能手机到智能电视(TVs)，一次可以吸收很多东西。帮助他们的长辈使用和享受现代科技的好处往往落到了年轻一代的肩上。我们在为各个年龄段的人提供(experience providing) 帮助和指导方面拥有丰富的经验。(help and instruction)在与老年用户打交道时，这种经验提供了许多重要的经验教训。
如果您的生活中有属于该类别的用户，那么这些一般提示将有助于使教授技术的过程变得更加容易。
从不屈尊(Never Condescend)
永远不要因为对技术一无所知而评判某人。(judge someone)有一长串任何给定的人都不知道的事情，不精通技术的人不值得被说服。
始终对您正在帮助的人保持耐心和尊重。(patience and respect)如果任何一方感到沮丧，请暂停并在几分钟后重试。倾听(Listen)对方的意见以了解他们的来龙去脉，不要只是等着轮到你说话。
考虑现有知识(Take Existing Knowledge Into Account)
您试图帮助的每个用户都不是一张白纸！花点时间了解您的用户已经知道的内容。老用户实际上可能拥有过时的技术知识，但仍然可以在此基础上进行构建。
因此，请花时间评估某人(knowledge someone)的知识水平和类型(level and type)，并调整您的指导以匹配它。
注意物理限制(Be Aware Of Physical Limitations)
许多年长的用户在视力、听力、灵巧性，甚至是他们遵循指令的速度方面都存在问题。对此持开放态度，并要求您被告知诸如此类突出的任何问题。
使用屏幕放大镜或语音控制(screen magnifier or voice controls)等辅助功能(accessibility features)可以成为您课程的一部分。年长的用户可能会因为这些问题而被劝阻，并且不知道现代设备必须弥补这些问题的许多功能。
解释你自己(Explain Yourself)
不要认为你试图帮助的人不够聪明，无法理解幕后发生的事情。如果你解释得足够好，就可以帮助任何人理解原则上的工作原理。
因此，不要忽视有关技术本身的问题或给出不必要的简单答案。如果了解特定技术的性质将有助于人们更好地使用设备或应用程序(device or application)，请主动提供这些解释。
用行话冷静(Chill With The Jargon)
行话(Jargon)是一个领域内知识渊博的人进行有效交流的好工具，但对于尚未成为内部人员的人来说，它也是进入的主要障碍。
实际上，这意味着除非绝对必要，否则您不应使用行话技术术语。(jargon tech)而是使用大多数人都知道的术语，用通俗的说法来解释事情。
鼓励实践方法(Encourage a Hands-On Approach)
你应该尽可能让你想教的人自己做所有的事情。抵制接管的冲动，即使是作为示范。相反，让他们用自己的双手执行您的指示。
被动地看着某人做某事和自己做这件事之间存在着巨大的差异。因此，请给他们一切机会，让他们有动手的时间。
专注于建立信心(Focus On Building Confidence)
在与技术打交道时，恐惧是一个主要因素。反过来，恐惧是由未知驱动的。如果你不明白某事(t understand something)，很容易觉得它很可怕。
因此，虽然直接和明确的指导仍然非常重要，但如果您希望老用户真正“获得”您试图向他们解释的技术，重要的是要以自信取代恐惧。
你应该清楚地表明你不能仅仅通过使用它来“破坏”它。(” something)只要有人的关键信息被备份或安全地保存在云中，最糟糕的情况就是不得不重置某些东西。
学习特定技术的最佳方式是自由地使用它。犯错是学习的重要组成部分，现代设备非常简单。因此，请务必减轻这些担忧并鼓励人们自由探索。
教他们以解决问题的心态钓鱼(Teach Them To Fish With a Problem-Solving Mindset)
在向某人教授技术时，您可能犯的最大错误之一就是让他们记住一组死记硬背(rote set)的指令以完成特定任务。为什么？因为一旦发生不合脚本的事情，用户就需要找人来帮助他们。
相反，在技术方面，最好灌输解决问题的态度。如果他们遇到错误或发生(error or something happens)了说明中未涵盖的事情，请在寻求帮助之前鼓励Google 搜索(Google search)并独立尝试解决问题。
Always Keep it Relevant!
成人教育，被称为成人教育，有(andragogy)一条(andragogy, )重要的原则(cardinal rule)——保持相关性。
成人学习者珍惜时间，想知道知识的实际应用是什么。因此，除非个人对技术本身感兴趣，否则通过始终根据相关性和有用性(relevance and usefulness)来构建信息，您将获得更好的结果。
没有人太老而不能学习(No One Is Too Old To Learn)
老年人无法学习任何新技术的刻板印象完全是一个神话。我们知道很多人在学习编码或桌面支持等技能时 已经到了退休年龄。(retirement age)
这意味着在帮助年长用户掌握新技术时，您必须摒弃偏见。毕竟，如果角色互换，你希望被如何对待？(you)
9 Tips to Teach Your Grandparents Tech
The world of technology is changing so quickly, that the daily tеch skills you learned just ten years ago are probably irrelevant today. If you were an adult іn the 80s, computer skills weren’t nearly as important as they are now. That generation of 30-something adυlts are now hitting retirement age and if they haven’t consciously kept up to date, modern tеchnology can bе qυite intimidating.
From smartphones to smart TVs, it’s a lot to take in all at once. It often falls to the younger generation to help their elders use and enjoy the benefits of modern tech. We have quite a lot of experience providing help and instruction to people of all ages. That experience has provided a number of key lessons when it comes to dealing with elderly users.
If you’ve got users in your life who fall into that category, these general tips will help make the process of teaching technology much easier.
Never Condescend
Never judge someone for not knowing something about technology. There’s a long list of things any given person knows nothing about and someone who isn’t tech-savvy doesn’t deserve to be talked down to.
Always have patience and respect for the person who you’re helping. If either party gets frustrated, take a time-out and try again after a few minutes. Listen to the person to understand where they’re coming from, don’t simply wait for your turn to speak.
Take Existing Knowledge Into Account
Each user you’re trying to help isn’t a blank slate! Take the time to get a handle on what your user already knows. Older users may actually have technical knowledge that’s out of date, but can still be built upon.
So take the time to assess what level and type of knowledge someone has and adapt your instruction to match it.
Be Aware Of Physical Limitations
Many older users have problems with their eyesight, hearing, dexterity and even the speed with which they can follow instructions. Be open about this and ask that you be told of any issues such as these coming to the fore.
Using accessibility features such as a screen magnifier or voice controls can be a part of your lesson. Older users might be dissuaded because of these problems and be unaware of the many features modern devices have to compensate for them.
Explain Yourself
Don’t assume that the person you’re trying to help isn’t smart enough to understand what’s going on under the hood. If you explain it well enough, it’s possible to help anyone understand how something works in principle.
So don’t dismiss questions about the technology itself or give needlessly simple answers. If understanding the nature of a particular technology will help the person use a device or application better, proactively include those explanations.
Chill With The Jargon
Jargon is a good tool for knowledgeable people in a field to efficiently talk to each other, but it’s also a major barrier to entry for anyone who isn’t already an insider.
In practical terms this means you should not use jargon tech terms unless absolutely necessary. Instead explain things in common parlance, using terms that most people would know.
Encourage a Hands-On Approach
As far as possible, you should let the person you’re trying to teach do everything themselves. Resist the urge to take over, even as a demonstration. Instead, have them act out your instructions using their own hands.
There’s an ocean of difference between passively watching someone do something and doing it yourself. So give them every opportunity to get hands-on time.
Focus On Building Confidence
Fear is a major factor when dealing with technology. In turn, fear is driven by the unknown. If you don’t understand something, it’s easy to find it scary.
So while direct and clear instruction is still very important, if you want older users to really “get” the technology you’re trying to explain to them, it’s important to replace fear with confidence.
You should make it clear that you can’t “break” something just by using it. As long as someone’s crucial information is backed up or safely in the cloud, the worst that can happen is having to reset something.
The best way to learn a specific piece of tech is to play with it freely. Making mistakes is an important part of learning and modern devices are pretty foolproof. So make a point of allaying these worries and encouraging the person to explore freely.
Teach Them To Fish With a Problem-Solving Mindset
One of the biggest mistakes you can make when teaching someone about technology, is to have them memorize a rote set of instructions in order to accomplish a specific task. Why? Because as soon as something off-script happens, the user needs to get someone to help them.
Instead, it’s better to instill a problem-solving attitude when it comes to technology. If they encounter an error or something happens that wasn’t covered in the instructions, encourage a Google search and independent attempts at fixing the issue before calling for help.
Always Keep it Relevant!
Adult education, referred to as andragogy, has a big cardinal rule – keep it relevant.
Adults learners value their time and want to know what the practical application of a piece of knowledge is. So, unless the individual is interested in the technology for its own sake, you’ll get much better results by always framing information in terms of its relevance and usefulness.
No One Is Too Old To Learn
The stereotype of older people being unable to learn anything about new technology is a complete myth. We know plenty of people who were at retirement age when they learned skills like coding or desktop support.
Which means you have to park your prejudices when helping older users get to grips with new technology. After all, how would you like to be treated if the roles were reversed?
