Online Community for Seniors

Is it time to teach the senior adults in your life to navigate the wild world of social media? Confucius said it’s “never too late to learn,” and recent research confirms that education is a significant component in sustained cognitive function. On top of this, social connections lead to greater fulfillment in later life. So push aside the image of your coworker twerking on TikTok and consider the ins and outs of teaching social media to the aging adults in your life. Following are some tips from experts and general guidelines on how to get the senior in your life socially connected via social media.

If you can’t quite picture your grandma posting on Facebook, take heart! Kathryn Kulpa, writer and teacher of a course called Facebook for Grownups says “When people are motivated, especially by personal connections, they can pick up on new technologies much more quickly than they might expect!” According to Kulpa and research on teaching adult learners, the first step is to make the material relevant, and that means understanding the goals of the person you’re teaching.

According to Pat Reed, a retiree from the California State University system, she uses Facebook to stay in touch with her children and grandchildren, and even her 5-year-old great-granddaughter who Reed claims is “more tech-savvy” than she will ever be. She also keeps tabs on friends across the country and in Europe. Like Pat, most seniors are not interested in building large followings or finding an audience. Rather, seniors turn to the internet to reclaim the world they once had when they were more able to get around. Caregivers and family members need to reimagine social media in this light.

It’s easy enough to find a starting point. Where do friends and family maintain an online presence? If your parent wants to see what the grandkids are up to, it’s essential that those kids are available on that platform. According to statistics published by the Pew Research Center, Facebook is probably your best bet. It allows for posting, talking live, viewing videos, taking classes, and joining groups. In addition, it is the site most frequented by people 50 and older. You might have to encourage the younger family members to drop by Facebook, since they are probably spending most of their online time on other social platforms.

Before getting into the teaching steps, keep in mind that everything should be tailored to suit the person you’re teaching. Adult learners do not like to be spoken down to, so if any of the recommendations here are too simplistic, adjust them. No one likes being treated like a child, not even children.

Next, get everything set up in advance. This could involve establishing an email account, starting the social media account, setting the privacy level, and depending on how the senior will access the site, either downloading the app or book-marking the site’s webpage. These are steps that only have to be done once, so unless there is a specific reason to do so, they don’t need to be taught. Once all the technical steps are taken care of, you can sit down with your senior and begin teaching the fun stuff.

As you plan the content you teach, Kulpa suggests getting right to the good stuff. Her students “wanted to jump in. They [don’t] care about the history and theory behind things.” She says the adults she taught wanted a hands-on approach  to learning the basics.

Keeping in mind the goal of social connection, it makes sense to start by searching for people and developing a network. Keep in mind the tell-show-do model used by teachers everywhere. Briefly explain what you’re teaching. Model how to do it. Then allow the internet newbie to practice while you provide support. When working with older adults, remember that you might need to review each lesson multiple times. “Patience is the key,” says Sophie Herbergs, who works for Cultural Education in the Netherlands. She advises encouraging the older adult to let you know if they’re confused or if something is too elementary. Then you can pivot as needed to keep the learning moving at a good pace.

Remember that in some ways older users see social media as the same as interacting in the non-virtual space. It’s important to teach how to have a private exchange with a friend and what it means to post on people’s walls. It can be mortifying to learn that a comment intended for a close confidante is now public. Social embarrassment can be very damaging in any environment, and one terrible incident can send an older person racing offline, never to return.

Consider that current research on teaching older adults shows that the relationship with the instructor has a greater impact on learning than the content of the lessons. With this in mind, consider honestly whether you are the right person to play the role of instructor with the older adult in your life. If you think your existing relationship dynamics might get in the way, save yourself and the adult learner by looking into available programs. Kathryn Kulpa encourages everyone to check for classes at their local public library. And in many communities, senior centers and city recreation departments provide training.

For many older people, aging limits mobility and increases the likelihood that friends and family have moved away. To maintain connectedness while gaining the benefits of learning new skills, social media has a lot to offer. Just remember to warn the internet newbie about the twerking videos.

RESOURCES

Duay, D.L. & Bryan, V.C. (2008). “Learning in later life: What seniors want in a learning experience,” Educational Gerontology, 2008-11-25, v. 34(12), p.1070-1086.

Pew Research Center, https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/