Seniors Learn Technology Skills From Leadership Johns Creek

JOHNS CREEK, GA -- When you think of a classroom setting it is normally the older individual instructing the younger people; but when it comes to high-technology devices the opposite is often true. Sometimes learning about new technology can be tricky, and a bit frightening. Student Leadership Johns Creek in conjunction with AT&T facilitated a hands-on workshop working with the senior population of Johns Creek to help them learn different features on their devices.

Many came loaded with their various devices and specific questions while others wanted to understand how to turn the thing on and keep it from turning off. According to Northview High School student Yasmin Shalim, “knowledge is not meant to be kept to oneself but shared with others to help better their lives. I'm thankful to have been able to not only assist the elderly with technology usage but also form a bond with them.”

Many seniors don’t know how to fully use their phones and tablets, many are afraid to explore their devices; teenagers, however, have an almost intuitive knowledge of these devices, it was a perfect mix for this training session.

Park Place at Newtown Park was packed with seniors and teens working one-on-one to fix font sizes on their devices, find apps, change settings to make the device more user-friendly for a senior, or just explore recipes.

One of the seniors said, “my time with Pallavi was extremely worthwhile. She assisted me with syncing my photo gallery and setting up and using voice activation. I thoroughly enjoyed the session and will definitely come again next year.”

Col. Carl Obenland said he enjoyed working with the students and, “it makes me much happier looking to the future generation.”

Each of the seniors walked away with a bit more knowledge and to be sure each of the teens left with a new friend, many exchanging their contact information at the conclusion of the event.

"It was exciting watching as the seniors and teens build connections through learning,” Irene Sanders, Executive Director of Student Leadership Johns Creek said in a release.

Don Barbour, AT&T Regional Director – External Affairs, supported Student Leadership Johns Creek throughout the year. AT&T provided training and the iPads that were used at the event. Created in 2015, AT&T’s Digital You is a comprehensive program that offers tools, tips,
apps, guidance and community training for people of all ages and levels of online experience to learn more about how to have a safe and secure online experience. Through Digital You, AT&T has collaborated with prominent national organizations like Common Sense, The OASIS Institute, and AARP to increase digital literacy as well as local organizations across the country to assemble and promote expert online safety information in a number of formats.