An advocate for lifelong learning

68-year-old Mr Albert Loh has retired for more than two years after working as a dental surgeon. Since his retirement, he has been actively attending courses in financial management, cybersecurity and more.

 

In 2019, Mr Loh gifted his wife a new smartphone, but soon noticed that she was only using the basic functions. Mr Loh then encouraged his wife to sign up for the National Silver Academy (NSA) course “Smart Use of Smart Phones” conducted by Singapore Association for Continuing Education (SACE). 

 

Mr Loh’s wife was hesitant to sign up over concerns of the language barrier and her ability to understand technical jargon. Therefore, Mr Loh decided to offer his support in her learning journey towards digitalisation. He thought that it was a good idea to sign up for the IT course together as it also presented an opportunity for him to update himself on the latest IT trends. 

 

“Even though I consider myself to be IT savvy, I still feel that my wife should learn in a more conducive, formal environment instead of me teaching her. Both the trainer and me could help her whenever she faces any difficulties during the course,” Mr Loh shared. 

 

Encouraging people around him to learn

 

As social gatherings are limited and seniors were strongly encouraged to stay at home during COVID-19, it had upended many seniors' lives, including Mr Loh and his wife. They soon learnt that they had to rely more on technology to interact with their family and friends.

 

As Mr Loh’s wife only knew how to use the basic functions of a computer, he again encouraged his wife to sign up and attended the NSA course “Windows 10” with her.

 

“Both of us had previously taken a NSA course (by SACE). So, we knew that the trainers there were understanding and patient. They also went the extra mile to help us.

 

That’s why I believe my wife can overcome her challenges with their help,” Mr Loh commented.

 

Mr Loh’s wife finds the course beneficial and now knows how to use Zoom to share content and keep in touch with her friends. Through the use of technology, the couple has managed to keep themselves connected and active.

 

Mr Loh said: “What matters is that you have to put in your effort to encourage the people around you to kickstart lifelong learning. You will see how it makes a real difference in their lives.” 

 

Recently, he even participated as a guest speaker for one of the sessions in “Learning in your Silver Years” Facebook Live series, a collaboration between Council for Third Age (C3A) and VintageRadio.SG. During the talk, he shared his positive learning experiences to inspire others to kickstart their learning journey.

 

Mr Loh also has words of encouragement to share with fellow retirees: “Now, you have the freedom to manage your time. It’s the perfect opportunity to sign up for the course you always wanted to learn or pick up a new hobby that you always wanted to try out. We should never be afraid to learn new skills or acquire new knowledge.”

 

Embracing and adapting to changes in a digital age

 

Technology has helped to improve quality of life for Mr Loh and his wife, as they now access e-magazines, e-newspapers and e-books from the National Library Board. “They have a treasure trove of information that is readily available online! We even stopped subscribing to physical newspapers and borrowing hardcopy books as we found the online experience to be just as useful and user-friendly,” Mr Loh shared.

 

Mr Loh also enjoys watching various Youtube videos to pick up new tips and knowledge. As Mr Loh has been surfing the Internet more frequently, he is glad that he had learned about cybersecurity in the past. 

 

“As we spend more time online these days, there is a higher chance to fall prey to (the tactics by) cybercriminals. Knowing cybersecurity is very relevant during this pandemic as I am more confident to spot online scams, phishing emails, evaluate news sources and enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on my email or social media apps now,” Mr Loh said.

 

Taking up these courses had made Mr Loh value and appreciate lifelong learning even more. He intends to take up a NSA course about memory techniques in future. Mr Loh emphasised: “Learning new things is always an enriching experience for me. In fact, lifelong learning has evolved to (become an integral part of) my lifestyle during this new normal.”

 

“COVID-19 showed us that we can have our entire life changed completely. We have to keep up with the times to avoid getting left behind. We can adapt by going digital,” he concluded. 

 

**Special thanks to Mr Albert Loh who accepted our interview, we wish him and his wife all the very best in their lifelong learning journey.