A cellphone may fit into the palm of a hand, but for some older residents, using it confidently can feel like navigating an entirely new world.

Thankfully, Linden Library is helping to make that world a little less intimidating. Senior librarian Senzo Nkwanyana, who has worked at Linden Library since 2021, recently helped host a cellphone workshop for senior citizens, building on the library’s previous older residents’ computer-skills training.

The initiative came from a simple observation: the world is becoming increasingly digital, with many of the library’s older users being expected to keep up. Even something as straightforward as applying for library membership has changed, with online forms, links and QR codes replacing some of the traditional paperwork. “We saw that now there’s a challenge with the seniors, with this online thing,” Nkwanyana said.

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The library responded by teaching computer skills, from creative writing to internet safety. After two years, however, Nkwanyana and his colleagues realised they needed to take the learning into a space that was even more familiar, and daunting, to the seniors – their cellphones.

Many participants already knew how to make calls, send messages and use WhatsApp, so the workshop aimed to take them beyond those basics and show them what their smartphones could do for them. That included learning how to safely download applications, understanding ratings and reviews, considering whether an app was appropriate, and recognising potential in-app purchases. They also explored ways their phones could bring more of the world to them, from accessing online books and newspapers to using games for leisure and applications that could assist with everyday needs.

For Nkwanyana, the bigger goal was confidence. “I want them to live with the feeling of removing the fear of using technology,” he said. “You can actually do things yourself.” That confidence matters because the consequences of being unfamiliar with technology can extend well beyond frustration. Some seniors attending the workshop had already experienced scams after trusting people to assist them with confidential information, including banking applications.

They came looking for the knowledge to handle more of these tasks themselves. The workshop, therefore, became about more than convenience; it was about independence and learning how to guard against online risks.

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For Christa Roberts, learning to use her cellphone has been about gaining access to the world around her, without always having to depend on somebody else. She remembers getting WhatsApp but having no one to properly show her how to use it. “I’ve never been scared of technology. I just lacked the knowledge,” she said.

Roberts believes older people do not necessarily need to master every new technological development. They just need to know the basics. To learn what they need, when they need it. “You don’t have to know all of it,” she said. “You can always, I think, get the basics right.”

Her experience also highlights the generational gap that can make new technology daunting. “We’re not that fast anymore, and we did grow up with phones,” Roberts said, “but I was in my 30s when computers were introduced.”

Her advice to her younger self is simple: “Don’t hesitate. And ask for help.”

That willingness to keep learning is precisely what Nkwanyana hopes the library can encourage. The City of Johannesburg’s library services describe digital literacy and eLearning as part of their efforts to help communities access information and participate in an increasingly digital society. Libraries provide digital-skills activities and assistance with mobile devices, computers and online information. At Linden Library, that responsibility is being shaped by the needs of the people who walk through its doors.

Nkwanyana says the response from the wider community has already created interest in extending similar workshops beyond senior citizens, including to young people and the broader public. “Once there is a need, then we just focus on the need,” he said.

It is a reminder that a library’s role can stretch far beyond its shelves. Sometimes helping a community means putting down the book, picking up a cellphone and showing someone that the changing world is not something to fear; it is something they can still learn to navigate.

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