T2: What Can I Expect from My Students?

Technological adaptability falls on a spectrum from those afraid of technology and completely inept to those who are functional to those who are truly technologically adaptable. This program will not produce experts, but it will move anyone along the scale toward the expert side of the spectrum. If students continue to hone their adaptability skills, they will eventually become an expert in adaptability.

Learning technological adaptability is on par with learning a new language or learning to play an instrument, one that changes every so often. Let us use learning to play an instrument as a comparison. Some musicians are born into the career; they excel with just a little training. With adaptability, you will have those it will come easily to, who will do it without much effort and seem born to do it. They will immediately tackle the exercises and often love doing them. They may have a few growing pains but will revel in the challenge. They experience the “click” I mentioned in the book or may have had that mental change happen before the course even started. These students often end up in technology-heavy careers.

Some aspiring musicians succeed because they work very hard at it. With adaptability, you will have those who do it well if they are willing to work diligently. They still struggle a bit, but they succeed. They often have the “click” after much work, but not always. Students like this may enter tech-heavy careers as well or tech-adjacent careers, such as technical writing.

Some musicians may practice for years to become competent at their work. You will have those who can become adaptable if they work hard. Students like these will struggle quite a bit. They will find the course very challenging. However, they will succeed in the end if they do the work.

Some aspiring musicians struggle to play “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” We will have some students who struggle just to become barely adaptable. They might be completely terrified of technology and unable to deal with it initially. They may fight you, want lots of help, and whine a bit. However, if they stick with the course, even they will see that their fear is almost gone and that they will gain adaptability skills, though few become experts.

Age may play a factor as well. The older the student, the more difficult it may be to develop this skill. Yet, older students can learn if they are willing to put in the work. It might take them more time and effort, but they can do it.

No matter their skill level when they start, students will become more adaptable if they commit to the course. Therefore, commitment becomes the issue. And commitment is a big issue. Few people are willing to commit their time and mental energy for the fun of it. They usually need an external motivator, like getting a new job or reentering the workforce.