Just to add some humour to my previous blog I wanted to share a Blog with you that sheds some light on how technology has become part of all of our lives in a comical way. I can't deny that it's scary to think what my life would be like without the computer and access to the Internet-- perhaps just fine, but it's hard to imagine anyway!
All are Addicted to Technology......Nice Comics:
http://capalang.blogspot.com/2007/05/all-are-addicted-to-technologynice.html
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Technology- Are We All Participating???
This is my first Blog entry and interestingly enough it is about how technology, and the Internet more specifically, is affecting and/or changing our lives. I’ve called my Blog space That was then…This is now because when I think of technology, and its affect on my life, I always compare the past with the present- it’s something I do automatically probably because I’m still not quite sure how I truly feel about all these changes. On the one hand nostalgic—for the simple days of the past, but equally intrigued by the potential technology brings today and for the future.
I consider myself quite lucky because I have been able to live during times when the newest and coolest technology was the VCR and the walkman, right up to current times in which technology is changing so rapidly that one can hardly keep up. It seems that capacities, speeds, functionalities and features are changing so fast that what you have today will be old and behind next month. This holds true with the Internet since its accessing speed and utility is improving constantly. For some time I was dodging calls from service providers and their “it’s the fastest and most reliable” marketing pitch but eventually I succumbed to having the hi-speed, wireless service because I felt that I was missing out if I didn’t; that I would somehow fall behind.
After some recent readings I feel that my fears about falling behind are not so far-fetched because after all—if you’re not in, you’re out! What I am talking about is those people who do have access [are connected] to the Internet and those who don’t. I am talking about the Digital Divide. My feelings were confirmed in Neil Selwyn’s article “Reconstructing political and popular understanding of the digital divide” You can access the full article here: http://nms.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/6/3/341
In this article he describes the popular understanding of the digital divide to be “…divide between those citizens who are ‘connected’ and those citizens who remain ‘disconnected’ from technology, information and , it follows, modern or postmodern society.” Clearly I am not alone in my fears since the issue of access to technology is wide-spread and holds the potential to disconnect people from SOCIETY!!! It’s also interesting to point out that this issue is not only between countries, as it may have been in the past, but is now an issue within countries—countries like Canada and the US!
Today computers are the cornerstone of our daily activities—used for work, to learn, to communicate and to find out things about the world, and not having access in now an issue of exclusion and about falling behind! My husband travels extensively for business and without the internet (chats, Skype, email etc.) we would not be able to be in touch so frequently. Sadly enough I no longer feel him that far away. I have come to accept the distance that his work is putting between us every month because technology is making it a lot easier to do so. Is that good or bad?!? I have mixed feelings. In some way technology is helping to link people together, in others it’s allowing for people to move further apart [physically] because it provides you the tools to have almost instantaneous contact—no matter where you are in the world.
What caught my attention, however, was Selwyn’s notion that people are looking at the issue of digital divide from a very simple point-of-view i.e., assuming that by providing access, internet usage will increase and the divide will disappear. I found another interesting organization that seems to share this “simplistic” (according to Selwyn) view as per their definition of the Digital Divide: “There currently exists a gap between people who enjoy the benefits of technology and those whose lives could be significantly improved by it. In most cases, lack of access to existing and new technologies prevents these individuals from truly taking advantage of computers and the Internet. While this is painstakingly clear in developing countries, there is evidence that the digital divide exists even within North America. Regardless of the reasons for this gap, there is a moral imperative to ensure that everyone has equal access to information technology.” Access their website at http://www.digitaldivide.net/ Along this idea one would conclude that the solution to bridging/eliminating the digital divide is to provide everyone with access to the Internet, or more broadly to ICT (information and communication technology). Indeed many other sites draw on statistics and economic figures that link income and access rates [of internet] together and imply that if access was increased the gap would be filled. I agree that income levels can be an indicator as to the type of technology you have; the exposure and access to the Internet. But I now realize there is more to it and that the solution is not so simple.
What caught my attention, however, was Selwyn’s notion that people are looking at the issue of digital divide from a very simple point-of-view i.e., assuming that by providing access, internet usage will increase and the divide will disappear. I found another interesting organization that seems to share this “simplistic” (according to Selwyn) view as per their definition of the Digital Divide: “There currently exists a gap between people who enjoy the benefits of technology and those whose lives could be significantly improved by it. In most cases, lack of access to existing and new technologies prevents these individuals from truly taking advantage of computers and the Internet. While this is painstakingly clear in developing countries, there is evidence that the digital divide exists even within North America. Regardless of the reasons for this gap, there is a moral imperative to ensure that everyone has equal access to information technology.” Access their website at http://www.digitaldivide.net/ Along this idea one would conclude that the solution to bridging/eliminating the digital divide is to provide everyone with access to the Internet, or more broadly to ICT (information and communication technology). Indeed many other sites draw on statistics and economic figures that link income and access rates [of internet] together and imply that if access was increased the gap would be filled. I agree that income levels can be an indicator as to the type of technology you have; the exposure and access to the Internet. But I now realize there is more to it and that the solution is not so simple.
Critics however, such as Neil Selwyn, say that this is an oversimplified understanding of what causes the digital divide and what is needed to close this gap. He suggests that we need to understand other factors that hinder people from participating in this technology, and therefore in society, factors that foster further “inequalities of access”. Such factors include context of access (ex. Does the individual feel they can make use of this access- home vs. public library), ability to use (required skills and knowledge), culture etc. I believe these factors are extremely important to consider when understanding the digital divide because many people are still behind and this gap is going to widen. Currently technology is connecting and dividing: “…the very technology that has power to empower us all also has the potential to increase the problems of social exclusion unless we act to bridge the digital divide…” (Selwyn)
What about the Internet and learning? How has that changed? I know that computers and technology are part of many school programs but the issue of digital divide must also run deep where learning is concerned. I came across an interesting video on YouTube that talks about the digital divide in the US as it pertains to education for children. In it they discuss the need for increased “technology literacy” programs to help kids take advantage of the new technology tools. Shireen Mitchell, the Executive Director of Digital Sisters (http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/digitalsista) states: “…we have moved very far in a digital era but there’s still a lot of people behind and if we talk about 29 million people, if we said that that was some disease we would think that it was an epidemic and we would do something about it…” The full clip can be found at http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=_ExQrzH8Ers&feature=related
Come back and visit my blog for more entries about learning and the digital divide…
Come back and visit my blog for more entries about learning and the digital divide…
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