WK 8.2 Digital divide – Hanane Ben Abdeslam

Digital divide is a term that refers to the gap between demographics and regions that have access to modern information and communications technology, and those that don’t or have restricted access. This kind of technology includes the telephone, television, computers, and the internet. Mostly the elderly, people with a migration background, people in a disadvantaged or vulnerable position, may have difficulty keeping up digitally. Media literacy is important to ensure that more people take advantage of the opportunities offered by digital media. Moreover, there is a generation gap between old and young people. Young people, like us, grow up with digital media and often know better how to use media to improve their lives. On the other hand, the elderly has not grown up with the internet and sometimes do not see the point of it. Furthermore, young and highly educated people benefit most from the internet. They are increasingly able to use the internet for their personal growth. For example, they use digital applications for information, education and career. Low-skilled people use the internet mainly for entertainment such as gaming, chatting, and watching online videos. Also, parents with a migration background and native parents experience the same bottlenecks in the media education of their children. However, there are also differences, parents with a migration background often think that they should watch television and provide videos and explain when necessary. So, they are better prepared to support their child with media use. There are more gaps between the internet and people, like citizen and government, rich and poor etc. 

I find this topic really interesting because my mother also has a migration background, and I know that when I was a child, she found it really difficult to use the internet and the phone. Of course, she knew how to dial her phone, but not how to use a computer, for like sending emails or ordering things. However, as I became older, I’ve been teaching her how to use the internet and for what. It made it easier for her to be independent, because after all, I do believe that everyone needs to know how to use the internet to survive.

Why is it not possible to close the digital divide?

Hanane Ben Abdeslam

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

W10. Human_rights / Lee Se Hyun

Summary Human rights are the basic right to live as a person. This is an absolute domain. Applicable regardless of ethnicity, gender, age, or location and guaranteed by international law. Human rights have been modified and established over a long period of time. From ancient times to the post-World War II international human rights treaties, various changes and considerations continued. Since the 1966 Human Rights Treaty, the concept of human rights has been established and human rights are guaranteed at the international level through the UN, an international organization. Also, various efforts are made to ensure human rights in the community. Human rights organizations are established in continental units such as Africa, America, Asia, and Europe, to strive for the self-reliance of the vulnerable classes and countries. Human beings have studied human rights for a long time. Thus, the theory of human rights exists, and there are various views on human rights. Interesting point ...
Read more

W4. Millennium Development Goals / Lee Se Hyun

Summary The Millennium Development Goals were established under the International Development Goals. Millennium Development Goals, or MDGs, sought 191 U.N. member states and more than 22 international organizations to achieve their goals by 2015. MDGs have promoted the development of the international community. Poverty, hunger eradication, universal education level, gender equality, disease, environment and development of developing countries were targeted. However, it has been criticized for lack of legitimacy, neglect of female inequality in employment, and uneven achievement rate, but it has contributed a lot to many equal development. Interesting point I knew that international politics was carried out in a complex and selfish atmosphere. However, upon encountering the MDGs, I learned that the international community is making great efforts to ensure human rights. Among the MDG criticisms, criticism of women's inequality was interesting. The phenomenon of female ineq...
Read more

What is meant by that? / Lee hayoung

Q. Society is not determined by technology, nor is technology determined by society. Both emerge as two sides of the sociotechnical coin. What is meant by that? A. So to begin with, I think that society and technology are the relationships that influence each other, the concepts that one cannot include or dominate. There is technology in society, and technology exists because there is society. I think it's an inseparable relationship, so I think it can be expressed in both sides of a coin.
Read more