My thoughts
Throughout researching this topic I have realised how important internet access is and how this access dramatically affects people’s everyday lives. Having researched digital differences and after viewing my peer’s thoughts, I feel as if I have gained a deeper understanding of inequalities that exist and how this affects many people’s lives on a national or international scale . This is something that I have not really thought about before.
This map shows the variation in internet usage across the world- Source blogspot
Solving the digital divide
However, after reading Tewsdae’s blog I realised that access to the internet does not necessarily guarantee an improvement of in equality. Tewsdae used an interesting example of internet cafes. Whilst internet cafes have improved people’s education and skills, however others have promoted unethical use. (Furuholt & Kristiansen, 2007)I found this point very thought-provoking.
Disabilities and the digital divide
After reading Nathaniel’s comment on my blog I realised that I had not considered how disabilities may affect people’s access and use of the internet. Nathaniel linked my an article which explained that a lady with anxiety and depression learned to use a computer in order to keep in contact with her family, this helped her feel less isolated.
However, using a computer is still something that many disabled people struggle with. According to the Office for National Statistics, in 2015, 27% of disabled adults had never used the internet, compared to 11% of non-disabled adults. This shows that there is still a digital divide between disabled and non-disabled people and I believe this is something that is important to reduce in the future.
Conclusion
Overall, I feel as if I have learned a lot whilst researching this topic and reading my peer’s thoughts has opened my eyes to other aspects of the digital divide that I had not previously thought of.
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http://infyinsy.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/facts-about-africa-internet.html
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