Reader Response 3 (World wakes up to digital divide)

Wakefield (2010) observes that digital divide is becoming a growing concern in the world. In her article, she quotes sources from International Telecommunications Union (ITU) that ranks countries based on their internet connectivity and economic status, to show that the more economically developed countries are the most connected. Reports from New America Foundations (NAF) also propose that the internet usage of a developed nation is not proportionately represented as the rural areas tend to have lesser internet access and usage as compared to the urban cities. The author finds that the less developed countries in Europe, which have noticed this trend of unequal usage in their counties, try to increase their overall access to internet of the rural villages by providing Wi-Fi infrastructure to them. This helps some villagers to improve their lives socially, economically and culturally. However, according to Wakefield, there is a fundamental problem that deters the internet usage in the rural areas to rise significantly. The internet usage is too "sophisticated" for many of the uneducated and poor villagers to comprehend and use. This shortcoming of technology has led me into thinking what are the possible remedies and alternatives we can propose to develop a better living environment for all.

 

To ensure that the underprivileged can also maximise the benefits from the information and communications technology (ICT), the government first has to implement pro-ICT policies, such as technological public education, to equip them with the relevant knowledge needed to fully utilise the technology. However, it is also important for the government to subsidise the pressing survival needs of the less privileged members of the society as they prioritise these needs over the necessity of an access to technology. Looking at the broader picture, these subsidies for basic needs and the technological education are all parts of the government's supporting efforts to increase the usage of ICT among the less educated poor and narrow the digital gap between this disadvantaged group and the rest of the society, so that the lives of all the people can be improved.

I live in a highly economically developed nation with advanced technology, but I also acknowledge the fact that everyone has different resources and abilities. Some of the people are simply too poor to afford either an access to technology or an education that enables them to use these technologies productively. However, Wakefield seems to neglect this fact when she remarks that broadband connectivity will improve the lives of people if they use it effectively. In fact, standing in the shoes of a poor and uneducated villager who lives in the rural area of an economically less developed country, I feel that technology may not be the best contributing factor to improve the lives of these members of the society. I will not deny the fact that technology is a crucial element that has brought prosperity and improvement in living standards to the people of my nation. Yet, such degree of effective improvement in the standards of living is not guaranteed to everyone in my society and the other countries in the world.

According to the Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, 1943), 'needs' have different degrees and layers. Many poor in the developing countries could not even afford their basic needs of survival, such as food and housing. Thus, these poor may feel that technology is one of the irrelevant luxurious 'wants' because it creates an even heavier financial burden to their lives. In fact, the article itself reports that Native Americans who live in the 'barren desert' have to pay more for the Wi-Fi access. In addition, the internet also may provide these less privileged ones with information that will not help to improve their standards of living in a direct and effective manner. This is mainly due to the fact that some of these technologies are simply too expensive for them to use in their daily lives. For instance, telemedicine, which allows patients to receive medical treatment without the need of travelling long distances, is a costly treatment that many poor villagers cannot afford (Hjelm, N. M, 2005).


Some disadvantaged members of the highly developed countries, such as Singapore and America, also have similar financial troubles too. This is because that income disparity is a serious problem in these nations. Despite the high Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, many poor families in Singapore still struggle with their basic needs. However, the Singapore government helps this group of people to cope with the advancing technology by providing them with financial aids and means to obtain the essential knowledge of using ICT. This helps the people to find such technology less alien to comprehend.

Government-subsidised housing, education and healthcare services are examples of the financial aids that the state provides for the less privileged members of the society to meet their fundamental needs. After their basic needs are well taken care of, the people can be educated in ICT with the help from the policies and projects implemented by Ministry of Education and Ministry of Communications and Information. The poor can learn how to operate the computer in IT classes provided in Community Centres (CC) while the young can learn the important technological skill in their educational institutions. Almost all government schools have an E-Learning Day, which requires students to complete their academic work entirely online. One of the significances of this programme is to showcase the schools' effectiveness in imparting IT knowledge to students. Other than the programmes provided by the ministries of Singapore government, the ruling authority also cooperates with the National Library Board to offer low-cost IT courses for the less educated elderly so that they can be more actively involved in the digital world too. These pro-ICT efforts will help the less advantaged members of the society to gain more knowledge and broaden their horizons.  

 
Though this system is not perfect in allowing all citizens to have an access to the technology, it shows that the authority has taken note of the priority of needs and wants of the people to devise appropriate projects that benefit the people. Although the access to ICT may not be the top priority of the less privileged members of the society, I agree with Wakefield’s view about the positive impact of effective usage of internet. This is probably why the government has put in so much effort in implementing these programmes in Singapore. With these schemes, the poor will not be left out in terms technological benefit after their basic needs have been well taken care of.

All in all, it is true that greater usage of technology does improve the lives of people, but it may not be the most useful factor to increase the standards of living of the people, especially the less privileged members of the society, who lack both the financial means for survival and the relevant skills to use such technology meaningfully. In my opinion, knowledge is the key for the poor to climb up the social ladder. This is why I believe that providing technological public education is the most helpful channel to narrow the digital divide and create a better future for the people in the long run; after the government hands out monetary aids to help the poor to meet their basic needs.

References:

Wakefield, J. (2010). World wakes up to digital divide. Retrieved September 10, 2014, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8568681.stm

Maslow, A.H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50 (4), 370–96. Retrieved September 10, 2014, from http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Maslow/motivation.htm

Hjelm, N. M. (2005). Benefits and drawbacks of telemedicine. Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, 11 (2), 60-70

 

 

Essay outline

Main topic area: digital divide between North and South Korea

Main problem identified:  different perspectives towards connecting the outside world (due to economic and political restrictions)

Proposed solution (set): private enterprise, with the backing of foreign political powers, to step in

Proposed Thesis:

I believe that the establishment of ICT infrastructures and IT classes, which was contributed by both the domestic and foreign private enterprise, will provide a potential channel for more North Koreans to change their negative perspective of the digital technology as the foreign political powers provide support for the economic agents to narrow the digital divide between the Korea peninsula that was created due to the restrictive communist policies and poor economic conditions of North Korea.

Reader Response 2 (World wakes up to digital divide)

Wakefield (2010) observes that digital divide is becoming a growing concern in the world. In her article, she quotes sources from International Telecommunications Union (ITU) that ranks countries based on their internet connectivity and economic status, where the more economically developed countries are the most connected. Reports from New America Foundations (NAF) also show that the internet usage of a developed nation is not proportionately represented as the rural areas tend to have lesser internet access and usage as compared to the urban cities. The author found that the less developed countries in Europe, which have noticed this trend of unequal usage, try to increase their countries' access to internet of the rural villages by providing Wi-Fi infrastructure to them. This helps some villagers to improve their lives socially, economically and culturally. However, according to Wakefield, there is a fundamental problem that deters the internet usage in the rural areas to rise significantly. The internet usage is too "sophisticated" for many of the uneducated and poor villagers to comprehend and use. This shortcoming of technology has led me into thinking what are the possible remedies and alternatives we have to develop a better living environment for all.

 

I live in a highly economically developed nation with advanced technology, but I also acknowledge the fact that everyone has different resources and abilities. Some of the people are simply too poor to afford the access to neither technology nor an education that enables them to use these technologies productively. However, Wakefield seems to neglect this fact when she remarks that broadband connectivity will improve the lives of people if they use it effectively. In fact, standing in the shoes of a poor and uneducated villager who lives in the rural area of an economically less developed country, I feel that technology may not be the most influential factor that will improve the lives of these members of the society. I will not deny the fact that technology and internet are crucial elements that have brought prosperity and improvement in the living standards of the people of my country. Yet, such degree of effective improvement in standards of living is not applicable to everyone in my society and other parts of the world.

According to the Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, 1943), 'needs' have different degrees and layers. Many poor in the developing countries could not afford the basic needs for survival, such as food and housing. Technology may then be one of the irrelevant luxurious 'wants' of these poor as it creates an even heavier financial burden to their lives. In fact, the article itself reports that Native Americans who live in the 'barren desert' have to pay more for the Wi-Fi access. In addition, the internet also may provide these less privileged ones with information that will not help to improve their standards of living in a direct and effective manner. This is mainly due to the fact that some of these technologies are simply too expensive for them to use in their daily lives. For instance, telemedicine, which allows patients to receive medical treatment without the need of travelling long distances, is a costly treatment which many poor villagers cannot afford (Hjelm, N. M, 2005).

Such situations are not only relevant in less developed countries; they also surface in highly developed countries, like Singapore and America. In these countries, income disparity is a serious problem in the society. In Singapore, despite the high Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, many poor families still struggle with their basic needs. However, the Singapore government helps this group of people to cope with the advancing technology by providing them with Wi-Fi connection and ways to obtain the knowledge of using this technology. This helps the people to find such technology less alien to comprehend. First of all, the government subsidises housing, education and healthcare service, so that the less privileged members of the society can meet their fundamental needs for survival. After these subsidies are given, the people will receive help in learning the ways to use such technology. The young can learn in their educational institutions while the elderly will be educated on how to operate the computer in classes provided in Community Centres (CC).

Though such system is not perfect in allowing all citizens to have an access to the technology, it shows that the authority has taken note of the priority of needs and wants of the people. Although the access to technology and internet may not be the top priority of the less privileged members of the society, I agree with Wakefield’s view about the positive impact of effective usage of internet. This is probably why the government has implemented those programmes in Singapore to ensure the poor will not be left out in terms technological benefit after their basic needs have been well taken care of.

Instead, the Singapore government focuses efforts on the education. The ruling authority believes that education is the most effective factor in helping all the citizens to improve their quality of life in the long run. Efforts, such as the idea of meritocracy and subsidised education fees, allow all to have an equal opportunity to climb up the social ladder and obtain a better material life for the individuals and their families.

All in all, I believe that effective usage of technology will improve the lives of people in varying degrees, but it may not be the most essential and useful factor to increase the standards of living of the people, especially the less privileged members of the society. Education, in my opinion, with the supplementary use of technology, can create a better future for the people.

References:

Wakefield, J. (2010). World wakes up to digital divide. Retrieved September 10, 2014, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8568681.stm

Maslow, A.H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50 (4), 370–96. Retrieved September 10, 2014, from http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Maslow/motivation.htm

Hjelm, N. M. (2005). Benefits and drawbacks of telemedicine. Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, 11 (2), 60-70

Reflective post- the event that has shaped my life

This event had really impacted me significantly. In fact, I did not realise that this event had such a huge impact on my life after I started to recall it for this blog post.

Just months before my Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), my mum was hospitalized. She was a housewife who spent most of her time taking care of the family members and doing the house chores.

My mum would do her best to teach and supervise my academic work. However, I was an ‘average’ student who was relatively poor in my Mathematics when I was in Primary Six. This upset her greatly as she always excelled Mathematics in her school days.

However, one fine day in July 2007, I could not find her at home after school. My father told me that my mum was hospitalised. Just like any naive 12 years old child would, I thought that my mum would be home in a few days. However, I realised that my mum had to continue her stay in the hospital and no one knew when she could come home.

My mum's five-month long hospitalization had changed me, my way of thinking and my attitude towards studies and life. Emotionally, I am now more sensitive towards others' actions and words and I treasure family more. In terms of school work, I work even harder for my studies, especially Mathematics.

I become the person I am today largely because of the experience that I had went through in my primary six days. However, looking from another point of view, I was glad that I am who I am now, because I will be able to remain strong when I encounter setbacks in the future.

 (edited)

Reader Response 1 (World wakes up to digital divide)

Wakefield (2010) observed that sources from International Telecommunications Union (ITU) ranked countries based on internet connectivity, where the more economically developed countries were the most connected. Reports from New America Foundations (NAF) also showed that the internet usage of a nation was not proportionately represented as the rural areas tend to have lesser internet access and usage. Thus, the less developed countries in Europe tried to increase their countries' access to internet by providing Wi-Fi infrastructure to their suburban villages. This helped some villagers to improve their lives socially, economically and culturally.

 

Although I lived in a highly economically developed nation with advanced technology, I acknowledged the fact that life could never be equal for everyone.  However, Wakefield seemed to neglect this part of the 'reality' when she remarked that broadband connectivity would improve the lives of people if they could use it effectively. Standing in the shoes of a poor and uneducated villager who lived in the rural area of an economically less developed country, I felt that technology might not be the most influential factor that would improve the lives of such members of the society. I would not deny the fact that technology and internet were a crucial element that brought prosperity to my country and improved the quality of life of many Singaporeans. Yet, such degree of effective improvement in standards of living was not applicable to everyone in my society and in all parts of the world.

According to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, 1943), 'needs' had different degrees and layers. However, the basic needs for survival, such as food and housing, were not affordable to the poor in the less developed countries. Hence, for these poor, technology might be one of the irrelevant luxurious 'wants' that created an even heavier financial burden to their lives. In fact, the article itself reported that those Native Americans who lived in the 'barren desert' have to pay more for the Wi-Fi access. In addition, the internet also might provide these less privileged ones with information that would not help to improve their standards of living directly and effectively. This was mainly due to the fact that some of these technologies were too costly for them to afford and use in their daily lives.



Such situations were not only relevant in less developed countries; they also surfaced in highly developed countries, like Singapore and America. In these countries, income disparity was a serious problem in the society. In Singapore, despite the high Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, many poor families still struggled with their basic needs. However, the Singapore government did not let this group of people to cope with the unaffordable advancing technology themselves or provide them with Wi-Fi connection which was too 'sophisticated' for them to comprehend. First of all, the government-subsidized  housing, education and healthcare services were given for the survival of these less privileged members of the society. After these subsidies were given, the people would be educated on the usage of such technology. The young would learn in their educational institutions while the elderly could be educated on how to operate the computer in classes provided in Community Centres (CC).

Though such system was not perfect in allowing all citizens to have an access to the technology, it showed that the authority had taken note of the priority of needs and wants of the people. Although the access to technology and internet might not be at the top of the list for the less privileged members of the society, I agreed with Wakefield’s view about the positive impact of effective usage of internet. This was probably why the government had implemented those programmes in Singapore to ensure the poor would not be left out in terms technological benefit after their basic needs have been well taken care of.  All in all, I believed that effective usage of technology would improve the lives of people in varying degrees, but it might not be the most essential and useful factor to increase the standards of living of the people, especially for the less privileged members of the society.

 

References:

Wakefield, J. (2010, March 19). World wakes up to digital divide. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8568681.stm

Maslow, A.H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review 50 (4) 370–96. Retrieved from http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Maslow/motivation.htm

The Facebook summary

The Ohio report showed that most students who were Facebook users would tend to allocate most of their time on online social networking. This resulted in lesser studying time and impacted their academic results negatively. (Leake and Warren, 2009)

Edited version:
According to Leake and Warren (2009),the researches from the "Ohio Report" found that most university students who were Facebook users would tend to allocate most of their time on online social networking. As a result, they had lesser studying time which impacted their overall academic productivity negatively.

Reference:

Leake, J., & Warren, G. (2009, April 12). Facebook fans do worse in exams. The Sunday Times. Retrieved from http://www.timesonline.co.uk