Living in this world today with the digital technology the world has available to people makes life a lot easier. Smart phones and wireless internet keeps people in contact with the world 24 hours a day.
Does it make life easier? Keeping up with current technology can be very daunting to some people and can take time to get to know how it works. Not everyone is tech savvy. New technology can also be expensive and is out of reach to some people. A computer that is 5 year old may be obsolete and will not support new programs or applications that are available today. (Howell, 2012). Mobile phones now are a mini computer that needs a fast internet connection to be able to use the applications.
“In 2012–13, 83% of persons were internet users. Those persons in the 15 to 17 years age group had the highest proportion of internet users (at 97%) compared to the older persons age group (65 or over) with the lowest proportion of internet users (at 46%).” (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2014)
Today’s younger generation have been brought up with technology where as the older generation may not use social media or SMS as much may be the reason behind older people not using digital technology as much.
Indigenous Australians who live in remote area’s of Australia also have restrictive access to digital technology. Not only are do they miss out on the speed of communication and access to information but also with the opportunities that come with that. “HITnet, an Australian social enterprise, has implemented a solution and has rolled out touch screen kiosks in 70 Indigenous communities across the country, placed in central community areas.” (Param, 2015)
References
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2014) Household Use of Information Technology, Australia, 2012-13. Retrieved from http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/8146.0Chapter32012-13
Param, K. (2015) Bridging the digital divide in Indigenous communities. The University of Melbourne. Retrieved from http://voice.unimelb.edu.au/volume-11/number-2/bridging-digital-divide-indigenous-communities
Howell, J (2012) Teaching with ICT. Melbourne. (P56) Victoria. Oxford University Press.
Nicole Smith 