Bridging the Gap - example of initiatives

Research initiatives to fund the digital divide

Intro:
Choose one of the projects described previously
What is its purpose?
How does it relate to the digital divide?
Who are its main target clients?
What are its strengths and weaknesses?
What improvements could be made?

Answer:
I have chosen the "Learn Direct" Campaign
The main purpose of "Learn Direct" is to teach adults how to use I.C.T, in schools, libraries and colleges.

Learn Direct is trying to bridge the digital divide by teaching adults how to use basic I.C.T. such as word documents and spreadsheets. You can also do qualifications which bridge the digital divide again.

Learn Direct's main targets are mostly adults, mainly mums who are out of work who need a certificate in I.C.T. Also, retired people may be interested in doing the course if they have spare time on thier hands.

The strengths of Learn Direct is the fact that the hours are fairly flexible meaning you can do the course at any time and for how long you want to do it for. Also, you can work it around to suit your hours, for example, a mum could do the course while her children were at school, and end the session in time to pick them up from school again. The weaknesses to Learn Direct is the fact that it is mainly self taught online. This means that if people are completly incapable of using computers they may struggle with the courses. Also, the course is only online meaning if you don't have access to a computer at home, you can do the course at home.

An improvement to the course may be to do an exam at the end. This tests your knowledge of the course fully rather than just getting a certificate that you have completed the course. They could also may courses more teacher based meaning participants will get more from the course rather than whats just on the screen.

Research your local community I.C.T. Access

Intro: Research the provision of I.C.T. in the community of your home town.

Answer: The dis-advantaged groups who will benefit the most from having access to digital technologies are the homeless and un-employed. These two examples are usually caused by a lack of money thus resulting in the fact that they may not be able to afford any digital technologies at all. In stubbington, the vast majority of people who have access to the internet are between ages 12-50. Also, people with jobs are more likely to have access to digital technologies. However, people who can afford them yet choose not but them are the elderly because they arn't educated in how to use many digital technologies. Stubbington Library provides internet access and computers so people can use the digital technologies, even if they can't afford them. Because libraries are free, un-employed and homeless can also gain access to them.

Investigate I.C.T. at your Library

Intro: What does your local library have to offer in terms of internet access?

Why and How is the I.C.T. used?

How convenient is it?
What, if any, has there been an impact on library life?

Answer: Stubbington library has 8 public computers with free internet access.
I.C.T. is used to give an opertunity for people to come in and do work or have access to the internet free of charge, if you have a library card. They I.C.T. is free when the library is open for anyone to use. It is fairly convenient as it is situated not far from the main stubbington village meaning people can shop, then come and use I.C.T. in the library. I.C.T. may have resulted in more people coming into the library because of the different feature that I.C.T. can result in.

Case Study - Wifi in the UK

Find out about WLANs

Intro: Where are these projects mainly located? Why have they been created? What groups do they serve and in what way? Have they, and/or will they have any impact on the digital divide?

Answer: WLAN projects are mainly located in cities around the world. Most of which are situated in the U.K. Most of the people in these towns and cities wish to have free internet access but some are also willing to pay or, there isn't enough good quality internet access for the locals to use.

WLAN projects have been set up and created because there is a lack of good quality internet access in the specific area.

WLAN projects mainly serve the local communities of towns or cities, however they also serve anyone visiting the area because they would be intilited to use the WLAN.

This project tackles the digital divide as it provides an opertunity to for people to connect to the internet.

URL: http://www.wlan.org.uk/