http://techpaladin.com/2009/03/05/that-word-%e2%80%94-i-do-not-think-it-means-what-you-think-it-means/ Fri, 09 Jul 2010 06:47:46 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8 hourly 1 http://techpaladin.com/2009/03/05/that-word-%e2%80%94-i-do-not-think-it-means-what-you-think-it-means/comment-page-1/#comment-293 Amwe Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:33:23 +0000 http://techpaladin.com/?p=249#comment-293 Yes--but it's not exactly that people with (supposed) access to technology "choose" not to use it--it's more that what appears to be physical access is impeded by lack of cultural/political/transportational/economic access to it. For example, if the only place to check the web is the library, and there's no public library nearby--and the library seems to be a place for rich, old, white women--a young, poor, black teen may not feel think of going to the trouble of walking far, or taking a bus, to get to the library. And if high school classes don't teach good skills on how to surf the web, and it's humiliating to ask a librarian for basic help, that same teen may feel further disempowered. Yes, we can say the teen isn't "choosing" to take advantage of what's, in theory, available. But "choice" isn't just about what's physically available. It's also about what's psychologically and culturally available. That's a bit of what's behind the comment that "education is everything." And, hear, hear--like everything else, as you say, the symptoms will only disappear when the cause is addressed. Mostly, that's poverty (causing unequal access to resources) plus a healthy dose of old-fashioned cultural stereotypes feeding fear on both sides of the "digital divide." Yes–but it’s not exactly that people with (supposed) access to technology “choose” not to use it–it’s more that what appears to be physical access is impeded by lack of cultural/political/transportational/economic access to it.
For example, if the only place to check the web is the library, and there’s no public library nearby–and the library seems to be a place for rich, old, white women–a young, poor, black teen may not feel think of going to the trouble of walking far, or taking a bus, to get to the library.
And if high school classes don’t teach good skills on how to surf the web, and it’s humiliating to ask a librarian for basic help, that same teen may feel further disempowered.
Yes, we can say the teen isn’t “choosing” to take advantage of what’s, in theory, available. But “choice” isn’t just about what’s physically available. It’s also about what’s psychologically and culturally available. That’s a bit of what’s behind the comment that “education is everything.” And, hear, hear–like everything else, as you say, the symptoms will only disappear when the cause is addressed. Mostly, that’s poverty (causing unequal access to resources) plus a healthy dose of old-fashioned cultural stereotypes feeding fear on both sides of the “digital divide.”

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