THE DIGITAL DIVIDE: COMPUTER USE, BASIC SKILLS AND EMPLOYMENT



2 RESEARCH SUMMARY

INTRODUCTION

The context of this comparative study is the rising
importance of the use of and access to computers
as part of contemporary employability. In turn
computing skills, increasingly referred to as
Information and Communications Technology (ICT)
or ‘digital’ skills, also connect with the basic skills
of literacy and numeracy. There are consequently
divides between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’, in
relation to digital skills, basic skills and
employment. It was these three divides that the
study set out to investigate in the North American
and British context.

At the core of the processes creating these divides
is educational attainment. High educational
achievers - i.e. those on the positive side of each
divide in both countries - tend to show the highest
literacy and numeracy levels as well. Those on the
negative side tend to show the lowest levels, with
poor literacy proficiency a crucial factor.

In the USA a consequence of poor educational
progress in the early years is likely to be failure to
complete high school, with drop out at any age
from 15 onwards, depending on the minimum
school-leaving age, which differs from state to
state. A second chance to achieve high school
credentials comes through the General Education
Diploma (GED). Rather than return to high school
to graduate in the conventional way or, in the case
of immigrants, start high school from scratch,
adults can attend adult education classes in
preparation for the GED. The provision will often
include significant literacy and numeracy
components as core foundations of the curriculum
to follow. The GED is meant to supply the student
with a platform for employment equivalent to the
high school graduation certificate.

In England policy concern focuses on the
increasing difficulty young people with poor skills
often have in gaining and sustaining employment in
the contemporary labour market. In UK terms this
is typically characterised as six months or more
between the ages 16 to 18 ‘Not in Education,
Employment or Training (NEET)’. Hence, poor
literacy and, increasingly, lack of digital
competence can lead to marginalisation and social
exclusion. Basic skills courses in colleges or
workplaces may supply a route back into education
for some but usually not until their twenties.



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