Encouraging the digital economy and digital citizenship

Article 4.

Missingham, R. (2009). Encouraging the digital economy and digital citizenship.
Australian Library Journal, 58(4), 386-399.



SUMMARY

Probing into a range of issues including the digital divide Roxanne Missingham is writing from an Australian point of view. To her being active an Australian citizen means being able to participate in the digital environment. She asks what can libraries do to ensure equal access to valuable information online? Missingham also goes part why to explain one response, an Australian project that is a response to this question, Electronic Resources Australia at http://era.nla.gov.au

Missingham provides detailed comparisons with other OECD countries that do not show Australia in a favourable light in terms of internet access. We have long way to go, she concludes that “…widespread, affordable access to broadband and internet content is not yet with us” [p.388] One of the major digital divides in Australia in rural versus metropolitan internet access as well as those on low incomes, people with disabilities, those with limited education or whose first language isn’t English. The explanations for this disparity include set-up and access costs, lack of physical access, lack of skills, confidence or training and privacy concerns.

Ascertaining the value of what one finds through the internet can be a challenge. This is where the role of the librarian as knowledge specialist can still come into play. Free resources can vary greatly in quality and many reliable resources are fee based. Electronic Resources Australia is the response of Environment, Communications, Information Technology and the Arts References Committee, established in 2003 to address such content and connectivity issues. The article discusses the planning process of the committee and the implementation of ERA, what libraries are involved and what types of content will be available.



REVIEW
Missinghham spends the first half of her discussion to the disparity of access to the internet in metropolitan areas versus rural areas. Commendable, as it is the only article that has been reviewed here that emphasizes the digital divide and the importance of access and infrastructure. Rural communities often cannot access some sites due to the slow speed of the connection. PDF files time out, videos cannot be played and graphic rich pages load slowly and with difficulty. (Missingham, 2009, p.388) In this environment emails can be difficult to send as well, with pages crashing before the email can be sent or taking far too long to send. How can one access information resources in such an environment. Missingham’s coverage of this area and the statistics that back it up is done with depth and perception. She sees beyond the infrastructure problem, although that cannot be dismissed either, to cover other areas of disadvantage that may be social or economical.

The core of the article outlines the process by which ERA came into being as a response to the need for access to quality information. ERA is a collaborative effort that encompasses some of the principles of Web 2.0. It is admirable effort to have an Australian specific gateway to information on topics such as education, health, government and legal information.

The aim of ERA is according to their website is “… to provide Australians with easy access to a variety of trusted subscription information online sources via their library.
In an era of the Internet and ever-expanding electronic services, direct and immediate access to online information is fundamental to a well-informed, educated, economically competitive and democratic society. Libraries must compete not only for funds but also significance and anything that can assist with savings and bringing authoritative resources to their customers is both extremely important and highly appealing.” [ERA, 2010] Missngham makes an important connection between this goal and the impact such a project has in ensuring critical literacy skills in the wider community are developed [p.395].

Missingham’s connection to Web 2.0 embraces a similar idea about access to Maness (2006) who sees library 2.0 aligning with the traditional missions of libraries. That is to enable access to information across society and the sharing of that information “Web 2.0 and libraries are well suited for marriage” [p. 9]. Maness, however, goes further in appreciating the potential of Web 2.0 and ideas do seem outdated even though the article was written in 2006. He talks of mashups, hybrid applications, tagging, blogs, wikis, a user-centered and user-driven philosophy [p.8] and envisions the library as a social network itself [p.7]

Libraries are becoming information portals that are much more collaborative. In ERA one can see the increase in the importance of our role as repositories of history and facilitators of knowledge.

For a further look at the digital divide in rural and regional Australia see the following article
By Jennifer Curtin of the Parliament of Australia Parlimentary Library

http://www.aph.gov.au/library/Pubs/CIB/2001-02/02cib01.htm