Following last week's post on Web 2.0 and Social Media I've had a number of occasions to continue to think about how the Internet is transforming our lives and what that means for people who, for reasons ranging from lack of resources to lack of skill to lack of interest are unable to participate in the digital world.
My post generated thoughtful input from library volunteer Sangeeta Dhawan via a comment on the blog, and from PVLD Librarian Phil Wesley via email. Both noted their observations of the challenges some older people face in learning how to use computers and the Internet.
Phil is clearly troubled by what he perceives as a shift by PVLD towards digital operations at the expense of analog - for example we are planning for an eventual move (driven by lack of support for the software and limitations of the technology that make the telephone system error prone) from our telephone notification system to one based entirely on email and text messages - and notes that as an older member of the staff he often experiences older patrons coming to him for help "because you'll understand". He makes the point that commercial enterprises such as his bank and the telephone company have not (at least yet!) mandated that people use computers to access their services and wonders whether libraries should take the lead in this area. Definitely something that I am still chewing on.
Sangeeta uses her parents as an example of how two people of the same generation appraoch learning about technology quite differently, and supports my idea of library staff (or maybe volunteers) as personal guides and coaches offering individual support.
These thoughts were already tumbling around in my head when I went to Sacramento for a meeting on Monday. I am a member of the advisory board for a Gates Foundation grant that the California State Library has received to improve broadband Internet access for California libraries. Other members of the group include representatives of the State Library, the Public Utilities Commission, and the California State Chief Information Officer's staff. It is fascinating to hear their perspectives on the need for high-speed Internet access to support e-government, telemedicine, and online education and I can't help but think that, like it or not, the ability to use digital technology is, despite Phil's comments about commercial enterprises, going to be essential for everyone in the not-too-distant future if only to access government services.
This was reinforced by a conversation with my husband, who manages another local public library, about an interaction he had with one of his patrons. She was in her 60s or so, and was trying to book an airline flight. She had called the airline and been told of a terrific fare, but when she tried to book it she was told it was an "Internet only" fare and she would need to book it online. Not very confident of her skills, she came to the library for help. My husband helped her get onto the library site, but between serving other people and policy restrictions from his library jurisdiction that preclude doing things like entering credit card data for patrons he had to leave her pretty much on her own at that point and to his knowledge she was not able to complete the transaction successfully. Her lack of digital skills meant that she was unable obtain the cheapest flight for her needs.
I've also been thinkg about some different approaches to computer training that we have been using here at PVLD. We have traditionally offered "computer classes" for 6-8 adults at time on topics such as Basic Internet and Email in our computer lab at Peninsula Center Library. These were typically one-time sessions with each topic taught once every week or two by a rotating cast of librarian trainers. Interest in these classes dropped significantly in recent years, and we now only offer them occasionally. We tried a similar approach with research skills classes for students and parents, and found that they just didn't attract participants.
This contrasts with the computer training we introduced at the Miraleste Library last year. Since Miraleste doesn't have a computer lab, the training takes place at the public computer workstations in the library itself before the library opens. Sessions are held every other week, taught by a single staff person who tailors the sessions to meet the needs and skill levels of the students. This training quickly was adopted by a small group of "regulars" who have developed a relationship with the trainer and with each other, and whose skills and confidence grow with each session.
This fall our Young Readers Department introduced another approach that they are calling "A+ Research Skills" . Parents can sign up for individualized training and coaching from a librarian who spends an hour with the parent and child together introducing them to library resources, showing them how to use our online services, and giving them tips on Internet research. The sessions can be adapted based on the age and interests of the student. Unlike with the "class" approach, this has been very popular.
All of this reinforces my thought that there is a role for libraries in providing one-on-one or very small group, individualized coaching and help to people learning to navigate the digital world. For some people whose skills are low or anxiety levels are high, that might mean actually "doing it for them". For others it might mean more training using the Miraleste and A+research models. In either case it means rethinking everything from library policies about how much time to spend with each patron or whether it is ok to enter their credit card data for them, to how we stretch our limited budgets to provide this level of support. My thought on the latter is that, with limited exceptions related to research skills, a library science degree is neither necessary or even helpful and this is a perfect opportunity to tap into the pool of retiring baby boomers.
To close on a less serious note, my trip to Sacramento also reminded me that we really can't generalize that the challenge of learning to navigate the digital world is based on age when Rush Brandis of the State Library shared this article from last weekend's Sacramento Bee. If Marjorie Loyd can learn to use a computer at age 95, and join Facebook at age 98 (and I bet she has way more than the 19 Facebook friends noted in the article by now) then we can't say that gaining digital skills is an older person's problem...not when my mother, who is more than 30 years younger than Marjory, still hasn't learned to send an email!
The challenge for the library is to serve and support both people like my mother, and people like Marjory Loyd...without ignoring the fact that being able to live in the digital world is soon going to be an essential life skill.
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