A new digital literacy program is trying to make the internet a little less scary for those learning to use it.
You can’t do much these days without at least a working knowledge of the internet, but many people are missing those skills.
The Community Sector Council of Newfoundland & Labrador is offering a Digital Literacy Program called “techKNOWtutors”. Coordinator and trainer with the program, Jeff Hilyard says they’re offering training sessions on how to use the internet to improve day-to-day lives.
He says even something as simple as renewing your drivers licence, for the most part, needs to be done online. You need to use the internet, and if you do not know how to open a browser it can be a huge barrier.
Hilyard says there are plenty of drop-in sessions where people can bring in their devices and learn how to use them. He adds that they see mostly seniors or “near” seniors.
He says fear of the internet is a big issue. Hilyard says the biggest thing they do is make the internet not so scary as there are a lot of people out there who have the ability, yet are terrified to use their device.