Reader Response Draft 3 (World wakes up to digital divide)

In the article “World wakes up to digital divide”, Wakefield (2010) states that digital divide has become a global concern. Statistics from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) shows that there is a widening gap between countries that have access to the Internet and countries that do not. The author believes that digital divide is correlated to the economic status of the countries. In response to the divide, less developed countries have been implementing wi-fi village programmes to reach out to users in rural villages. Wakefield (2010) also mentions that by gaining access to the Internet, the minorities will benefit in various aspects such as keeping in touch with their culture and also receiving specialized online healthcare services. However, it is asserted in the article that minorities will only gain advantage from the Internet if they are equipped with the knowledge on how to use it.

In Malaysia, the disparity in internet usage between urban and rural areas appears to be less distinct. In urban areas of Malaysia, 66 percent of youths use the Internet, while in the rural area, 56 percent of the youths use the Internet (Azhar, 2012). At a national internet penetration rate of over 60 percent (Azhar, 2012), it seems that the country’s initiatives to reach out to the rural community residents have been proven effective to a certain extent. However, the speed of Internet connection and the high costs of maintenance services of digital devices remains a major obstacle in bridging the digital divide in Malaysia. Just as Wakefield (2010) has mentioned, a more comprehensive approach has to be taken to address the digital divide. In my opinion, to achieve greater results in narrowing the digital divide in Malaysia, the Malaysian government should improve the quality of the internet service and reduce the costs of maintenance services of digital devices provided to its citizens, especially those living in rural areas.  

At an internet speed “almost three times slower than Vietnam”(Chin, 2014), the efficiency of using the Internet in Malaysia is largely reduced. As a result, the benefits of getting connected to the Internet are not optimized. Even though the internet appears to be available in many areas of the country, such dissatisfying speed diminishes the efforts of the government to bridge the rural-urban digital divide as it makes the Malaysian citizens less willing to use the Internet in their daily lives. Therefore, the Malaysian government should improve the quality of the internet service provided to its citizens, especially the rural population, such as allocating more funds to the installation of high-speed broadband services throughout the country. A faster internet speed is essential as it not only will benefit those who are already online, but it will also promote the usage of internet among those who are not yet connected.

Furthermore, making low cost maintenance services available in remote communities is yet another action that is of paramount importance in encouraging the usage of internet in rural areas of Malaysia. The provision of the necessary digital infrastructure to rural population is only the first step of narrowing the digital divide. Who should the rural population approach when they encounter problems regarding the high technology devices or the internet? The Malaysian government can set up maintenance centers in rural areas that provide low cost or even free services to citizens in these areas for maintaining their digital devices, so that the remote communities will not end up with the conclusion that “getting connected” is too costly and sophisticated a matter for them to be involved in. Without consistent services to help the rural population in maintaining and repairing their devices, the purposes of getting them connected will be considerably harder to achieve.

In a nutshell, I agree with the author’s stand that a more holistic effort should be taken so that more people that are currently offline will get connected, only then will the rural population benefit more from using the internet. Implementing efforts such as ensuring the good quality of the internet and providing rural population with low cost maintenance services is not only important in Malaysia, but also in other countries. With Malaysia as an example, governments that are trying to narrow the widening gap of internet access between rural and urban regions should make their efforts more comprehensive in order to achieve better results in this aspect.

References:

Chin, C. (2014, May 4) Speed slower than Vietnam and Cambodia. The Star Online. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/05/04/Our-Internet-not-so-broadband-after-all-Speed-slower-than-Vietnam-and-Cambodia/

Nur Azrina Azhar(2012, December 19) Malaysian youth: connected yet cautious. The Asia Foundation. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2012/12/19/malaysian-youth-connected-yet-cautious/

Wakefield, J. (2010, March 19) World wakes up to digital divide. BBC News. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8568681.stm

Reader Response Draft 2 (World wakes up to digital divide)

In the article “World wakes up to digital divide”, Wakefield (2010) states that digital divide has become a global concern. Statistics from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) shows that there is a widening gap between countries that have access to the Internet and countries that do not. The author believes that digital divide is correlated to the economic status of the countries. In response to the divide, less developed countries have been implementing wi-fi village programmes to reach out to users in rural villages. It is also mentioned in the article that by gaining access to the Internet, the minorities will benefit in various aspects such as keeping in touch with their culture and also receiving specialized online healthcare services. However, minorities will only gain advantage from the Internet if they are equipped with the knowledge on how to use it.

According to the article, a more comprehensive approach has to be taken to address the digital divide, as this will definitely benefit people living in remote areas(Wakefield, 2010). In my opinion, what matters the most in bridging the digital divide is truly the extent and consistency of the effort paid. For example, in Malaysia, the disparity in internet usage between urban and rural areas appears to be less distinct. In urban areas of Malaysia, 66 percent of youths use the Internet, while in the rural area, 56 percent of the youths use the Internet (Azhar, 2012). At a national internet penetration rate of over 60 percent (Azhar, 2012), it seems that the country’s initiatives to reach out to the rural community residents has been proven effective to a certain extent.

However, despite the seemingly narrowing digital divide across the country, the speed of Internet connection remains a major obstacle in the Internet usage of Malaysians. At an internet speed “almost three times slower than Vietnam”(Chin, 2014), the efficiency of using the Internet in Malaysia is largely reduced. As a result, the benefits of getting connected to the Internet are not optimized. Even though the internet appears to be available in many areas of the country, such dissatisfying speed diminishes the efforts of the government to bridge the rural-urban digital divide as it makes the Malaysian citizens less willing to use the Internet in their daily lives. To achieve greater results in narrowing the digital divide, the Malaysian government should improve the quality of the internet service provided to its citizens, especially those living in rural areas. A faster internet speed is essential as it not only will benefit those who are already online, but it will also promote the usage of internet among those who are not yet connected.

Furthermore, making low cost maintenance services available in remote communities is yet another action that is of paramount importance in encouraging the usage of internet in rural areas of Malaysia. The provision of the necessary digital infrastructure to rural population is only the first step of narrowing the digital divide. Who should the rural population approach when they encounter problems regarding the high technology devices or the internet? These problems ought to be addressed to so that the remote communities will not end up with the conclusion that “getting connected” is too costly and sophisticated a matter for them to be involved in. Without consistent services to help the rural population in maintaining and repairing their devices, the purposes of getting them connected will be considerably harder to achieve.

Therefore, I agree with the author’s stand that a more holistic effort should be taken so that more people that are currently offline will get connected. Only then will the rural population benefit more from using the internet. With Malaysia as an example, governments that are trying to narrow the widening gap of internet access between rural and urban regions should make their efforts more long lasting in order to achieve better results in this aspect.

References:

Chin, C. (2014, May 4) Speed slower than Vietnam and Cambodia. The Star Online. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/05/04/Our-Internet-not-so-broadband-after-all-Speed-slower-than-Vietnam-and-Cambodia/

Nur Azrina Azhar(2012, December 19) Malaysian youth: connected yet cautious. The Asia Foundation. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2012/12/19/malaysian-youth-connected-yet-cautious/

Wakefield, J. (2010, March 19) World wakes up to digital divide. BBC News. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8568681.stm

An event that has shaped my life

Life is not always a bed of roses. Although there have been ups and downs in my life, I have never encountered any major setbacks that made me feel depressed, not before October 2010.

Watching your loved one suffer in pain is one of the most awful experience you could ever have. However, accidents are always happening in every corner of the world, making millions of innocent people suffer. In October 2010, my parents and I were involved in a car accident. The accident took away my mother’s leg, and at the same time it took away her freedom to do everything a normal person can do. It was a misery for my entire family, yet my mother’s attitude surprised everyone of us. Despite the pain and loss that she had undergone, she remained strong and cheerful, reluctant to succumb to the harsh fate.

From that moment onwards, I was strongly motivated by my mother to hold to that fighting spirit in life. Be it in my studies or in my everyday life, I never gave up easily as I would always think to myself that “if my mother could overcome the sadness and pain in that heartbreaking event, why can’t I do the same?”. Such spirit has truly helped me in my life journey as whenever I put up a strong fight to a tough obstacle, I gain in many different ways and also feel a sense of accomplishment.

I am proud of my mother and I really thank her for being such a role model for me to learn from. Although I would never forget the sadness that I went through during that accident, what really changed me is actually the spirit of never giving up no matter how harsh the circumstances are.

Reader Response Draft 1

In the article “World wakes up to digital divide”, Wakefield (2010) states that digital divide has become a global concern. Statistics from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) shows that there is a widening gap between countries that have access to the Internet and countries that do not. This digital divide is correlated to the economic status of the countries. In response to the divide, less developed countries have been implementing wi-fi village programmes to reach out to users in rural villages. By gaining access to the Internet, the minorities will benefit in various aspects such as keeping in touch with their culture and also receiving specialized online healthcare services. However, minorities will only gain advantage from the Internet if they are equipped with the knowledge on how to use it.

It is asserted in the article that people living in remote areas will definitely benefit from gaining access to the Internet, as long as a more comprehensive approach is taken to provide them with the necessary tools and skills(Wakefield, 2010). In my opinion, what matters the most in bridging the digital divide is truly the extent and consistency of the effort paid. For example, in Malaysia, the disparity in internet usage between urban and rural areas appears to be less distinct. In urban areas of Malaysia, 66 percent of youths use the Internet, while in the rural area, 56 percent of the youths use the Internet (Azhar, 2012). At a national internet penetration rate of over 60 percent(Azhar, 2012), it seems that the country’s initiatives to reach out to the rural community residents has been proven effective to a certain extent.

However, despite the seemingly narrowing digital divide across the country, the speed of Internet connection remains a major obstacle in the Internet usage of Malaysians. At an internet speed almost three times slower than Vietnam(Chin, 2014), the efficiency of using the Internet in Malaysia is largely reduced. As a result, the benefits of getting connected to the Internet are not optimized. Even though the internet appears to be available in many areas of the country, such dissatisfying speed diminishes the efforts of the government to bridge the rural-urban digital divide as it makes the Malaysian citizens less willing to use the Internet in their daily lives.

Furthermore, making low cost maintenance services available in remote communities is yet another action that is of paramount importance in encouraging the usage of internet in rural areas of Malaysia. The provision of the necessary digital infrastructure to rural population is only the first step of narrowing the digital divide. Who should the rural population approach when they encounter problems regarding the high technology devices or the internet? These problems ought to be addressed to so that the remote communities will not end up with the conclusion that “getting connected” is too costly and sophisticated a matter for them to be involved in. Without consistent services to help the rural population in maintaining and repairing their devices, the purposes of getting them connected will be considerably harder to achieve.

Therefore, I agree with the author’s stand that a more comprehensive effort should be taken so that more people that are currently offline will get connected. Only then will the rural population benefit more from using the internet. With Malaysia as an example, governments that are trying to narrow the widening gap of internet access between rural and urban regions should make their efforts more long lasting in order to achieve better results in this aspect.

References:

Wakefield, J. (2010, March 19) World wakes up to digital divide. BBC News. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8568681.stm

Chin, C. (2014), Speed slower than Vietnam and Cambodia. The Star Online. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/05/04/Our-Internet-not-so-broadband-after-all-Speed-slower-than-Vietnam-and-Cambodia/

Azhar Nur Azrina(2012, December 19) Malaysian youth: connected yet cautious. The Asia Foundation. Retrieved 7 September, 2014, from http://asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2012/12/19/malaysian-youth-connected-yet-cautious/

Summary of the Facebook article

According to Leake and Warren (2009), the Ohio report found that students who spent a significant amount of time on Facebook neglected their studies, which caused them to fare worse in exams than their peers who did not.

Reference:
Leake, J., & Warren, G. (2009, April 12). Facebook fans do worse in exams. The Sunday Times. Retrieved from http://www.timesonline.co.uk 

My English Language Learning Journey

English was the first language that I learnt when I was young. As a child, I enjoyed reading English storybooks under the influence of my parents. A large portion of my current English vocabulary and grammar was built up through those readings. As a result, English was always the easiest subject for me when I was in primary school.

However, after I was enrolled in a Chinese primary school and got used to the environment, I started to fear speaking in English. I rarely approached my father during my primary school and even high school days because he wanted my siblings and I to speak to him in English. Whenever I uttered out a sentence that was grammatically incorrect, he would point out my mistake immediately. I was afraid of making such mistakes at that time, but eventually I came to realize that these conversations played an important role in shaping my grammar foundation in English.

I continued my studies in a Chinese independent high school. During my high school days, we spent most of the time learning verb tenses and doing “fill in the blanks” exercises in our English classes. Essays were written almost on a monthly basis. In addition to that, I stopped reading English books and emphasized more on Science and Mathematics subjects. My English proficiency level has actually dropped due to my lack of exposure to English. I always take a long time to finish my English essays. I find it difficult to recall certain words in English as well. Even though I knew that communicating and writing in English is important, I never took the effort to polish up my English.

Therefore, I actually feel happy to take up this module. I hope to improve in both writing and speaking skills after taking this module, as it will definitely help in my university studies as well. At the same time, I also feel a little stressful to be in a class where I am the only non-Singaporean. I hope that my peers will not mind my poor English language skills and do point out when I make mistakes! May this new journey of English language learning be a fruitful and enjoyable one!

Edited on 28 August.