PowerPoint Presentation

Marina Moguillansky (CONICET-UNSAM, Argentina)Youth, technologies and inequalitiesBy 2010, only 50 % of Argentinas population used a computer and Internet

Users were mainly young white middle class men living in cities.

Access was unevenly distributed according to social class, gender, age and region.

BackgroundYoung as digital natives (Prensky, Castells)So inequalities should dissapear in timeBut they didnt

Digital inequalities persist and even growEntangled with social and gender inequalitiesThey produce exclusions specially among young people

Insights digital inequalities2010, Argentina Connecting Equality ProgramOne Laptop per ChildNetbooks for every student in public secondary schoolsApproximately 4 millionAnd Internet for every school

Can policies change inequality patterns?ICT PoliciesLa Plata, Argentina

School 1: public, middle class, high performanceSchool 2: public, low class, low performance

ObservationsExploratory interviews (40)Life stories (8)Methodology Lives with parents and has 6 brothers and sistersMother works in cleaning / father not workingParents are illiterate Rodrigo works at a sawmill when he is not at schoolHe repeated 4th yearOnly computer at home from PCINo Internet at homeRodrigo, School 2, working classThe first time I saw a computer was at a cybercaf, I was 14 years old and my brother took me. I didnt know what a mousse or a keyboard were. I felt like a monkey at the begining. Then we started playing and the attendant helped me and taught me. () I was so happy when I got the netbook!!! It was awsome, a computer for my own. Im teaching my parents to use it, but since they cant read or write, its difficult. In the future I would like to be a policemanthe computer will be very useful to find information (Rodrigo, School 2, 17 years)Rodrigo / Male Low classFamily comes from Chaco (North of Argentina), internal migrantsParents separated, she lives with her mother who works at the Municipality and his father works in politics. She has three brothers. She works at a bar.She repeated twiceThere is a desk computer at home and the netbook from PCI; yhey hired Internet recentlyFernanda, School 2, working classMy parents didnt want me to go to the cyber, but I went anyway, I was very young, maybe 12 or 13. I went with a friend and I didnt understand a thing, I was bored. The attendant made a Hotmail for me, then a friend helped me. After that, I got the netbook from the PCI, we hired Internet at home, and for some time I used Facebook, I was almost addicted, but Im not any more. The computer is like a television where people gossip about your life. Its a waste of time. Now that Ill be a mother I have closed the Facebook and wont use any more the computer (Fernanda, School 2, 19 years) Fernanda / Female Low ClassMy father is a fan of technology. He had a Playstation that was at home from when I can remember and then he gave it to me. I used to play with him a lot. There has always been a computer at home, since I was born. I was maybe 5 years old, my mom was working with the computer and I wanted to imitate her, so whenever I could, I would use her computer and try things then a few years later they bought a computer for me and my brother, and then I had my own. I started using the chat when I was 8. In the future I want to study PsicologyI think the computer will not be so usefull, maybe to find info about the career (Alejandra, School 1, 16 years)Alejandra / Female Middle ClassTecno-biographiesLow class females

Low class malesMiddle class FemalesMiddle class malesAge and place of first access12-14 cyber8-14 cyber5-8 home5-8 homeLearningCyberSchoolCyberSchool AutodidactSchoolAutodidactSelf-explorationPersonal devices16 netbook through PCI14 cell phone16 netbook through PCI14 cell phone12 first cell phone and computer12 first cell phone and computerDigital skillsCommunicative and creativeTechnical, ludic, communica-tiveCommunicative and creativeTechnical, ludic, operational, strategic, creativeCan policies change digital inequalities?

- Reduced access divide- Social inclusion for low class youth- Some democratization of digital skills, but still unequal- Cant keep the markets pace- Gender inequalities persist- Appropriation only in extraordinary cases among low classThanks for your attention!