As young Americans have become the most tech-savvy generation in history, the generations preceding them have not kept pace - to the detriment of their economic and even physical well-being.
Technology literacy remains a critical challenge for mature adults; the Pew Research Center reports that only 42 percent of adults age 65 and over use the Internet, compared to 79 percent of adults overall.
Why is that so vitally important to the health and financial status of mature adults? Consider, first, that every day, more information about Medicare and prescription drug benefits is available online. This information, when understood and applied, can improve older adults' health and finances. But many eligible seniors are not receiving the benefits to which they're entitled -- often because they're unaware of them or lack the skills to apply for them.
Meanwhile, among working adults aged 55 or older, the unemployment rate has more than doubled over the past three years, making the current downturn particularly painful for older Americans. Partly as a result, The National Council on Aging reports that nearly one-third of Americans aged 60 and older are economically insecure, living at or below 200 percent of the poverty level ($21,660 per year for a single person). They face a daily struggle with housing and health care bills, inadequate nutrition, access to transportation, and ever-diminishing savings.
One reason for this situation: Many older adults are struggling to find or keep jobs that require some proficiency with technology but offer little on-the-job training. Job openings are primarily advertised online, and job-seekers need technology skills just to apply. While older employees are rated highly for their judgment, attendance, punctuality and quality consciousness, their lack of computer skills makes them an endangered species in the workplace.
These workers share a great and growing need for training in computer skills. But this training must be tailored to their learning styles, so that it does not leave them even more intimidated, frustrated, and unprepared.
As they address the problems of long-term unemployment and an aging population, Congress should therefore consider how to fine-tune the nation's major skills training and job placement program for older Americans, the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP). The program needs to meet the needs of older workers and retirees in the Information Age.
Established under section 502e of the Older Americans Act, which is on the table for reauthorization this coming year, SCSEP should incorporate the lessons of successful programs for seniors. That is why Rep. William Clay (D-Mo.), with GOP support led by Republican Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-Mo.), has introduced legislation providing for SCSEP to collaborate with national and community service programs, as well as nonprofit workforce training programs with proven track records.
We know older adults can learn these skills. A recent University of Miami study provides evidence of the effectiveness, for example, of the Connections computer and Internet courses offered by OASIS, a St. Louis-based nonprofit. The Connections program uses a well-researched curriculum and proceeds at an appropriate pace for older adults. The University of Miami study found that participants gained both general computer knowledge and more-specific Internet knowledge at levels far surpassing gains by control groups.
The federal government is attempting more and more to invest in what works and ditch what doesn't. Workforce development agencies can better help older adults increase their value in today's challenging job market by using evidence-based programs to help close the technology gap.
There's room for debate about recent calls to raise retirement ages and modify Medicare and Social Security. But as Congress decides on renewing the Older Americans Act, lawmakers from both parties should be able to agree to improve the nation's major training program for older Americans. In the era of laptops, search engines and social networking, older Americans increasingly need the same tools to work, communicate and take care of their health that their children and grandchildren use. Considering their age and the circumstances of today's economy, they may even need them more.
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Are you seeking federal funds? And how long do you think you can use that premise for a business model?
The big key with technology isn't what you know; it's how quickly you can adapt to the next new thing. Training won't necessarily help people if they can't "figure stuff out" on their own.
No-one however clued me in to the fact that employers wouldn't hire 58 year old women in Graphics fields; under the ASS-U-ME- tion that youth were better on the computer........they didn't TRY ME out just didn't hire me. therefore I was forced to take "early" SS Widow's Pension, locking myself into 2/3rds of my husbands income of the 80's................FOR ETERNITY! Forget the student loan payments! Yes they a can garnish my SS income sole source of living income!
Tell me how computer "training " is going to help!
I got my Grandchildren started in their techy knowledge!~ They call me Techy Gramme!
Thanks for the names of the politicians I need to contact!
I understand your frustration.
NOT THE LACK OF TRAINING!
I've been through 3 THREE computers, in the last decade, because the for profit corporations in the tech field, Yes GATES JOBS, & the CEO's at HP, yeh remember her,? Fiorino?
Adobe,Corel, etc etc.......KEEP UPGRADING, making older equipment obsolete!
I just got my SS income statement for 2011.....$891. per month, same as 2009,'10..They couldn't even ROUND IT OFF TO $900.? That's only $ 108.00 for the entire year............Just $18.00 more than I spend EVERY 2 MONTHS AT STAPLES FOR PRINTER INK! That is $540. for the year......
I have to say that the over 50 gen that were not involved in a technical field are at a disadvantage. I have seen quite a few that one finger type.
That said, I sympathize - we let all the manufacturing jobs go and it sucked the life out of our economy in all areas. We bought the globalization is inevitable cool-aid and here we are. It seems like the only thing we export is violence.
We need to think of an economy as an ecosystem. You need a diverse economy to have a healthy one. And if that means subsidizing manufacturing with tax dollars, it would be money better spent than propping up banks and invading countries.
I stopped applying for jobs and rely on freelancing now, because I never got called for an interview.
You can give us the tools to escape from a box, but you also have to give us a reason to want to get out.
And I don't mind helping the most computer illiterate person one bit as long as they try, I love to teach people. But the ones who take a defeatist "I can't learn anything about computers" attitude are very irritating. Especially due to the fact that their job requires at least basic computer literacy. It's actually surprising how much computer illiteracy is still tolerated, considering PCs have been around since the 80's. We have people in our corporate office who can barely use excel, word, and outlook. I often wonder how these people got a job and why are we still employing them. Because their training issues are a drain on IT resources, and we have better things we could be doing.
Anyone who truly wants to learn about computers can, the problem is some peoples lack of desire to learn.
Many of the long-term unemployed no longer have the resources to land or keep a private-sector job it's time for the government to step in and make them employable again. Anyone that knows how to work an Excel spreadsheet can do this.
Now if we would just help the unemployed by fixing the infrastructure but not in the way that comes to mind. The movement of government documents from unstructured to structured and the creation of EHR for all medical records are highly labor intensive jobs that require XML but can be learned quickly by the unemployed, the creation of these would provide on the job training, could be done on second or third shift using the computers at our schools and since XML is the next large productivity tool for small and medium size businesses over the next decade the experience is needed by private industry.
Under the current $42,000 for Doctor's offices to convert to electronic records most of the work would be done in India depriving America of a much needed middle-class skill set because categorizing information, XML and information is a growing industry.”
Computers in a central location like the library can be helpful for those with enough initiative and intelligence to pursue their options.
People over 65 are not worried about finding a job because most of them are retired.
Many retired people are not in such good health and so high stress is discouraged by medical doctors. Plunging older Americans into an unfamiliar world is high stress (unless they are already accustomed to using the internet).