The digital divide is generally defined as the rift between those who have access to the internet and associated technologies with those who have no such access. While subscribing to such a definition I propose that the divide should also be seen from other perspectives as well. There is also a divide between those who make a balanced used of these technologies and those who do not. One should also consider the divide between children’s use of digital technologies and their parents perceptions of such use. Such a divide can mean that those who live in the same house would be living in two different technological planets  without even knowing that they are doing so.

These are some of my reflections following my participation in the research project about the use of internet by Maltese children and their parents’ perception of the same use I participated in together with Prof Mary Anny Lauri and Ms Lorleen Farrugia. The research project, which was publicly launched yesterday, was commissioned by the Malta Communications Authority and involved 1,500 children and 1,500 parents.

The divide between the haves and the have-not is almost insignificant. The number of children not having access to the internet from home is very small, one can say that they are a insignificant 2.5 per cent. Similarly insignificant is the figure of 1.5 per cent of parents who say that they cannot afford to have internet at home. But for the children and the families concerned this is very significant since the lack of access to the internet carries with it many disadvantages. This small niche should be identified and helped to ensure that these children do not suffer from digital exclusion.

The study also shows that ours is a very mobile society. Tablets, laptops and mobiles are used more than computers. This mobility makes parental mediation rather difficult. Parents cannot directly supervise their children’s internet use. They, therefore, have to guide, educate and direct their children more than order them about. The latter option is not feasible; and similarly not feasible – nay downright negative – is the temptation to stop use.

This mediation is also not easy since parents’ perception of their children’s use of the internet is very different from their children’s actual use. Parents are not sufficiently conscious of the mobility of use. For example while 70.9 per cent of children say that they use the mobile for internet use only 57.9 per cent of parents think so. Parents are not sufficiently conscious of where there children use the internet from. More specifically, there is, for example, a 20 per cent discrepancy between children’s responses that they access the internet from their own room and the parents’ perception to this access. Children also have more internet access from friends’ and relatives’ houses, and shops than their parents seem to be aware of.

There is also a divide between children’s use of the internet and the children’s actual use. Parents (87.8 per cent) think that their children use the internet for school work much more than their children (69.9 per cent) actually do. On the other hand children engage in a number of activities online more than their parents believe they do. Such activities include chatting, social networking, emailing, video calling, downloading films or music, watching videos on line, blogging and online shopping.

Children seem to put more information online than their parents are aware of, for example fake name, real date of birth, mobile number, home address. Parents and children also differ in their assessment of risk. Parents (8 per cent) think that the internet is safe for their children much less than children (26.3 per cent) do think.  The public posting of things on the Social Networking Sites provides another divide: 11.4 per cent of children think that it is fine to do so but only 6.2 per cent of parents agree.  (Many children do not only lie about their age to be able to use Facebook and other social networks but they also put a lot of information about themselves.) While 15.7 per cent of children think that it is safe to meet new people on the internet only 3.3 per cent of parents consider such an activity as safe.

I suggest that the Malta Communications Authority together with the Education Ministry should together confront this challenging divide. Let me propose one suggestion. Up till now children are trained on their own while some courses are offered to parents. It would be a very good idea if courses are held for children together with parents. It is essential that children and parents navigate cyberspace in tandem and not in opposition.

Besides it is also essential that training goes beyond digital literacy which is generally mainly concerned with the imparting of skills. Media education which imparts a critical attitude is much more important.