Searchlight Logo
special_image

    • News
      • Front Page
      • News
      • Breaking News
      • Press Release
      • Features
      • Special Features
      • From the Courts
      • Sports
      • Regional / World
    • Opinions
      • Editorial
      • Our Readers’ Opinions
      • Bassy – Love Vine
      • Dr. Fraser- Point of View
      • R. Rose – Eye of the Needle
      • On Target
      • Dr Jozelle Miller
      • The World Around Us
      • Random Thoughts
    • Advice
      • Kitchen Corner
      • What’s on Fleek this week
      • Health Wise
      • Physician’s Weekly
      • Business Buzz
      • Hey Rosie!
      • Prime the pump
    • ePaper
    • Obituaries
      • In Memoriam / Acknowledgement
      • Tribute
    • Contact Us
      • Advertise With Us
      • Letters To The Editor
      • General Contact Information
      • Contact our Webmaster
    • About Us
      • Interactive Media Ltd
      • St. Vincent & the Grenadines
    • Subscribe
    • News
      • Front Page
      • News
      • Breaking News
      • Press Release
      • Features
      • Special Features
      • From the Courts
      • Sports
      • Regional / World
    • Opinions
      • Editorial
      • Our Readers’ Opinions
      • Bassy – Love Vine
      • Dr. Fraser- Point of View
      • R. Rose – Eye of the Needle
      • On Target
      • Dr Jozelle Miller
      • The World Around Us
      • Random Thoughts
    • Advice
      • Kitchen Corner
      • What’s on Fleek this week
      • Health Wise
      • Physician’s Weekly
      • Business Buzz
      • Hey Rosie!
      • Prime the pump
    • ePaper
    • Obituaries
      • In Memoriam / Acknowledgement
      • Tribute
    • Contact Us
      • Advertise With Us
      • Letters To The Editor
      • General Contact Information
      • Contact our Webmaster
    • About Us
      • Interactive Media Ltd
      • St. Vincent & the Grenadines
    • Subscribe
Tech Talk
September 23, 2005

Technopeasant or just computer illiterate?

Every now and then, our Prime Minister uses a word or phrase which catapults it from relative obscurity into a place of prominence in our Vincentian lexicon.

The latest such word is “technopeasant.” Dr. Gonsalves referred to himself as “a technopeasant” two Mondays ago as he addressed the persons gathered to witness the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Cable & Wireless and the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to launch the Information Communication Technology (ICT) driven literacy program.{{more}}

But who exactly is a technopeasant? My research tells me that it is a phrase that was coined by book publisher Steve Osborne to refer to people who are “unskilled at using computers and who prefer to remain unskilled.” We all know the type, they brag about how little they know about computers. They find using technology a chore and a bore, and are happy to putter around in their comfortable, familiar world, blissfully unaware of what they are missing.

Increasingly however, the term is used to describe someone who has a low level of computer literacy (a low level of expertise or familiarity with computers), without reference to how they feel about their state of “not knowing.” I somehow think the Prime Minister was either using this definition of the term or speaking tongue in cheek, because he is not one to remain comfortable in a state of ignorance on any topic for very long. In fact, in the same address he spoke about how easy it was to use the “Max” computer, and the fact that he uses it to read newspapers online.

This drive to use ICT in our national literacy campaign is applauded and will reap dividends. Minister of Education Clayton Burgin mentioned at the same forum that research has shown that students, especially boys, are highly motivated when computers are used to assist learning. The computer aided methods to be used in this program then, should more easily reach the15% of our population who have been found to be functionally illiterate, than our traditional teaching methods.

But back to the technopeasants. There is no virtue in being willfully ignorant. Being computer illiterate in today’s world is like being textually illiterate a few decades ago. Computer literacy lays open a whole world of education and understanding for the student and offers a high degree of mobility to the technologically empowered.

For a country like St. Vincent and the Grenadines where our only natural resource is our people, investment in computer literacy training for our people is a must. No education system can teach persons everything they need to know, but we can teach them how to learn and how to navigate the information environment to find what they need. As Jack Powers, Director, International Informatics Institute, puts it in his essay “Technopeasants and the Info Aristocracy,” “Children who understand computers can figure out the Internet, puzzle through the next software glitch and wrestle the latest program into productive use. They may have been born technopeasants, but once they’ve logged on there’s no stopping them from joining the Info Aristocracy.”

Advice for technopeasants thinking of

changing their info-societal status:

• Seek out techno-savvy family and friends. They are often happy to help the computer-challenged.

• Fight computer illiteracy and learn the language. Add basic techno-terms to your vocabulary.

• Make friends with people under the age of 25. This generation grew up playing video games and using computers.

• Pay for professional help when necessary. Sometimes it is worth it.

• Commit to lifelong learning. Explore how to use the features on your computer through

books, classrooms, and online courses. You’ll be amazed.

  • FacebookComments
  • ALSO IN THE NEWS
    12 left homeless in mid-day fire at Richland Park
    Front Page
    12 left homeless in mid-day fire at Richland Park
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    A fire that destroyed a multi-family complex in Richland Park over the weekend has left at least 12 people homeless, including a 23-year-old mother of...
    PM responds to US military strike on small boat off Venezuela
    Front Page
    PM responds to US military strike on small boat off Venezuela
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves has responded to reports by the United States administration that its military had carried out the bombing of a boa...
    Building material disappear from the Mary Hutchinson Primary School
    Front Page
    Building material disappear from the Mary Hutchinson Primary School
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    Police investigators on Union Island are said to be looking into the “disappearance” of building materials that were sent to the Southern Grenadine Is...
    What’s new at Fitz Hughes Government School?
    Front Page
    What’s new at Fitz Hughes Government School?
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    by Grace Francis After sharing a small space for over a year, children and teachers at the Fitz Hughes Early Childhood Centre went into brand new prem...
    MRI-6 donates over $70,000 for school meals for vulnerable students
    Front Page
    MRI-6 donates over $70,000 for school meals for vulnerable students
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    Several secondary schools and special needs institutions across St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) have received $5,000 donations towards meals for s...
    Minister of Information Technology  emphasises the importance of Cybersecurity
    News
    Minister of Information Technology emphasises the importance of Cybersecurity
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    Robust cybersecurity must be at the heart of the digital transformation that is currently taking place in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) says Min...
    News
    Minister of Information Technology  emphasises the importance of Cybersecurity
    News
    Minister of Information Technology emphasises the importance of Cybersecurity
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    Robust cybersecurity must be at the heart of the digital transformation that is currently taking place in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) says Min...
    Entities team up to boost disaster communication capacity
    News
    Entities team up to boost disaster communication capacity
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    The Climate Change Resilience Network (CCRN) in collaboration with the Youlou Radio Movement (YRM) recently embarked on a disaster preparedness initia...
    Ministry of Health to get more dialysis machines
    News
    Ministry of Health to get more dialysis machines
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    The Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment, is to obtain three more Heamodialysis machines as part of the revolution in the healthcare secto...
    PM Gonsalves heads delegation to Ethiopia
    News
    PM Gonsalves heads delegation to Ethiopia
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, is leading a delegation to the East African country of Ethiopia; the delegation left the state on Wednesday, Septe...
    New Port to be opened on October 24- PM Gonsalves
    News
    New Port to be opened on October 24- PM Gonsalves
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    The modern port in Kingstown is expected to be handed over to the government just before this country celebrates its 46th anniversary of political ind...

    E-EDITION
    ePaper
    google_play
    app_store
    Subscribe Now
    • Interactive Media Ltd. • P.O. Box 152 • Kingstown • St. Vincent and the Grenadines • Phone: 784-456-1558 © Copyright Interactive Media Ltd.. All rights reserved.
    We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok