Durham Strategic Plan Dashboard
Prosperity
Status Indicator: 
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Complete/Ongoing
Initiative: 3.32 Create and recommend a digital literacy program
Connected, Engaged, & Inclusive Communities
Description
Digital Literacy is having the ability to create, evaluate, research, and communicate information effectively using technology. It is our goal to develop and implement a digital literacy program that empowers residents with the ability to use information technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate by growing their technical skillset. There is a portion of the community in Durham that lack education pertaining to digital literacy. With the rapid growth of technology today, it is crucial to learn and possess skills using technology proficiently. Expanding resident access to digital resources and community programs/ services will enhance the overall skillset of City of Durham residents.
Key Measures & Data Analysis
| Source: 2023 Digital Equity Survey, Data accessed via NC Broadband on July 03, 2024 |
| Digital Equity Survey | ncbroadband.gov |
The chart titled "Digital Skills for those with a Primary Internet Connection at Home" presents the confidence levels of individuals in three specific areas:
- Protecting the privacy of personal data
- Finding educational content such as taking a course
- Accessing or applying for government services
The chart uses a horizontal stacked bar format to represent four levels of confidence:
- Not at all confident (orange)
- Not too confident (green)
- Somewhat confident (blue)
- Very confident (purple)
Key Observations:
-
Protecting the privacy of personal data:
- A significant portion of respondents are somewhat confident.
- Very few are not at all confident.
- A moderate number are either not too confident or very confident.
-
Finding educational content such as taking a course:
- The majority of respondents are very confident.
- Only a small fraction are not at all confident or not too confident.
- Some respondents are somewhat confident.
-
Accessing or applying for government services:
- Similar to finding educational content, most respondents are very confident.
- A small percentage are not at all confident or not too confident.
- A moderate number are somewhat confident.
Analysis and Implications:
Although the number of people surveyed is small, the chart provides valuable insights into areas where digital literacy and skills training might need to be focused. Key takeaways include:
- Privacy Protection: There is a noticeable variation in confidence levels regarding privacy protection, indicating a potential area for targeted training and support.
- Educational Content: High confidence in finding educational content suggests that this may be a strength in current digital literacy efforts, though some individuals still need assistance.
- Government Services: High confidence in accessing government services is encouraging, but continued support and training can ensure that everyone is equally confident.
This chart serves as a useful tool for identifying areas where digital literacy programs can be improved and tailored to meet the specific needs of the community. Follow-up efforts should focus on enhancing confidence in privacy protection and continuing to support individuals in accessing educational content and government services.
Why is it important?
Digital literacy and Internet connectivity are "social determinants of health" because they address all aspects of well-being for a person trying to succeed in our Durham society. For example, applications for employment, housing, and other assistance programs, each of which influences an individual's health and overall well-being, are increasingly, and sometimes exclusively, accessible online. The costs of equipping a person to use the Internet are substantially lower than treating health conditions that may be incurred by the lack of access to basic digital engagement portals. As the City of Medicine, our ability to improve digital literacy skills and access are valuable and necessary tools to reduce disparities and improve the outcomes that lead to economic mobility for under resourced and underrepresented populations in Durham. (Source: NPJ Digital Medicine, 2021; "Digital Inclusion as a social determinant of health", 4:52. Published online 2021 March 17.)
What have we been doing?
The Technology Solutions Digital Engagement team have continued to engage our partners and community to identify our target audience, refine our draft digital literacy goals and outcomes. We have been busy staffing the Digital Inclusion team for success, reaching out to the community to identify, understand, and build relationships with our target audiences, as well as developing internal goals, outcomes, and indicators of success to address digital literacy in Durham.
In support of our digital literacy work, the Digital Inclusion Program is recommending an ARPA grant to support Digital Literacy and Device access in Durham. The grant recommends that Kramden Institute receive funding to support digital literacy skills training and low-cost device access to persons in underserved populations.
Also, as part of our support of Digital Literacy in Durham we have partnered with DHA to submit an application for the HUD ConnectHome USA program. Through HUD, communities receive ongoing support, substantial technical assistance resources, and guidance to communities to help them navigate the new federal broadband funding programs.
What's next?
Our team will soon begin planning our digital inclusion roadmap with support and input from our key stakeholders. This Roadmap will build on the Digital Equity Plan created by the Digital Durham collaborative. Digital Durham is currently conducting focus groups to design the implementation process of the Digital Equity Plan, which will feed into the Roadmap.
The Roadmap will allow us to set the stage for creating opportunities to expand digital literacy services throughout Durham with a more robust train-the-trainer model that also will involve the creation of internship opportunities for young adults.
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