"Don't Panic at Kiosks" Government Provides Digital Literacy Education for Seniors

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] To assist elderly people who are not proficient in using restaurant self-order kiosks and smartphones, the government will implement 'digital literacy education.'

On the morning of the 17th, elderly members of the Seoul Home Care Senior Welfare Association participating in the digital kiosk training for disadvantaged seniors held at the Lotteeria Dongmyo Station branch in Jongno-gu, Seoul, are experiencing the process of ordering food through the kiosk. [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 30th, the Ministry of Education announced that it has established the '2023 Adult Literacy Education Support Project Basic Plan' to expand literacy education opportunities for adults who missed educational opportunities due to social and economic circumstances. Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, expressed gratitude to learners who have consistently participated in literacy education without giving up their desire to learn, stating, "We will prepare programs in various fields to broaden the scope of literacy education."

Literacy education is a program that helps individuals acquire the ability to read, write, and calculate, as well as the competencies necessary for daily life. It has mainly been attended by elderly people who were unable to learn to read and write due to difficult family circumstances during childhood.

As the demand for digital education has increased in response to rapidly changing social environments, the Ministry of Education is newly promoting programs that can develop essential digital skills for daily life, such as smartphone use, ordering food via kiosks, and bank account transfers.

To provide programs suited to learners' environments, 'digital literacy education hub institutions at the metropolitan local government level' will be selected and supported. Learning materials and online lectures that assist in using digital devices will also be distributed. Basic literacy education (reading, writing, and arithmetic) for illiterate and low-educated adults, which has been conducted previously, will continue to be expanded.

The Ministry of Education supports operating expenses for lifelong education facilities and night schools for basic literacy education and also supports 'visiting literacy classes,' where instructors directly visit senior centers, community centers, and homes. The free distribution scale of basic literacy education textbooks, which was 110,000 copies last year, will also be expanded. Literacy education textbooks can be requested online or by phone by the learners themselves or their families.