Macquarie College Computer Courses Sydney – are providing older Australian’s with new job hopes. When older Australians lose a job, they find themselves in no man’s land if they’re not prepared to bridge the digital literacy divide. Macquarie Community College provides the right scaffolding to do this.
More and more, community colleges are seeing hardworking adults come back to school to bridge the digital literacy divide. However, when you add low English literacy to the mix, it makes life even more difficult.
For 62 year-old Ms Moke Lim, a Sydney – Chatswood resident who immigrated to Australia from South Korea in 1987, this struggle has been very real.
In spite of the language barrier when she first arrived in Australia, Ms Lim quickly set up a business with her ex-husband providing cleaning services after hours.
Although she had completed an initial English language course, the work provided little opportunity to improve her language proficiency.
“Because most of my clients were not home during the hours I worked, there was not much chance for me to practise my English,” Ms Lim says.
Then, six years ago, her circumstances suddenly changed when she was diagnosed with cancer. Following her treatment, her ongoing health problems meant that she could no longer maintain the long hours and physically demanding work she once did.
She considered moving into part time aged care work, capitalising on a course she had completed many years ago. At her interview, she was told that her English was not adequate and that she would need to work longer hours than she was physically capable of.
In her early 60s, the barriers to getting back into any kind of work seemed insurmountable. Even applying for a job was virtually impossible because it required both English and digital literacy.
The answer to her future came after she was introduced to the government sponsored SEE program (Skills for Education and Employment) at Macquarie Community College. This program is provided free of charge for people with multiple barriers to employment and study, including a much needed Computer Literacy course.
The Sydney based Computer Course enabled Moke Lim to develop greater confidence with English and communication for upcoming study.
Thinking that a role in office administration would better suit her health, Ms Lim realised that the key would be digital literacy.
“I had never used a computer in my life.”
Over the next twelve months, she became competent in document creation and digital communication. Soon she was ready to commence studies in Business Administration, a course she will complete in a few weeks’ time.
“Moke’s case highlights the situation that many students who attend Macquarie Community College find themselves in. Their circumstances change for some reason and they can no longer rely on the skills they once had,” says Daya Mijovic, SEE Manager at Macquarie Community College.
“Many of our students are older people who need to reenter the workforce and acquire new skills to improve their employability.”
In her early 40s, Hugueth Rossel experienced an unexpected redundancy and this forced her to face the reality that she had fallen way behind in terms of digital technology.
“Not being literate in this area really affected my self-esteem. I was so embarrassed because I realised that even children knew more about phones and computers than I did! Not only do most jobs include a component of digital literacy, but when you look for work, you have to apply for everything online: upload a resume and tailor your cover letter to highlight the experience relevant to the job. I didn’t know how to do any of this.”
Macquarie Community College provides the scaffolding that older Australians need to bridge what can sometimes seem like an unconquerable divide. With a fresh start and the right support, digital literacy propels them further than they ever thought possible.
“I’ll hopefully get a job in retail soon, but that’s just the first step. I’m pretty sure I’ll do a university course next—and it’s going to be online,” says Ms Rossel, finally seeing her future as exciting and full of potential.
To view Macquarie Colleges full range of Computer courses visit the website or call 1300 845 888.
*Job outcomes not guaranteed.