Athletic Faculty Survey

In an effort to obtain a better understanding of how changes in equality of technology have affected the Notre Dame campus, we were fortunate enough to obtain a brief survey/interview with the webmaster of the Notre Dame athletic web site, Kathleen Lopez.

Please click here to read our questions and her responses.

Student/Parent Surveys

In an effort to gain a better understanding of how the generational gap affects equality of technology, we surveyed 25 students from the University of Notre Dame as well as 25 parents of students who attend the university. We posed somewhat varied questions to each group. These questions, along with their corresponding answers, can be found below.

Student Survey

1. What is your age?

The average age was 21 (20.88).

2. What is your gender?

14 of the respondents were female; 11 were male.

3. About how many hours per week do you use the Internet?

The average time was 20 hours.

4. If you use the internet for communication purposes (meaning Instant Messenger, email, message boards, etc.) do you find this form of communication revolutionary?

72% of the students which we surveyed responded 'yes' to this question.
28% responded 'no.'

5. What does the term 'digital divide' mean to you?

68% responded with a definition similar or baring resemblance to "a generational or socioeconomic gap which leads to an inequality of technological access."
32% either did not know what the terms 'digital divide' means or did not respond to the question.

6. Do you get frustrated with your parents' generation lack of skill using the internet?

24% of students responded that 'yes, they are frustrated.'
76% responded that they were not frustrated.

Parent Survey

1. What is your age?

The average age of the respondents was 50 (49.64).

2. What is your gender?

12 of the respondents were female; 13 were male.

3. About how many hours per week do you use the Internet?

The average time was 13 (12.9) hours.

4. If you use the internet for communication purposes (meaning Instant Messenger, email, message boards, etc.) do you find this form of communication revolutionary?

76% of the parents which we surveyed responded 'yes' to this question.
24% responded 'no.'

5. What does the term 'digital divide' mean to you?

57% responded with a definition similar or baring resemblance to "a generational or socioeconomic gap which leads to an inequality of technological access."
43% either did not know what the terms 'digital divide' means or did not respond to the question.

6. Do you feel disconnected from your children's generation because of their dependence and usage of the internet?

29% of parents responded that 'yes, they feel disconnected.'
71% responded that they did not feel disconnected.

Summary

In general, the parents which we surveyed used the Internet for 7 hours less per week on average as compared to the students which responded. Additionally, 4% more of parents believed the Internet to be revolutionary as a means of communication than did students. 11% more students than parents gave a more accurate description of the digital divide. Lastly, 5% more of parents felt a tangible effect of the digital divide.