Thoughts, thoughts, thoughts..

Should youth workers be operating in a world that they don't really understand? How do they engage with young people who are freely wandering through the digital environment en they don't understand the significance of this digital age on the lives of young people?

Youth workers very often engage with young people who are vulnerable, socially disadvantaged, challenging etc. Youth work core values talk of empowerment, equality, participation; how do we work with young people who don't have access to this sophisticated digital environment and for whom the inclusion/exclusion divide is becoming increasingly wider due to the importance of networks?

In the New Scientist (July 10th 2010), Richard Fisher talks about Mark Granovetter's theory in relation to 'weak ties' or 'loose acquaintances' in relation to social networking sites such as Facebook. The idea that we can hook up and remain in contact with childhood friends who would otherwise never have been revisited through such sites is a recent phenomenon, probably kick-started by Friends Reunited in the 90's.

Granovetter's work showed the potential for people to network, gain information, gain advantage and get jobs through their 'weak ties' thus implying that the more sophisticated and wide-reaching your network, the more chances you might have to be successful.

So where does this leave young people who are becoming increasingly disadvantaged due to geography, demography and limited access to digital networks? Where does this leave the role of the youth worker?