DIGI CITIZEN
I started looking at the KELA:s website. I had to pay my college student`s health insurance premium for spring 2025. The payment for this was handled well in OmaKela. I have very little dealings with Kela. I made the discovery that I can also go directly to OmaKanta via OmaKela. When logging out, both webpages were closed. I was still looking into ordering a European Health Insurace Card. I did not order the card because I already have this. This card is free and can be used in EU and Eta countries. The card is easy to apply for online and will be delivered to your home within two weeks.
When will my working career end?
Where the years go by. I`m excited to learn new things and develop myself. Retirement seems far away. I checked my own pension savings and…
I was amazed. The pension will increase o lot in four years. I wonder if I get sick? Do I want healthy retirement years? If you want to leave working life earlier, you have to prepare for this. How?
–> By saving!
–> So everyone, remember to be prepared and save!
Visiting online stores
I visited two websites. I visited the websites Amazon and Trivago.
Amazon
The online store ships products worldwide. I am looking for Finnish food products. I found dried rye bread, salmiak and mustard. A loaf costs $20. Salmiak costs $9 for a package of five. I still wanted to read the reviews on salmiak. The American in the group said that it is the best salmiakki in the world, and you can only get it from Finland and Amazon.
Trivago
I can easily search for hotels on the Trivago website. I have used the website before. The website is easy to navigate, and I can quickly find the hotel’s location on the adjacent map. I looked up available hotels in Stockholm for August. There were many suggestions. There are plans for a trip, but I haven’t booked yet. It may very well be that I make a reservation through this when the time comes closer.
The Finnish Cereal Committee (VYR)
Our family has a farm. In my work, I also meet farmers. Various types of cereals are grown on the farms. I am now writing a thesis in which I deal with farm risks. One risk category is price risks. Risks must be managed. For example, the grain market must be monitored. With the help of VYR pages you can follow the prices. Information on Finnish crops can be found on the vyr.fi website. Ministry of Agriculture is financing projects of VYR.
VYR has over 50 members, consisting of:
- Farmers union
- Grain trade operators
- Grain and oilseed industry
- Plan breeding
- Research and advisory organizations
In addition, there is a lot of current information. For example, there is information about Finnish oats.
Take a look –> https://www.finnish-oats.fi/en/
Outside the Digital World
When I think about who faces the most difficulties with digital literacy, the first group that comes to mind is older adults. They are not familiar with digital technology. As people age, many prefer to do things the way they have always done them. I came across the thesis The Appearance of Digital Exclusion Among the Elderly by Päivi Kettunen. Her research involves collecting data and analyzing factors related to digital exclusion among older people.
The results of Päivi Kettunen’s (2024) research show that digital exclusion is influenced by several factors. The influencing factors include age, gender, level of education, urbanization, state of health, and socioeconomic status. The risks of digital exclusion are significant, with multiple effects.It can have an effect on, for example, health problems and social isolation. It is very important that attention is paid to the digital literacy of older people. If they do not have the means to upgrade their skills themselves, they should find a place where they can get help.
Personally, I wonder how an ageing person can be so confident. The risk is that criminals will take advantage of a weak position. The help and vigilance of loved ones is needed.
Other groups of people may also have gaps in their digital skills. There are also adults who are not interested in digital literacy, or they may have weaknesses that affect their ability to learn digital skills.
Digital literacy is an important issue in society. Digitalization brings many opportunities, but as I mentioned, there are also challenges. I am concerned about digital behavior. On social media platforms, some people comment quite aggressively. I doubt that a person would not behave the same way face to face. So you have to behave online as well!
Source: Kettunen, Päivi 2024. Digisyrjäytymisen ilmeneminen ikäihmisillä. Opinnäytetyö. Sosionomin tutkinto-ohjelma. Savonia-ammattikorkeakoulu. https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202404298353. Referred to 28.2.2025.
My Digital Competence
My understanding is that my digital skills are at a moderate level. I will manage, but I feel that there is still a lot to learn. I answered questions about digital competence. My Digital Competence Wheel looks like this. The result shows that the strongest areas of expertise are found in data protection and the law. This is because of my work, as I study these things regularly. I still have some development to do in the area of production skills. This fairly accurately reflects my skills.
Self Assesment
While writing this blog, I realized what exactly is meant by a digital citizen. You need a lot of digital skills to handle your work and personal affairs. Spending free time is also strongly connected to digitality. Nowadays, a lot of goods for households are ordered from online stores. I was wondering if this is climate-friendly. Goods are ordered on the spur of the moment. When the product comes home, this is no longer of interest. Let’s make a refund. Goods are moved back and forth. Society should intervene in this. This is not a climate-friendly activity. I sometimes order online myself. However, I would hope that each of us would prefer our local shops.You will probably also get good service and a genuine human encounter at the convenience store!
I comment on the following blogs:
https://blogi.savonia.fi/laurasworld