Technology evolves at breakneck speed. Just as workers master one tool, a new platform, system, or language emerges. For many, this raises an unsettling question: how do we keep up? Falling behind in digital literacy doesn’t just mean inconvenience — it can mean exclusion from jobs, services, and even social participation.
The Challenge of Constant Change
Obsolescence: Skills learned five years ago may already feel outdated.
Pace of innovation: AI, cloud computing, cybersecurity, and data analytics are advancing faster than traditional education can adapt.
Access gaps: Those without reliable internet or devices risk falling permanently behind.
Generational divide: Older adults often struggle with confidence in keeping up, while younger workers can feel overwhelmed by constant re-skilling pressures.
Canadian Context
Workplace training: Many Canadian employers offer minimal support for ongoing digital training, leaving workers on their own.
Education systems: Schools and colleges are catching up, but often teach yesterday’s tools instead of tomorrow’s.
Community role: Libraries, nonprofits, and grassroots initiatives fill gaps but lack consistent funding.
Labour market impact: Digital skills are now considered “baseline,” yet access to lifelong training is uneven.
The Opportunities
Lifelong learning culture: Treating digital training not as a one-time event, but as a continuous journey.
Micro-learning: Bite-sized, accessible modules that can be slotted into busy lives.
Employer responsibility: Companies investing in their workforce to keep pace with technological change.
Peer learning: Communities of practice where workers teach and support each other.
Policy innovation: Tax credits or subsidies for individuals investing in digital upskilling.
The Bigger Picture
Keeping up with technology isn’t about mastering every app or coding language — it’s about building adaptability. Workers, employers, and institutions need to see learning not as a finish line but as an ongoing process. In a way, the only “permanent skill” is the ability to keep learning.
The Question
What would it take for Canada to build a system of lifelong, adaptive learning that helps everyone — from students to seniors — keep pace with technological change?
How Do We Keep Up With Tech?
The Moving Target
Technology evolves at breakneck speed. Just as workers master one tool, a new platform, system, or language emerges. For many, this raises an unsettling question: how do we keep up? Falling behind in digital literacy doesn’t just mean inconvenience — it can mean exclusion from jobs, services, and even social participation.
The Challenge of Constant Change
Canadian Context
The Opportunities
The Bigger Picture
Keeping up with technology isn’t about mastering every app or coding language — it’s about building adaptability. Workers, employers, and institutions need to see learning not as a finish line but as an ongoing process. In a way, the only “permanent skill” is the ability to keep learning.
The Question
What would it take for Canada to build a system of lifelong, adaptive learning that helps everyone — from students to seniors — keep pace with technological change?