“Reading Wired Wisdom over summer — a book that helped articulate what we’re already practising.”
Over summer, while many of us were trying to slow down, I spent time reading Wired Wisdom: How to Age Better Online by Eszter Hargittai and John Palfrey (University of Chicago Press).
Further reading – click here : Wired Wisdom (University of Chicago Press)
It is a rigorous, research-led book that examines how people — particularly older adults — navigate an increasingly digital world.
What struck me most was not that the book proposed something radically new, but that it named, articulated, and validated approaches that are already proving effective in practice. In that sense, Wired Wisdom arrived not as a disruption, but as confirmation that the fundamentals matter — and that getting them right is becoming more, not less, important.
At a time when digital participation is often framed as an urgent race to keep up, this book insists on something more demanding: clarity about how learning actually works, and responsibility for how it is supported.
A way of reading that shaped my approach
Many years ago, the late Gordon Dryden — a well-known New Zealand thinker and advocate for lifelong learning — offered a piece of advice that has stayed with me. When approaching a serious book, he suggested, it can be useful to read the introduction, a key chapter, and the final sections early on — not to bypass the rest, but to understand the shape and intent of the work.
That advice shaped how I approached Wired Wisdom. Reading the learning chapter in that context made its role clear: it is not an add-on or afterthought, but a statement of responsibility. It asks not only what people should learn, but how systems, services, and organisations should behave when supporting that learning.
Why the chapter on learning matters
One of the later chapters of Wired Wisdom, focused on learning, plays a particular role in the book. It does not function as a checklist or a training model. Instead, it sets out the conditions under which learning is most likely to succeed, especially when technology intersects with anxiety, risk, or unequal power.
The chapter makes clear that effective learning is:
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grounded in people’s real lives and circumstances
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relational rather than transactional
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paced to reduce anxiety and build confidence
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respectful of individual choice, including the choice to limit engagement
This is not an argument for doing less. It is an argument for doing the right things, in the right order, and for the right reasons.
Rushed, compliance-driven approaches may appear efficient, but the evidence shows they often produce disengagement, error, and avoidable harm. Learning that is contextual, relational, and paced delivers more durable outcomes — including better safety, stronger confidence, and more sustained participation.
Reinforcement, not reinvention
What makes Wired Wisdom particularly valuable is that it reinforces what many practitioners have already learned through experience — and backs it with serious, longitudinal research.
The book gives academic weight to principles that are sometimes dismissed as “soft”, when in reality they require discipline, skill, and consistency:
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recognising anxiety as a rational response to poorly designed systems
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prioritising trust over throughput
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understanding learning as uneven and ongoing
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treating human support as essential rather than optional
For me, this chapter did not prompt a change of direction. It confirmed that the direction already being taken is sound — and helped articulate why it is sound, in language that funders, policymakers, and stakeholders can recognise as rigorous and defensible.
Where this fits: principles, ethos, stance
It’s important to be clear about where this sits.
The ideas in Wired Wisdom align closely with existing guiding principles and facilitation ethos already in use. What this reading prompted was not a new framework, but a learning stance — a practical orientation that sits beneath those principles and ethos, shaping how learning support is actually delivered day to day.
This stance does not replace anything already in place. It makes explicit what is often implicit, and provides a shared reference point as digital systems — including AI-enabled ones — become more present in people’s lives.
A learning stance for the year ahead
A Learning Stance for Digital Inclusion
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Learning is not a race. People arrive with different experiences, confidence, and appetite for change.
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Learning is relational. Trust, patience, and respect matter more than tools or techniques.
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Learning is contextual. We start with real lives, real devices, and real concerns — not abstract skills.
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Learning includes choice. Limiting or selectively using technology is a legitimate outcome.
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Learning prioritises wellbeing. Reducing anxiety improves confidence and long-term engagement.
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Learning requires human support. Technology can assist, but it does not replace listening, reassurance, or judgement.
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Learning is ongoing. Questions — including repeated ones — are always welcome.
This stance is not about resisting technology. It is about ensuring that technology — including AI — is used in ways that support people rather than displace responsibility or automate care prematurely.
Why this matters now
We are entering a period where AI-enabled systems and automated assistance will become increasingly visible in everyday services. That makes the fundamentals of learning, trust, and human support more important, not less.
Wired Wisdom matters because it reminds us that good outcomes are not accidental. They emerge when learning is treated as a human process, supported with care, clarity, and accountability.
For me, this book provides reassurance that the work already underway is on the right track — and a stronger language for explaining why that matters, especially to those responsible for investment, policy, and system design.
I will continue to draw on it as a reference point over the year ahead — not as a script, but as a steady reminder that getting the fundamentals right is the most future-proof thing we can do.
Further reading – click here : Wired Wisdom (University of Chicago Press)
This blog post is a collaborative creation by Alistair Fraser, with the innovative assistance of OpenAI’s ChatGPT 5.1 highlighting the synergy of human creativity and advanced AI technology.