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Digital Literacy

What is Digital Literacy?

Karen Robertson <krobertsonSPAMFILTER@eastlothian.gov.uk>

Friday 26 May 2006

A Definition:

Digital Literacy describes a person’s ability to understand, evaluate, and create information in multiple formats via computer and the Internet. One’s level of digital literacy, which is also referred to as computer literacy, relies on various skills and capacities related to the use of computer technologies and communication tools. These skills include the use of computer hardware and peripherals, a computer operating system, computer software applications including office software, and the ability to navigate and find information on the World Wide Web and communicate using electronic email.The term digital literacy is being increasingly used by educational institutions and other organizations who require that their students or employees possess a basic level of computer technology skills
Wikipedia

The digital divide

Karen Robertson

Tuesday 30 May 2006

There is quite a debate about the digital divide. Previously this was often in reference between the 'haves' and 'have nots', that the divide was one of economy. This is increasingly not the case and now is commonly used to describe those where technology is used instinctively and those who find it more challenging to access. The terms digital native and digital immigrants are commonly used in this context. This does hold real challenges to us in education, where we need to engage pupils in learning when they often speak a 'different language' to us - one of blogs, podcasts, games, text speak. My attention was drawn to an interesting article by Ewan McIntosh that outlines these challenges in Learning and teaching really well.

We have recently set up a facility for pupils in East Lothian to blog - Exc-elspace . When setting it up, one of the teachers involved said, 'Do we allow text speak?' An interesting one... it is their facility to blog about themselves, their learning, their ideas. Just because it would take a while for many of us to decipher it, shoould we ban it or engage with it. Needless to say, it led to quite a debate!

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