Digital fluency
Horton_Lisa_18626766_EDC101Assessment-2
Dr Gerald White, a former ACER principle research fellow, wrote “A digital fluency subject to teach students the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for the digital age is needed.” (White G, 2013) But what is digital fluency? There are many people who have an opinion on what it is. Their ideas range from the ability to reliably achieve desired outcomes through the use of digital technology, having a deeper understanding of the topic and knowing it well enough to manipulate and explain it. In addition to those ideas, is the understanding of when we could use it and why we should use technology, and the ever growing ability that allows a person to easily and honestly understand information to find meanings. Digital fluency allows you to be a designer, build knowledge and be able to communicate your ideas in a digitally connected world. This ability grows when inquiry, play and exploration are valued and encouraged as meaningful learning experiences. (Boise State University, 2015)
There are still many children, living in developed countries, who do not have access to the digital world, whether from their environment or their low socioeconomic situation, except when they are at school. Schools have the opportunity to help these children become fluent by introducing them, at a young age, to the world via the internet. By teaching our prep students how to use simple programs we can expose them to so much, they can begin to see that the world is so much bigger than their small piece of it.
As the student moves up the grades their use of the internet becomes more in-depth and vast, opening up possibilities for their future which would not be available without the World Wide Web. Students learn how to make the internet work for them, using it to improve their schooling experiences’. Being digitally fluent gives children the opportunity to participate, in the digital world by travelling, working overseas or working for a company overseas. A world which would otherwise be out of their reach.
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