Digital Literacy in my Own Words

I agree with the last comment for Dustin Anderson’s piece. "The new classroom should teach the huge array of complex skills that come under the heading of digital literacy. And it should make students accountable on the Web, where they should regularly be aiming, from grade-school on, to contribute to a wide range of wiki projects."(Anderson) I was not really taught about using the computer till in middle school and even then that was minimal. In high school my range was broadened but, only to a certain extent. There was no blog, Moodle, or animoto instruction at all. The instruction they did give to me was very limited. I barely know how to use an online database and the only online tool that I got to use was Prezi. When I came here to college I had to basically teach myself how to use all these other kinds of programs that we were expected to know already. High school only prepares you for writing by drilling into your brain the MLA format saying that you have to follow this in college. Never had I heard the term digital literacy used before. The teachers completely ignored that part of the subject. I now think of digital literacy as basically anything you read and write that you see through a screen. Blogs, emails, Facebook, Twitter, etc. are just a few examples of this. I feel that in at least middle and high school they should better prepare us for this new digital world. They should explore more digital options that will make it easier for high school graduates to transition into their new college life. This is already happening for some elementary schools have Smart Boards in all their classrooms. This is a step forward in which should continue and be spread throughout all schools and areas. In all digital literacy should be more thoroughly taught and earlier.