[Advisors] How do you teach digital literacy -- CIRA forum
James Van Leeuwen
jvl at ventus.ca
Sat, 2 Mar 2013 19:09:49 -0700
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Sorry Marita,
I thought those were your comments on the CIRA forum.
Do you know Kerry Brown?
James
On 2013-03-02, at 6:48 PM, James Van Leeuwen <jvl@ventus.ca> wrote:
> Marita,=20
>=20
> that's a great question.
>=20
>=20
> We all know that nobody can teach us anything if we aren't interested =
to learn.
>=20
> Which is to say, we teach ourselves.
>=20
> What you are describing is mentoring, which is exactly the direction I =
think this discussion needs to go.
>=20
>=20
>=20
> In the space of half a day, my eight year-old daughter has become more =
competent in the mechanics of PowerPoint than I have become in over =
twenty years of using this tool (it has been around since 1990).
>=20
> Indeed, I am now learning some of the finer nuances of PowerPoint from =
my daughter, because she has a distinctly different aesthetic and =
technique from my own.
>=20
> I have never gone in for the 'bells and whistles' features of =
PowerPoint, as I have always regarded them to be distractions from the =
content of my presentations.
>=20
> My daughter has now provided me with a solid example of how, in a =
particular context, a particular visual effect can enhance the impact of =
an image.=20
>=20
> It helped her to make a point more effectively, even if she wasn't =
consciously aware of the point she was trying to make.=20
>=20
> She could only tell me that "It fits", and she was dead right.
>=20
>=20
>=20
> As I was learning new technique from her (which she was eager to help =
with), I was mentoring her in the art of effective communication.
>=20
> What is your point, who are you trying to make it to, and WHY?
>=20
> Once she has properly answered these questions for herself, she can =
better shape the WHAT and HOW of her presentation for effectiveness and =
efficiency.
>=20
>=20
> All of this learning has taken place in relation to her interest in =
developing a PowerPoint story about her own life, which she is =
interested to share with family and friends.
>=20
> Her interest in PowerPoint was piqued last night as she watched me =
working on one of my own presentations, a copy of which I have attached =
in PDF format.=20
>=20
> She recognized the relevance and power of the tool to one of her =
imperative interests, which is to know how she matters to others.
>=20
> By inviting family and friends to watch and listen to her presentation =
(she's adding audio just now), she will be developing a better sense of =
how she matters to us, and how much she matters to us.
>=20
> There is nothing more important to a child, and this points directly =
to the most essential value of ICTs.=20
>=20
> They can help us all to live more happy and fulfilling lives, by =
helping us to to better understand ourselves, each other and our world.=20=
>=20
>=20
>=20
> Developing digital literacy is really just learning how to use a new =
set of tools.=20
>=20
> We should approach this important task the same way we have approached =
development of mastery and skill with other tools.
>=20
> I am talking of course about the master-apprentice relationship, more =
generally described as the mentor-learner relationship.=20
>=20
> A good master/mentor helps an apprentice/learner to draw out (educe) =
their talent and develop their abilities, including mastering the use of =
their tools.=20
>=20
> They also help the apprentice/learner to understand the value of their =
tools, which directly addresses your point about distinguishing between =
communication that is helpful and communication that is useless or =
harmful (critical thinking, as you put it).=20
>=20
> ICTs now provide us with the ability to learn just about anything we =
want to learn, and to communicate just about anything we want to =
communicate.=20
>=20
> Perhaps the most important role of the mentor is to foster better =
practice.
>=20
>=20
>=20
> The master/mentor also seeks to help talented apprentice/learners =
develop discipline in relation to their craft, and to develop stronger =
commitment to their craft (stay focused, be authentic, be patient, keep =
trying).=20
>=20
> In return, the master/mentor gets to learn new tricks and techniques =
from the talented apprentice/learner as they develop.
>=20
> They also get the satisfaction of knowing that they are helping to =
fulfill the potential of talented people, while advancing the pragmatic =
and aesthetic value of their craft.=20
>=20
> I.e., they get to take greater pride in their work.
>=20
>=20
> In the process of implementing this tried, trusted and timeless model =
of learning (or any other model for that matter), I agree that we should =
strive to avoid using terms like digital literacy or any other language =
that is irrelevant or mystifying.=20
>=20
> The vast majority of us would not care to point out that we drive a =
car with a gasoline-powered motor, a diesel-powered motor, or an =
electric-powered motored.=20
>=20
> We just drive our cars, and what is most important to us is what they =
enable us to do.
>=20
>=20
> Speaking of cars (you know where this is going), I submit once gain =
for everyone's thoughtful consideration my discussion paper for the =
concept of an eCitizen Club.
>=20
> Building on the talents and interests of local youth, and hopefully a =
few supportive sponsors, I am planning to implement a pilot initiative =
around this concept in the year ahead.=20
>=20
> I plan to collaborate with our local library and (former) CAP site, =
which continues to build the suite of communication tools and services =
that it makes available to the community at large.=20
>=20
>=20
> This brings me to another point that I think is timely to make.=20
>=20
> I no longer see a clear distinction between a CAP site and a library.
>=20
> Both are places where people go to access communications and =
communication tools, and (sometimes) to access mentors.
>=20
> Perhaps we need a new name for libraries and CAP sites, which more =
accurately reflects their evolving and expanding role(s) in advancing =
the communication and learning capacities of the communities they serve.=20=
>=20
> I believe we are witnessing the emergence of a new generation of =
community institution, which deserve proper attention from a design and =
development standpoint.=20
>=20
> Exactly what purpose do we want this institution to serve, and how?
>=20
> How will it need to function in relation to traditional institutions =
like schools, colleges and universities?
>=20
> I find this a very exciting topic to discuss, because I believe this =
new institution will enable communities to rebuild their natural or =
organic role in contextual learning and communication, a role they =
played before the emergence of industrialized education systems.=20
>=20
> Enough on that topic for now.=20
>=20
>=20
> In summary...=20
>=20
> The ICT Revolution has put into the hands of lay people a powerful set =
of tools that were previously the domain of a small group of elites with =
highly specialized knowledge and skills.
>=20
> We are now confronted with the challenge of putting these tools to =
full and constructive use, on vast new frontiers of opportunity where =
guides and mentors are still few and far between.=20
>=20
> I see this challenge of developing 'digital literacy' as entirely an =
issue of developing mentoring capacity, and I am wondering aloud if =
there is a more appropriate role in the world for an organization like =
TC.
>=20
> JvL
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
> On 2013-03-02, at 3:23 PM, Marita Moll <mmoll@ca.inter.net> wrote:
>=20
>> So here is the posting on that CIRA site under digital literacy. =
This (TC) is the community where the experts are. What have we got to =
say in response?
>>=20
>> How do you teach digital literacy? There was a lot of talk at the CIF =
about teaching digital literacy to children. It seems to me the question =
isn't so much about digital literacy as it is critical thinking. The =
Internet amplifies by orders of magnitude the number of voices we hear. =
We need to teach children how to distinguish the facts, then determine =
the truth as it applies to them, rather than some nebulous buzz word =
like digital literacy.
>>=20
>> Marita
>>=20
>> On 2/28/2013 4:34 PM, Garth Graham wrote:
>>>=20
>>> Following from CIRA CIF 2013, CIRA has opened an ongoing online =
forum called myVoice at:
>>>=20
>>> http://cif.cira.ca
>>>=20
>>> GG_______________________________________________
>>> Advisors mailing list
>>> Advisors@tc.ca
>>> http://victoria.tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors
>>> =20
>=20
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<html><head><meta http-equiv=3D"Content-Type" content=3D"text/html =
charset=3Diso-8859-1"></head><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; =
-webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Sorry =
Marita,<div><br></div><div>I thought those were your comments on the =
CIRA forum.</div><div><br></div><div>Do you know Kerry =
Brown?</div><div><br></div><div>James</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><=
div><br><div><div>On 2013-03-02, at 6:48 PM, James Van Leeuwen <<a =
href=3D"mailto:jvl@ventus.ca">jvl@ventus.ca</a>> wrote:</div><br =
class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type=3D"cite"><meta =
http-equiv=3D"Content-Type" content=3D"text/html =
charset=3Diso-8859-1"><div style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; =
-webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; =
"><div>Marita, </div><div><br></div><div>that's a great =
question.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>We all know that =
nobody can teach us anything if we aren't interested to =
learn.</div><div><br></div><div>Which is to say, we teach =
ourselves.</div><div><br></div><div>What you are describing is =
<b><i>mentoring</i></b>, which is exactly the direction I think this =
discussion needs to =
go.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>In the space =
of half a day, my eight year-old daughter has become more competent in =
the mechanics of PowerPoint than I have become in over twenty years of =
using this tool (it has been around since =
1990).</div><div><br></div><div>Indeed, I am now learning some of the =
finer nuances of PowerPoint from my daughter, because she has a =
distinctly different aesthetic and technique from my =
own.</div><div><br></div><div>I have never gone in for the 'bells and =
whistles' features of PowerPoint, as I have always regarded them to be =
distractions from the content of my =
presentations.</div><div><br></div><div>My daughter has now provided me =
with a solid example of how, in a particular context, a particular =
visual effect can enhance the impact of an =
image. </div><div><br></div><div>It helped her to make a point more =
effectively, even if she wasn't consciously aware of the point she was =
trying to make. </div><div><br></div><div>She could only tell me =
that "It fits", and she was dead =
right.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>As I was =
learning new technique from her (which she was eager to help with), I =
was mentoring her in the art of effective =
communication.</div><div><br></div><div>What is your point, who are you =
trying to make it to, and WHY?</div><div><br></div><div>Once she has =
properly answered these questions for herself, she can better shape the =
WHAT and HOW of her presentation for effectiveness and =
efficiency.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>All of this learning =
has taken place in relation to <b>her</b> interest in developing a =
PowerPoint story about her own life, which she is interested to share =
with family and friends.</div><div><br></div><div>Her interest in =
PowerPoint was piqued last night as she watched me working on one of my =
own presentations, a copy of which I have attached in PDF =
format. </div><div><br></div><div>She recognized the relevance and =
power of the tool to one of her imperative interests, which is to know =
how she matters to others.</div><div><br></div><div>By inviting family =
and friends to watch and listen to her presentation (she's adding audio =
just now), she will be developing a better sense of <i>how</i> she =
matters to us, and <i>how much</i> she matters to =
us.</div><div><br></div><div>There is nothing more important to a child, =
and this points directly to the most essential value of =
ICTs. </div><div><br></div><div>They can help us all to =
live more happy and fulfilling lives, by helping us to to better =
understand ourselves, each other and our =
world. </div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Develo=
ping digital literacy is really just learning how to use a new set of =
tools. </div><div><br></div><div>We should approach this important =
task the same way we have approached development of mastery and skill =
with other tools.</div><div><br></div><div>I am talking of course about =
the master-apprentice relationship, more generally described as the =
mentor-learner relationship. </div><div><br></div><div>A good =
master/mentor helps an apprentice/learner to draw out (educe) =
their talent and develop their abilities, including mastering the =
use of their tools. </div><div><br></div><div>They also help the =
apprentice/learner to understand the <u>value</u> of their tools, which =
directly addresses your point about distinguishing between communication =
that is helpful and communication that is useless or harmful (critical =
thinking, as you put it). </div><div><br></div><div>ICTs now =
provide us with the ability to learn just about anything we want to =
learn, and to communicate just about anything we want to =
communicate. </div><div><br></div><div>Perhaps the most important =
role of the mentor is to foster better =
practice.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>The =
master/mentor also seeks to help talented apprentice/learners develop =
discipline in relation to their craft, and to develop stronger =
commitment to their craft (stay focused, be authentic, be patient, keep =
trying). </div><div><br></div><div>In return, the master/mentor =
gets to learn new tricks and techniques from the talented =
apprentice/learner as they develop.</div><div><br></div><div>They also =
get the satisfaction of knowing that they are helping to fulfill the =
potential of talented people, while advancing the pragmatic and =
aesthetic value of their craft. </div><div><br></div><div>I.e., =
they get to take greater pride in their =
work.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>In the process of =
implementing this tried, trusted and timeless model of learning (or any =
other model for that matter), I agree that we should strive to avoid =
using terms like <b><i>digital literacy</i></b> or any other =
language that is irrelevant or =
mystifying. </div><div><br></div><div>The vast majority of us would =
not care to point out that we drive a car with a gasoline-powered motor, =
a diesel-powered motor, or an electric-powered =
motored. </div><div><br></div><div>We just drive our cars, and what =
is most important to us is what they enable us to =
do.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Speaking of cars (you know =
where this is going), I submit once gain for everyone's thoughtful =
consideration my discussion paper for the concept of an eCitizen =
Club.</div><div><br></div><div>Building on the talents and interests of =
local youth, and hopefully a few supportive sponsors, I am planning =
to implement a pilot initiative around this concept in the year =
ahead. </div><div><br></div><div>I plan to collaborate with our =
local library and (former) CAP site, which continues to build the suite =
of communication tools and services that it makes available to the =
community at large. </div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>This =
brings me to another point that I think is timely to =
make. </div><div><br></div><div>I no longer see a clear distinction =
between a CAP site and a library.</div><div><br></div><div>Both are =
places where people go to access communications and communication =
tools, and (sometimes) to access =
mentors.</div><div><br></div><div>Perhaps we need a new name for =
libraries and CAP sites, which more accurately reflects their evolving =
and expanding role(s) in advancing the communication and learning =
capacities of the communities they =
serve. </div><div><br></div><div>I believe we are witnessing the =
emergence of a new generation of community institution, which deserve =
proper attention from a design and development =
standpoint. </div><div><br></div><div>Exactly what purpose do we =
want this institution to serve, and how?</div><div><br></div><div>How =
will it need to function in relation to traditional institutions like =
schools, colleges and universities?</div><div><br></div><div>I find this =
a very exciting topic to discuss, because I believe this new institution =
will enable communities to rebuild their natural or organic role in =
<i>contextual</i> learning and communication, a role they played before =
the emergence of industrialized education =
systems. </div><div><br></div><div>Enough on that topic for =
now. </div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>In =
summary... </div><div><br></div><div>The ICT Revolution has put =
into the hands of lay people a powerful set of tools that were =
previously the domain of a small group of elites with highly specialized =
knowledge and skills.</div><div><br></div><div>We are now confronted =
with the challenge of putting these tools to full and constructive use, =
on vast new frontiers of opportunity where guides and mentors are still =
few and far between. </div><div><br></div><div>I see this challenge =
of developing 'digital literacy' as entirely an issue of developing =
mentoring capacity, and I am wondering aloud if there is a =
more appropriate role in the world for an organization like =
TC.</div><div><br></div><div>JvL</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><=
br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>=
<br><div><div>On 2013-03-02, at 3:23 PM, Marita Moll <<a =
href=3D"mailto:mmoll@ca.inter.net">mmoll@ca.inter.net</a>> =
wrote:</div><br class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote =
type=3D"cite">
<meta content=3D"text/html; charset=3DISO-8859-1" =
http-equiv=3D"Content-Type">
<div text=3D"#000000" bgcolor=3D"#ffffff">
So here is the posting on that CIRA site under digital literacy. =
This
(TC) is the community where the experts are. What have we got to =
say
in response?<br>
<br>
<span style=3D"color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: =
proxima_nova_rgregular,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 16px; =
font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; =
letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 25.5938px; text-align: start; =
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; =
word-spacing: 0px; background-color: rgb(249, 249, 249); display: inline =
! important; float: none;">How
do you teach digital literacy? There was a lot of talk at the CIF about
teaching digital literacy to children. It seems to me the question
isn't so much about digital literacy as it is critical thinking. The
Internet amplifies by orders of magnitude the number of voices we hear.
We need to teach children how to distinguish the facts, then determine
the truth as it applies to them, rather than some nebulous buzz word
like digital literacy.</span><br>
<br>
Marita<br>
<br>
On 2/28/2013 4:34 PM, Garth Graham wrote:
<blockquote cite=3D"mid:C56F89E6-2812-4E37-A28F-9BAB2B3EBF46@telus.net" =
type=3D"cite">
<pre wrap=3D"">Following from CIRA CIF 2013, CIRA has opened an =
ongoing online forum called myVoice at:
<a class=3D"moz-txt-link-freetext" =
href=3D"http://cif.cira.ca/">http://cif.cira.ca</a>
GG_______________________________________________
Advisors mailing list
<a class=3D"moz-txt-link-abbreviated" =
href=3D"mailto:Advisors@tc.ca">Advisors@tc.ca</a>
<a class=3D"moz-txt-link-freetext" =
href=3D"http://victoria.tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors">http://victoria.t=
c.ca/mailman/listinfo/advisors</a>
</pre>
</blockquote>
</div>
=
</blockquote></div><br></div></div></blockquote></div><br></div></body></h=
tml>=
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