Digital Literacy

I was recently asked by a journalist if I could answer some questions on Digital Literacy...which are in turn related to one of our main software suppliers.

Anyway I had a go...

How would you define “digital literacy”? 

The Jisc has defined this in 2013 as; “Digital Literacies are those capabilities which fit an individual for living, learning and working in a digital society"

I largely agree with this and also support the death of the digital native and the formulation of the Visitor and Resident theory of digital habitats.

At UaL and within my role I would define digital literacy as having a basic understanding of activities such as logging into email, using the VLE, uploading a blog and using domestic digital equipment. I would define a students digital literacy as being competent in the use of software and digital tools that are required to provide specific outcomes that at UaL are generally Art & Design based.

How digitally prepared are students when they come to school?  Are they more consumers of digital media than creators? 

I think its a mixture, students tend to be very competent in particular areas, we actively encourage our students to become innovative creators which in order to do so they have to be able to master the control of the digital media they are using and indeed how that media can be consumed by a mass audience. Our students in particular are very aware of the almost limitless possibilities that the digital can offer, these can range from immersive technology to wearable's to social media. 

How easily do students draw from their existing knowledge to construct new learning?

I believe that the application of existing knowledge is key in forming the basis for new paradigms in exploring the developments of a creative professional, its the role of the learning process to challenge that environment so that our students can become more fully connected to the creative process and how that process defines outcomes.   

Should digital literacy be taught as a separate course or integrated into everyday coursework? 

No I don’t, students come to us already with a competent use of technology, what they require is an in depth knowledge of particular softwares and in turn become professionallly competent, however this must be balanced with the creative content and the thorough understanding that software is as a mean to an end.

What are some of the immediate and far-reaching advantages in implementing digital literacy in curriculum design? 

I think what is needed is a mixed approach, we need to embed certain skills but also encourage exploration and innovative creative practice adjacent to the technical practice. 

What’s the most important digital skill students should master? 

I believe this is the ability to clearly determine what you are trying to produce rather than focus on the technology solution, exploring the why rather than the how is key to the iterative creative process. 

What tools and software do you use in fostering digital creativity? Which Adobe resources do you and your students use? 

At UaL we use all the normal tools you would expect in an Art & Design environment. We have an extensive Mac environment (over 4,500 Mac’s) and a large range of additional tools such as Arduino, RPT, 3-D printing, Digital Film, Animation, and many others. Our extenivse use of the Adobe products (we one the largest Higher Education users of the Adobe range of product in the world) establishes a consistent and reliable baseline. Adobe is now the clearly established industry standard in many areas of creative production. We also utilise Lynda.com as a valuable way for students to catch bite size learning about particular aspects of the Adobe software portfolio that they may not fully understand. 

Isn’t it important to use standards-based resources?   

Yes it is but its equally important to allow the flexibility to allow devices and softwares to be re-assigned and used in perhaps ways never imagined by the manufacturer’s . One of my challenges is to attempt to make this happen within a safe environment that allows for a creative approach but without an overly bureaucratic control mechanism.