By Sheena Goel
The American Library Association (ALA) defines digital literacy as “the ability to use information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, requiring both cognitive and technical skills.”
During the age of cell phone and laptops, not a single life on this earth remains untouched by computing and digitization, including plants and animals 21st Century does not requires one to be just literate, it requires a person to be digitally literate.
It has become crucial for everyone to know, use and understand digital content. Digital literacy includes learning how to find, sort, evaluate, manage, and create information in digital forms.
Digital literacy basically enables you to navigate digital media texts and fully utilize these
resources. People with low digital literacy run at the risk of falling prey to false news, cyber crimes
and fake digital media impressions. Hence, they need to be digitally literate, so that they can be safe and smart while navigating internet. People also run the risk of distorting their digital image or getting into something they didn’t mean to if they do not fully understand how to navigate social media and internet. Internet is no longer a luxury, it has become a basic necessity of life with everything
connected via internet right from things as basic as your bank accounts to paying utility
bills to getting any useful information or to just navigate your way in an unknown place
(for example google maps).
It is crucial to understand that much of the stuff that happens on social media is just for
entertainment and not to be confused with real life. It is easy to fall prey to scams and cyber frauds specially during banking transactions. Police cyber cells in India receive thousands of complaints every day regarding cyber crime.
Digitally literate people know how to protect themselves by adopting various safety
measures like using strong passwords, privacy settings and not sharing sensitive
information on the social media and not to trust everyone they meet over the internet.
Moreover, they can use the internet in a meaningful way to educate themselves, entertain
and collaborate with netizens.
Without being digitally literate, it is difficult to be effective in daily life and it is going to
become even more crucial in coming years as the technology advances.
People who will not be digitally literate or digitally compatible will find themselves in the
middle of “internet shock” with a feeling of being left out, much like people who are
uneducated find themselves and will become seriously dependent on others to help them,
this will increase their risk of getting cheated even by their near and dear ones.
Digital literacy in 21 st century will enable everyone to be self-reliant and self-dependent,
making it a must-have skill that one should acquire and can invest in for their over all
well being.
sources acknowledged:
https://medium.com/literate-schools/why-it-is-important-to-be-digitally-literate-in-the-21st-century-
583000ac8fc0
https://www.renaissance.com/2019/02/08/blog-digital-literacy-why-does-it-matter/
https://www.thetechedvocate.org/8-essential-digital-literacy-skills-students-need/
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