My evolution in Electronic Literacy (2)

My evolution in Electronic Literacy

Do you know what literacy is? According to the UNESCO in the past literacy was considered as the condition of being able to read and write. However, nowadays with the advance of technology a literate person is able to read and write about different kinds of topics like culture, politics, health, etc. not only of printed text but also of electronic texts. There are different kinds of literacy as functional, critical, historical, etc., but the one that has become very important because of the advance of electronic technology is the Electronic Literacy which goes beyond that only know read and write on the computer or know how to use one, we must know how to use web pages like blogs, wikis, social networks, etc. Being literate is not an easy play, it is a personal growth in different areas, that is why we should acquire the important habit of reading to become educated and rational people.

But how and when I started to use electronic  tools? Well, my first really contact with a computer was when I was at fifth grade of primary school. There they taught me how to turn in a computer, the functions and use of each part of the computer and also they taught me how to use a very basic program that consisted on gave instructions to a turtle to form some figures.  Then at elementary school I learnt advanced things like how to use word and excel, and at that stage of my life I started to use the internet. At the beginning I just used the internet for searching information related to school, like my homework. But then that I knew about the messenger and that I could meet people by internet I created an account on messenger. Then I started just to chat and searching for information about different interesting things for me like places, famous people, medicine, music and so on.

Nowadays I do not only use the internet for chatting, I also use it with educational and academic purposes. At the university it is necessary that a student has at least an e-mail, because sometimes the teachers ask students to send some information like homework or projects to them by e-mail. Moreover, it is easier to share interesting information with friends and classmates by this way. In my case I have an e-mail and a blog. I use the e-mail to send documents, school works, photos, videos and so on to my contacts; moreover, it is necessary to have an e-mail to be part of a social network as Facebook, Hi5, My space, etc. By the way, I have an account on Facebook, at the beginning I did not like the idea of being part of this social network but then that I saw that almost all of my friends belonged to this website I decided to join in, because I liked the idea of be in contact with some friend that I have not seen in ages. About the matter of my blog, I just created it for this subject, and I think that it is a good idea of teachers to encourage the students to use the internet and electronic tools in a positive way.

As future teachers electronic tools will be very helpful for us, because if we are good at using internet, computers, cameras, etc. our classes would be very dynamic and interesting for students, that is why we have to learn how to use them correctly. In order to achieve that, I think it would be necessary for me to take a computer course because in that way I will make full use of what the technology offers me. As a teacher I would let students to search for information on the internet, maybe I would let them to create their own webpage in order to create a portfolio with all their works, these with the aim of the students get familiarize with all the benefits that the internet and technology offers to them. I would like that my students see the good things that can take advantage of the internet, like the books, online courses, etc. On the other hand, I think that we never stop being students, we always have something new to learn and that is way I would like to study a master degree, I would like it more if I could go abroad to study but if it is not possible,  I would like to study it on line.

The advance of technology has had a great impact on society, however it is on our hands the way we use those advances. Most of the time we use the internet for bad things, but if we use it in the correct and productive way our world would be different. I have evolved in electronic literacy since I was a child to nowadays, but I still need to keep working on it. I think that each of us have to contribute to use the technology to become a better literate person. It is up to you if you want to be literate or just be part of the lot. Let’s do our best to have a better future.