TED İzMİR COLLEGE / 10-A
Digital Citizenship : The Impact of Education on the Upbringing of Digitally Literate Individuals
Merve Begüm ALTuNTAŞ
116
As the collective opportunities technology and commercial forces have been providing us increased , the distinctive border between what information is true and what is not has become blurred , and eventually , unrecognizable . Such complex and conflicted media presences resulted in the need for individuals to abandon the approach in which we regard media as a simple matter of techniques and machines , and gain important skills that help us adequately peruse media content . This is the main function of digital literacy ; which can be defined as having the skills required to live , learn , and work in a society where access to information and communication is through digital technologies . 1
In accordance to the importance of digital literacy in mature individuals ’ lives ; computers , tablets , and smart phones have become a constant presence in children ’ s lives as well . Most children and teenagers continued their studies through online education during the Covid-19 pandemic , therefore these technologies served as a means of retrieving information as well as a medium for self-expression and conduction of social relationships . This demonstrates the increasing need for the inclusion of digital literacy in children ’ s education .
Although it has gained more popularity over the last few years , the notion of digital literacy is not , by any means , ‘ new ’. The European Commissions ’ Safer Internet Action Plan funded various educational projects which aimed to emphasize the importance of digital literacy as a means for protection , safety , and assessing informational needs correctly . While similar projects have been conducted by different non-governmental bodies and governments themselves , the focal point of these discussions were either safety concerns or information which remain highly important , but failed to adequately demonstrate the ideal digital literacy required in children ’ s education nonetheless .
Ultimately , the need for different attempts to increase digital literacy still remains , and Bettina Fabos presents a useful study in order to review different methods used to evaluate digital information . She argues that checklists are often not effective since the unfamiliarity of the students to the topic at hand causes them to fail at applying the criteria on the evaluation checklist to the media platform at hand . Such evaluation also assumes that these websites can eventually be categorized as those which are reliable and factual , and
1 What is digital literacy ? Western Sydney university . https :// www . westernsydney . edu . au / studysmart / home / study _ skills _ guides / digital _ literacy / what _ is _ digital _ literacy