What is Digital Literacy? Module Launch

What does it mean to be literate today? What does literacy look like in the 21st Century? 

Digital Literacy: The capability to use technology and knowing and how to use it. 

Today, learning in a digital society includes searching and accessing information. It also means being able to determine if information is reliable and accurate, as well as the skills to check the validity of information. 

With the advent of the Internet, we are constantly immersed in information - all of which we can access online within seconds. If your teacher were to ask you to "Google" something, you would immediately know what to do. But is the first search always the best? Nor is everything we find always credible? 

 Thinking About Tall Tales

Ever wonder if you can trust any information you hear? Sometimes does it seem like everything we see online seems t be designed to convince us of something? 

Take a moment to watch the following Geico, "Tell Tales" commercial. As you watch, think about all the "tall tales" you see and hear when you go online or even in the media.  

Source: Clark, B., 2015, "Geiko fisherman commercial - tell tales" Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWDdnzAEuHw

Just like you wouldn't believe everything someone tells you, you shouldn’t believe everything you read, just because it's online sn may seem like it's factual.  In the real world, if someone told you an unbelievable story, how would you determine if it was true?

 Mentimeter Poll

Let's Collaboratively Brainstorm! 

1. Go to menti.com and participate in a poll, answering this question,  What do you consider to be information?   Share 4 words that sum up what you consider to be information (ie: news...)

2. Then share your comments to these questions,

Do you always believe the information you read online or hear in the media? Why or why not? How do you verify what's real? 

(When you go to menti.com, you will be required to enter the code: 22 74 90).

Later we will share and discuss the results of the poll in class when we meet face to face.