Sophia Maynard

5 Things I Learned In Digital Literacy Class

Throughout the entirety of the course, I learned a lot about my online presence, how I interact with others online, and what I can do to improve the digital experience for others. Beyond this, I learned how I am being influenced, voluntarily or involuntarily, through algorithms created by companies to effect what websites I visit, where I click on these websites, and that I’m not as in control of what I see as I’d previously believed. This course placed a strong emphasis on the inequalities and injustices that are created when certain creators are in power. Digital inequalities are an extremely prevalent problem, from imbalances in access to various technologies and digital resources, to digital barriers that make it impossible for users of different abilities to use technologies. This course has greatly impacted the way I will forever use and think about the internet, and has made me much more aware of the great privilege I hold when it comes to digital literacy – not only has it never been a problem for me to acquire the necessary tools I need for learning, but I have also grown up in a society that prioritizes learning and Internet use. Here is a list of further lessons that I learned in Digital Literacy class.

1. Digital Empathy Isn’t Just Important, It’s Necessary

For a a grade boost assignment, I attended a talk on “Empathy and Historical Understanding” given by a visiting professor. Having read Jones’ and Hafners’ article Understanding Digital Literacies that placed an emphasis on how online presences affect those around us, I felt that this talk would provide great background on what empathy truly is, and that I could connect this term to the class. This worked, as the talk brought up various types of empathy, noting that empathy is most effective when we are able to understand the differences between ourselves and others, while still understanding the needs of others by imaging ourselves in their position. This led to to learning about Digiral Empathy and Empathic Design. These terms weren’t explicitly discussed in class, but I felt they connected very well. Digital empathy is the ability to apply the principles of empathy (compassion, cognition, and emotion) into online interactions while also keeping the experiences of others in mind. Similarly, empathic design requires using this sort of empathy to enhance user’s experiences. As designers create new websites or others technologies, they must keep the needs of all users in mind, especially those with different abilities. Something specific I learned in class while completing the Critical Analysis project was that in order for a tool to be fully functional, it must be available and effective for every single user.

2. Technology Has Impacted My Life More Than I Thought

In creating the Digital Literacy Ethnography, I had the opportunity to reflect upon various times that I used technology to enhance my digital literacy, and also examine one of my classmates’ journeys in using an online technology. Both of these experiences that we chronicled were very transformative for us and actually determined the way that our futures may pan out — just because of the uses of relatively simple technologies! My partner had an interest in podcasts, and found her passion for social justice issues by listening to podcasts as she walked. This led her to a summer internship concerning activism and has also contributed to her getting a job in the field. All this had been spurred through the use of a technology that allowed her to find and pursue a passion. She might not have even realized this had it not been for the use of further technology, aka using Canva to tell her story.

3. The Internet Isn’t Neutral

The existence of algorithms online has lead to innate biases existing online, that can lead to unfair outcomes. In class, we discussed how systems like this can lead to one group being privileged over another. The negative outcomes can range from privacy violations to blatant racial, sexuality, or gender discriminations. Something that shocked me was a phrase from the “Biased Algorithms, Biased World” transcript, when mathematician and former Wall Street-er Cathy O’Neil stated that nobody checks the internet algorithms. The way that the algorithms are created are often proprietary information, so people simply aren’t allowed to know how they work. This leads to unchecked biases and algorithms that learn to discriminate because of how they are coded. In order to correct these biases, the way that the algorithms work needs to be more transparent, so that the discriminatory feedback loop can end.

4. Literacy is A Social Phenomenon

Literacy is essential for survival in today’s society, as it became an extremely competitive and advantageous skill to possess during the 19th and 20th centuries. However, as we discussed throughout class, and were unable to find a real definition of, ‘literacy’ has a different meaning to everyone. Every generation has gained new literacy skills that the previous generation did not have, and as each generation passes, old literacy skills are rendered worthless. A person’s environment is also important in determining one’s literacy level, because they will adopt the necessary tools to survive in that environment. However, no matter what the literacy skills are, the discussion of literacy as a means of profit and economic advantage holds true — and the fact that literacy and the means to acquire it are not fairly distributed.

5. Bias is All Around Us

Because such a large portion of the class focused on how algorithms contribute to bias and how technology/literacy skills are unevenly distributed, I found that learning about biases was one of the most important lessons because of how hidden biases can be if you do not specifically learn about them/they aren’t taught. This is also an important lesson because power resides in the hands of those whom the algorithm favors. That is why it is important to understand biases, in order for them to be dismantled. Living in a biased world, it can be very hard to see bias and racism because it is so ingrained into culture. Just like algorithms, this needs to be dismantled, but can only be done if it is understood. Technology can provide a lot of great things, but also can have harmful effects, which cannot be reversed if they are not understood.