Eyman’s analysis of digital literacy showed me that my original concept of digital skills needed to be revised. It used to exist for me as the ability to operate technology through platform navigation and online work submission and social media interaction. The definition he provided now seems insufficient. According to Eyman digital literacy consists of two elements which include technical skills and the capacity to evaluate and decipher digital materials. Digital spaces exist as constructed environments. User interfaces provide guidance for user actions. The algorithms determine which content we are permitted to view. The recognition of this fact transforms digital literacy into a dynamic skill that enables active knowledge about digital environments.
Critical Thinking in Digital Spaces
The most powerful argument Eyman presents shows that people need critical thinking skills to achieve digital literacy. Texts maintain their biased nature because they present themselves as informal and entertaining. The cultural values and economic motives and rhetorical choices of websites and social media posts and online articles determine their content. The process of understanding this concept made me realize my pattern of consuming digital content without examining its origin and purpose. It requires people to investigate the identity of content creators and the purpose behind their work and the parties who gain advantage from it.
Participation and Responsibility Online
Eyman expresses that digital literacy requires people to participate responsibly instead of merely watching others. The act of creating online content through posting or commenting or sharing functions as a rhetorical process that affects others. Users on digital platforms possess the ability to create their own stories and community spaces through their actions, which can occur both purposefully and accidentally. The understanding of this viewpoint taught me that every action performed online results in actual consequences. Digital literacy requires continuous learning because it develops together with technological and platform advancements.
Leave a Reply