My Journey of Learning Digital Literacy Essay Example

Sponsors of Literacy, “Sponsors seemed a fitting term for the figures who turned up most typically in people’s memories of literacy learning” (Brandt, 1998). I later released that they had little knowledge on technology.

The parents support, guidelines and concern made me learn how to effectively handle simple computer tasks. I remember my mother saying, “press this button to start the computer, or this to open a program, this to type particular characters and be using this to stop it”. At the initial stages of interacting with the computer, I had feared that I would accidentally hit the wrong key and make the computer crash overshadowed my ability to enjoy it. I remember a couple of times when I told my mother, “am afraid to give the computer wrong instructions”.

Dad often said to me, “be careful on how you operate that computer”. With such an autocratic expressions, I knew that I had done something wrong to the computer following the sound it produced that acted like a signal to my father when he was at home. This cause me some fear. The fear made me shun some practices and curiosity in operating the computer.

I got more interest in playing games or using the paint feature on my computer to draw and paint for. Mum could ambush me and ask, “what are you drawing son?” Basically, my parents especially my loving mother took some of their time in the evening to teach me something new that I did not know about the computers. “Go to my computer icon, press control panel and change the password if you wish”, my mother said. She also taught me the right

procedure to turn off a computer.

I was still at home when I first had the term internet from my friend as soon as she got it. Well, the technological journey seemed to take wider strides as time passed. The first time I used the internet was at her house. She told me about all the people she was meeting online or in chat rooms. At first, I wasn’t able to understand how you could talk to real people over the computer. Due to curiosity and persistent thirst to understand internet communication, I often went to my friend’s house and spent hours and hours talking to different people from all over the world.

Eventually, I was amazed by the expertise my friend developed at typing by chatting people and I was obsessed, so I asked my parents to get the internet and they agree. The internet would help me to maintain my friends who I met online and research about computer usage in other parts of the world like Japan and the United Kingdom. Notably, ever since I was little, I have been very interested in using a calculator. My first experience with calculators faced challenges since I could not understand some symbols.

My first answers were always wrong and misleading due to little knowledge of formulas. Nevertheless, my mother was always there to explain to me some symbol and ensure that I got right answers. She also taught me some summation and subtraction formulas. It is also undeniable that my effort towards money management since my younger age has lead me to use the calculator from a very young age more successfully and effectively. I remember my

father worked abroad and he used to send money for our family expenses and upkeep. I was very interested in helping my mother to organize the sent money into a monthly budget.

I always thought that saving money is the key to good management. Thus, my home, early responsibilities and the neighborhood represents my ecological origin. The middle of my technological journey is marked by my transition from home to school. On my first day in school, I was so nervous and yearning. I felt challenged by the class atmosphere though I had people who supported me to adopt.

In my first day, I answered my question with yes and had little explanation. I will never forget my first conversation in school: Head teacher: “Hello, welcome to our school, you are encouraged to learn and acquire more knowledge, okay?” Me: “Thank you, sir, I will do that”. Head teacher: “Do you have all the books required for writing and reading”? Me: “I do have all of them”. Head teacher: “Then rush to class before the lesson ends”. Class teacher: “Welcome to my class, have a sit and copy what am right, I will explain later. Clear”? Me: “Yes”… Class teacher: “Then you will introduce yourself later”.

Me: “Thank you”. Teachers in Pakistan wrote on the blackboard and we were expected to copy what they had written. My determination was to escalate my technological literacy and I was ready to face any challenges. For example, I noted that the school had a computer just like the one I had at home. Apparently, my technological journey at school level was navigated by multiple sponsors as opposed to my family members

only. Now all of the sudden I was surrounded by hundreds of fellow students, teachers, coaches, and faculty members that I had never met before.

The opportunity for my literacy to take a major turn for the better had arisen a bit. Entering into high school exposed me to numerous foreign words and phrases, that, to be honest, I hadn’t heard or experienced before. The school life was involved with other numerous religious activities which affected almost all the studying processes. We would go to the mosque on Friday and strictly adhere to the religious guideline on religiosity.

The religious life helped as maintain morality and comply with rules. The schooling experience made me realize that technological literacy is highly dynamic exhibited in new technology mediums which I saw in the school compound. Among them were printers and scanners in our head teacher’s office. I was disappointed to note that technology in school was being used more for office practice than for academic purposes by students themselves. When I complained about the limitations about using technology to my parents, they said that Pakistan schools had minimal experts to teach children how to be experts in using computers. The technological advancement journey’s success escalated when I left Pakistan and decided to come to the United States to continue my education.

Coming to the United States was a giant leap for my literacy achievements. I knew that coming to the US would provide me with greater opportunities for my education/literacy, but what I didn’t know was the culture shock. For my first year, the transition in the United State was difficult for me, as I experienced an entirely different school

atmosphere here. My colleagues exhibited critical character traits than I.

they were so curious and free to express their needs to the facilitator as opposed to Pakistan where students were expected to be loyal and submissive to teachers. I still remember the first day at Foothill College. As I opened the doors to Foothill College class, I felt the butterflies in my stomach. My heartbeat accelerated at an alarming rate. Was this it because of culture shock? The experience on the first day gave me a bad memorable feeling.

I felt lost. When I looked inside the enormous hallway and the walls covered with artwork and pictures. I remember how I used to loose direction and often got lost in college. Sometimes, I walked through the never ending hallway, searching for my classroom like detectives on a mission to find a key to the unknown door. I found myself getting more nervous each step, I took. I walked in and my stomach made a flip-flop like riding “The Scream” at Six Flags all increased the level of confusion in the American college.

I saw the class filled with computers per seat. I was dressed in my traditional long dress with my face covered with the jibab. I almost stood when every teacher was coming to class or bend to show some respect. I also experienced difficulties understanding the twisted English that was being used.

Some naughty boy could make jokes about me and I felt so discouraged but my urge to gain literacy independence gave me the motivation to persevere. My first time to see computers in class was in the American experience. I had a computer at home,

but we were not allowed to use even a phone in my class and now, here, I was amazed when I saw one computer per seat.  When I first step into class and saw the teacher giving lectures on projector and we were asked to take notes on computers. This was a difficult transition for me but I struggled with the new technology and through practice, I later became an expert. Often, I followed classmates to a nearby cyber cafe and was amazed at how they were operating the "computer set".

I was as ashamed as I watched them browsing. My mates are computer literate while I stood there looking dumbly at them. I was amazed how they are typing so fast, doing everything on computer, classwork, homework, taking notes… everything! I confronted the same trouble doing my homework assignments on the Word Doc as I had never utilized digital platforms for getting my work done back in my nation. I used to complete my assignment on paper first and then type it into my computer. This was the pick of my experience with technological literacy from which I gained great knowledge in MS Excel, MS Publisher, the internet and other computer packages that I could not have known in Pakistan. Academic non-technological literacy in Pakistan and academically technological literacy in America helped me to learn both types of literacy.

When I compare the American and Pakistan technological experiences, I note several major differences that I find so important to point out. In Pakistan, we were not allowed to use mobile, laptops or any electronics to take notes. We only had to use paper and pen to

take notes which I think improved my spelling literacy a lot. Social relationships or social connections were highly monitored in Pakistan, (Yang, 1989, 35). People in Pakistan rely on cultural issues while Americans have a greater chance for technological understandings, innovation, and invention as they build literate networks across the globe.

Apparently, women in Pakistan were highly controlled by men which are different cases in America which can be one reason for the technological variance between the two nations. Another notable comparison between American and Pakistan technology experiences was technological availability for public use. The cyber cafes in America were not in the dry and rigid Pakistan environments. Secondly, there are notable differences between the American and Pakistan classes. Pakistan classes did more writing than typing on computers but the writing in Pakistan classes cannot be taken for granted. In Pakistan we used hand written papers, teacher’s uses chalkboard, there was no concept of formal email, and instead, we tend to write hand written applications and emails as opposed to the American college where we did everything on the computer and internet.

I noted that writing on the computer was able to release more technical writing and seems to trigger my conscience in the kind of writing I apply for business letters and reports. I loved writing by hand more than I ever imagined I would, after so long at the available computer. Later I noted that the computer had caused me an addiction and writing using the hand became strains and I did not have to transcribe my personal handwritten data entries to the computer later. I realized that the content of what has been written

was much more important than the handwriting. American school emphasized on the content while in Pakistan, we were instructed to improve the handwriting. Finally, technological growth facilitated the pursuance of electronic books instead of carrying physical books all the time in America.

Globalization is very important for today’s life and was more vivid in America than Pakistan. America had people from the diverse place across the world but this is not the case in Pakistan. Therefore, a multicultural and diverse international experience enhances understanding and brings added value in our lives. Technological literacy allows for a greater participation and interaction with the whole world. I received the fabulous opportunity to see diversity and inter-cultural practices first hand when I moved to America.

Although it is good that the education is not static, it is vital to include some old high-quality paper pen texts in curriculums for the younger generation. My technological literacy journey has had many twists and turns leading to where I am today but the Pakistan and American experiences gave me the diverse technological knowledge that I can proudly and competently apply when there is a need. I now believe that ecological and social environment affect people’s cultural practices. This is exhibited in how Pakistan (my home) and America; which can be termed as “antagonistic cultures” facilitate technological advancement and utilization. My technological journey started at Pakistan and climaxed at America. I affirm that ecological factors influenced my knowledge accumulation throughout every notable stage in the journey with the help of sponsors.

I know understand that more subconscious thoughts and feelings are affected by ecological factors and they greatly contribute to technological literacy advancement. I appreciate

the role played by academic non-technological literacy in Pakistan and academically technological literacy in America towards helping me to learn both types of literacy. I, therefore, affirm that both America and Pakistan experiences in my technological literacy journey are important in making me who I am today.

References

• Berry, Patrick W., Hawisher, Gail E., & Selfe, Cynthia L. (2012). Transnational Literate Lives in Digital Times. Logan, UT: Computers and Composition. Digital Press/Utah State University Press. Retrieved from http://ccdigitalpress.org/transnational
• Brandt, D. (1998). Sponsors of literacy. College Composition and Communication, 49(2), 165.

  Doi: 10.2307/358929

• Iinuma, M. (2016). Learning and teaching with technology in the knowledge society: New literacy, collaboration and digital content. Singapore: Springer