Digital Literacy and AI

What is digital literacy?

The American Library Association (2011) defines digital literacy as the ability to use information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, requiring both cognitive and technical skills.

A digitally literate person should:

• Possesses the variety of skills – technical and cognitive – required to find, understand, evaluate, create, and communicate digital information in a wide variety of formats
• Is able to use diverse technologies appropriately and effectively to retrieve information, interpret results, and judge the quality of that information
• Understands the relationship between technology, life-long learning, personal privacy, and stewardship of information
• Uses these skills and the appropriate technology to communicate and collaborate with peers, colleagues, family, and on occasion, the general public
• Uses these skills to actively participate in civic society and contribute to a vibrant, informed, and engaged community

Source: Digital Literacy Taskforce. (2011). What is digital literacy? American Library Association. Retrieved August 8, 2022 from https://alair.ala.org/handle/11213/16260 

Also please refer to this digital literacy library guide for more information. 

Why is it important?

Due to the growing amount of information and reliance on technology, personal space and privacy are either not as important or have less protection. It is imperative to not only understand how the digital and information technology spheres function, but to also understand how they effect our daily lives, and how we learn and communicate. 

Knowing the fundamentals of digital literacy allows a individual to differentiate between these private and public spaces, while retaining their own autonomy and privacy.