Cultural
First of all it’s important to say that, while the rest of the elements are listed in alphabetical order, Cultural is placed top of the list. Had I placed it at the bottom of the list (as it should be, alphabetically) it would likely have been considered last — which is definitely not when it should be considered. A large part of what I mean by the Cultural element is bound up by an understanding of context. That’s why it’s such a good starting point.
There are many different contexts that an individual may experience, not only over the course of a lifetime, but simultaneously. For example, I’m writing this particular paragraph whilst on a train using a non-linear word processing program called Scrivener. Every now and then I get a 12 notification that I’ve got a reply or direct message on Twitter. This means several things, not least choosing whether to be distracted by those messages right now, but also (and more pertinently) how to navigate between the context of using a program such as Scrivener and TweetDeck, the app I use to interact with my Twitter network.
A note in passing. I always felt when I was teaching — and helping others to learn how to teach — that it’s the transitions that are the hardest to learn. It’s fairly straightforward to master facilitating group work or giving some lecture-style input. How to move seamlessly between these, however, is much more difficult. Likewise, moving between different digital environments is the thing that is problematic and takes time to learn.
It can be very difficult to separate out all of the issues surrounding the personal and social aspects of technology. Something I am consciously avoiding in this book are issues surrounding access to digital devices and technologies. That’s a whole other (and probably much weightier) book. 1
As devices become cheaper and easier to use, the barrier to entry becomes less to do with technology and affordability and more to do with cultural and social factors. Digital literacies are not solely about technical proficiency but about the issues, norms and habits of mind surrounding technologies we use for a particular purpose.
The Cultural element of digital literacies is best acquired by being immersed in a range of digital environments. These environments should include those where different issues, norms and habits of mind are present. This ensures individuals have to modify their approach. Development can therefore be seen by the extent to which individuals can move increasingly quickly and seamlessly between these different digital environments.
This, of course, is why it is such a fallacy to hold that young people are ‘digital natives’ who just ‘get’ how to use digital technologies. While it may very well be true that they know how to use, for example, their mobile device in a social context, cultural expectations for using it in the workplace (or for learning) are vastly different. If educational institutions are to prepare young people for the wider world, they need to be showing them how to navigate across various digital contexts and cultures.
Focusing on the Cultural element of digital literacies can be transformative and empowering. In a similar way that learning a new language can give individuals a new ‘lens’ to view the world, so having an understanding of various digital cultures and contexts can give people different lenses through which to navigate new and familiar spaces.
More on this in the next chapter.
1. If you have an interest in these issues, look for discussions around the so-called ‘digital divide’. ↩