My Digital Literacy Narrative

I grew up in a family more concerned about me being present in the real world rather than the technological world. My days as a child were filled playing outdoors with the neighborhood kids. TV was restricted to certain times and to fun movie nights. Of course, whenever my parents weren’t home and I was alone the free for all began.

Starting at a young age I learned that when my parents weren’t home, I could watch all the television and play all the computer games I wanted. I think this developed my mindset up until even today to think of alone or “me time” as recreational technology time. There’s nothing wrong with sitting down to enjoy your favorite shows or movies when you have a free night to yourself, but it can develop into needing those shows or movies or games etc. which can turn into an addiction. To give a comparison, in my family we also were restricted on the amount of sugary and “unhealthy” foods we could have. Because of this I also relate sugary foods to alone/me time to treat myself and crave those sugary things all the time. Restrictions when you are a child can be a bit hard to balance out when you become an adult.

I’m also very grateful, however, that my parents didn’t allow me to watch all the television or eat all the candy I wanted. I think it made my childhood and my person more alive and active. It’s important to have rules and boundaries for your children if they come from the love and wisdom of the parent. Since I grew up in this way, my mindset towards technology has always been less is better. While growing up and forming my own ideas, I also would have to say I agree with this mindset for myself.

I have two younger siblings, younger than me by 5 and 7 years, and I think their childhoods looked even a little different than mine because of technology, especially in their schools. For me, throughout elementary and middle school the only technology I saw in school was the occasional use of old school owned laptops for research. Every piece of school homework was done without the need or use of a computer or technology other than a calculator. I learned to do homework by hand and while I then rued any form of handwriting, especially homework, I now prefer it as my method of writing. It wasn’t until middle school that smart boards were introduced to the classroom for me. They were a novelty. Before that all we had were dimly lit, ancient light projectors.

My siblings on the other hand from a very young elementary age, had their homework online whether it was actually doing the work online or simply the need for online resources. Something I noticed about this was that the amount of homework could significantly increase and become more complicated with the increase of resources. While technology lent itself to the increase of knowledge attainability, it also increased the amount of stress on the young student.

Through the use of online homework, organization increased and everything became contained in one place, however, the need for technological expertise increased and there was always the chance that wifi wouldn’t work or a computer would be glitching and then how do you do your homework? Being able to use the computer though, brought a whole new side to learning. The amount of information available to students increased significantly and I saw first hand how technology broadened the minds of my siblings. I also saw how it lessened their time in the real world outside of technology, significantly decreasing their time out of doors and the broadness of their imagination. The increase in the use of technology by schools had both its faults and successes. 

It wasn’t until highschool for me that technology became very prevalent. I switched school districts in ninth grade and attended a large public high school in my area. The first day of ninth grade we were each given our own iPad for school use through our entire high school career. Everything was done on the ipads. They were our calender, writing utensil, reading resource, notebook, folder, internet, and communication with students and teachers. Everything we would ever need was contained on the iPad and it was a major switch from what I was used to.

For the most part I did everything on the iPad with the exception of preferring handwritten notes sometimes. There has always been a connection for me between handwriting and memory. I could always remember the information better if I wrote it down physically with my hand and so I preferred this method.

I grew to really hate the iPad through out my high school career. I’m sure much of this hatred toward my innocent ipad though, was because of its undeniable relations with school and homework, both of which I abhorred. I think also because I wasn’t born into using a computer and iPad for school and life, it went against the very grain of my habits and preferences. I was always an avid book reader and continue to this day to prefer a physical hard copy rather than an online version.

It was in high school too that I received my first MacBook laptop for Christmas one year. I was going to start online PSEO classes the next fall semester and was in need of my own computer. With this new development I spent increasingly more time online than in the classroom. By senior year I was only physically going to the highchool for at most 2 hours a day. I was actually attending a class or two in person at a local college for PSEO at this time as well as some online though. Having a computer of my own contributed to the amounting independence I was feeling at that stage in life. Here was a piece of technology I could do whatever I wanted with and was restricted by very few rules. It felt amazing to have something I could escape into from my own dreary teen life. It’s still a challenge for me today to keep balance between online time and offline time in my life. I think this balance is important. Much of what is posted and available online regards life out there in the offline world. How can you contribute or really know something without experiencing it yourself? 

Today I feel both an immense thankfulness for technology as well as an equal amount of wariness for it. I feel thankful that it has allowed me access to abundant information, broadened my world perspective, and led me to many amazing opportunities that have made me into the person I am today. It has allowed me to repeatedly attend college courses completely online and in turn increased my independence and freedom as a person because of this opportunity. Connection to so many friends and family members, of whom I would not be able to keep in touch with easily otherwise, has also been a positive. Because of these connections and accesses the internet decreases my isolation and ignorance. However, I am wary of its addictive quality. The insatiable appetite it awakens in me for more that is never satisfied. Time is sucked away until I’m not aware how much of it has passed. My attention to the people who are physically right in front of me can decrease. My mood, anxiety and depression are also significantly affected with overuse. I am wary of its simply being virtual and not a real experience. I am wary but grateful for the ever increasing technological advancements around me.