As I reflect on the RRU Virtual Symposium, I am feeling both thoughtful and inspired by the breadth and depth of academic and professional expertise we were exposed to. All the sessions triggered new critical thought, especially around digital literacy, and open education. As I consider how these “new to me” concepts fit into to my personal and professional life, it has helped me to view our clients and the way we engage with them through a different lens.
The concepts of digital literacy and open education are new to me in theory, but not in practice. For over a decade, I have used open education and various social media platforms both personally and professionally. According to Catherine Cronin’s concept of openness as a continuum (Cronin, 2017, 23:49), however, both my personal and professional digital identities are quite private. Cronin further states that, the essence of openness is, “how might we teach and design to help learners to develop their voice and their agency so that they can co-create culture and knowledge” (Cronin, 2017, 13:45).
Through this purposefully designed RRU program, I will work to develop the skills needed to actively participate in the co-creation of knowledge, starting with this first blog post. For many reasons, the process of sharing openly does not come easily, and they are skills I am committed to developing, through practice and community support. As I consider my personal digital identity and use of open education, it then brings me to my business practices, and those that choose to engage with our services and content through communities we are co-creating in physical, bound and open learning spaces (Cronin, 2017, 16:53).
In addition to the benefit of providing me with the philosophy and theory behind our instructional design, what became immediately clear as I watched each session, is that we have never considered digital literacy as part of our ‘target client’ analysis. With technology and social media as the main modalities of content creation and delivery, it is foundational to our connection, future growth and impact. It is a glaring gap in our assessment and yet, should have been obvious. Through business coaching and other supports, this aspect of our client base has never been part of our discussions, until now.
It’s exciting that one week of learning has already had such a practical impact on how I view current and future use of digital learning spaces and technologies. I look forward to what’s yet to be co-created.
References
Cormier, D. (2017, April 20). RRU Virtual Symposium: Intentional messiness of online communities [Webinar]. Royal Roads University. https://malat-coursesite.royalroads.ca/lrnt521/recordings/dave-cormier-virtual-symposium-presentation/
Cronin, C. (2017, April 20). RRU Virtual Symposium: Choosing Open [Webinar]. Royal Roads University. https://malat-coursesite.royalroads.ca/lrnt521/recordings/catherine-cronin-choosing-open/
Tanya, E. (2023, April 13). RRU Virtual Symposium: Developing Work-Integrated Learning Ecosystems [Webinar]. Royal Roads University. https://mediaspace.royalroads.ca/id/0_q7jg1fjo
Pearson, R. (2021, April 16). RRU Virtual Symposium: Reflections on a Career In Learning and Technology [Webinar]. Royal Roads University. https://mediaspace.royalroads.ca/id/0_q7jg1fjo
Porter, D. & Forssman, V. (2023, April 11). RRU Virtual Symposium: Micro credentials in HE and beyond – a strategic approach and a case study of implementation[Webinar]. https://mediaspace.royalroads.ca/media/PorterForssmanVSApril112023/0_kv2jpmeg
Nice summary, Lara. Thx!
I am interested in your observation of the need for digital literacy skills for clients engaging with your services. This is something I have thought about quite a bit over the past few years, as it seems that a great many different competencies are being added to the category “digital literacy.”
For everyone: What do you consider “digital literacy” skills? Does this mean the ability to search using Google or Bing, send email, post to social media, install Linux on an old laptop, write automation scripts?
There is probably no definite answer, but I am curious what this group of educators consider a fit for this category.
Thanks for the post Lara and questions Russ!
Russ, your question pertaining to “digital literacy” is pertinent at my college right now. We will be starting discussions soon about redesigning our traditional communication courses to include digital literacy skills. Much like yourself, I do not have definite answers. I anticipate going into discussions with educational developers who will have various different opinions on the competencies. Do you have any research or framework that you have discovered over the past few years that you are able to share?
Hey Marni – I see your question at the end there for Russ and appreciate that the role you play within your college must be so dynamic and ever changing in order to keep up with current and near future student and market needs around emerging competencies. Although research and frameworks are beyond my knowledge base at this time, I can share that my small business recently received a micro CDAP Grant (Canada Digital Adoption Program) through Business Link and I found an recent article from techtalent.ca highlighting Canadian programs and initiatives to boost digital skills in Canada. It includes a link to Canada’s Digital Charter page that has a lot of links and resources – most likely you’ve seen some of them before! Would love to hear more about your College’s process and progress as it emerges.
Here are URLs sine I’m unsure if the links work in comments:
Business Link CDAP grant: https://businesslink.ca/canada-digital-adoption-program/
TechTalent article: https://techtalent.ca/government-invests-million-boost-digital-skills-canada/
Canada’s Digital Charter: https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/innovation-better-canada/en/canadas-digital-charter-trust-digital-world