The traditional definition of literacy as defined by NAAL, The National Assessment of Adult Literacy is concerned with “how adults use printed and written information to adequately function at home, in the workplace, and in the community.” When one is said to be “computer literate,” they understand the mechanics of how to use a computer. They can turn a computer on and off, type on the keyboard, and click the mouse.
Web Literacy takes things one step further. It can be defined simply as “the ability to read, write, and participate on the web.” Mozilla has created a Web Literacy Map that provides a framework for the key elements of Read, Write, and Participate. Related to the Web Literacy Map, are Mozilla’s 21st Century Skills: Problem-Solving, Collaboration, Creativity, and Communication. For libraries, Web Literacy is important as customers seek more information via the internet unguided and by themselves, they need ways to seek out and evaluate quality information. With the proliferation of social media and commenting on news sites, customers are also contributing and participating in the web. This presents a great opportunity for libraries. Many customers are re-engaging after their times as students, where they were taught to write a research paper in school, but weren’t taught standards for participating in the web. It is in libraries’ best interest to help facilitate standards, so that information that is created is also easy to find.
Mozilla, for their part as a nonprofit is interested in facilitating education. It falls in line with their mission “to build a safe, open, and innovative web that empowers individuals and communities.” This is in stark contrast to other internet companies like Microsoft and Google who provide “free services” but make money off of target ads from data mining. So how is Web Literacy taught, and how can libraries and other institutions implement programs for their staff and customers? Mozilla has three tools that TLCPL learned about at the workshop in Cleveland: X-Ray Goggles, Thimble, and Webmaker. After opening up Firefox, Mozilla’s browser, and registering for a free account, the tools can be activated to work through Mozilla’s curriculum. Participants of the workshop were able to manipulate the images and headlines on their favorite news websites, and create a soundcloud playlist on a separate blog page. Everyone agreed the projects were fun, and informative. Currently, teams have been formed to apply the exercises to TLCPL staff and provide cutting edge programming to their customers. Check out Mozilla’s Learning Page at http://learning.mozilla.org for more on Web Literacy, and this exciting curriculum.
Works Cited:
Chung, An-Me. IMLSAug25Mozilla101WebLitMap2.0 (Google Slides Presentation). Retrieved from https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1uN-NFFIByyftwt_gy_-fkMvHTsoAYf23ceexthEu4L0/edit#slide=id.p12
Lawrence, Chris. (2015, August 3). A Definition of Web Literacy and How Students Can Benefit. Retrieved from http://www.teachthought.com/uncategorized/a-definition-of-web-literacy-and-how-students-can-benefit/
Mozilla. The Mozilla Learning Network. Retrieved from https://learning.mozilla.org/en-US/
Mozilla. Tools. Retrieved from https://learning.mozilla.org/en-US/tools
Mozilla. 21st Century Skills. Retrieved from https://learning.mozilla.org/en-US/web-literacy/skills
Mozilla. Web Literacy. Retrieved from https://learning.mozilla.org/en-US/web-literacy
National Assessment of Adult Literacy. Three Types of Literacy. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/naal/literacytypes.asp
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