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After explaining the options available to students, in 1996 a majority voiced an interest in learning how to use the computer. Next, I asked what computer skills they wanted to focus on. Some had no idea and seemed unable to state their desires clearly. After offering a range of options, it became clear that most wanted to learn to complete their graduation papers and find out how to post their resumes on the Web.
Towards the end of the first lesson, I proposed a rough curriculum with a text processing/Web focus. Not certain how long it would take to master specific skills, the syllabus was vague by necessity. Appendix 1 details what was taught during the 1996 pilot program.
A salient feature of my computer literacy program is that it wasn't platform specific. I encouraged, indeed insisted, that students use both Windows 95 and Mac operating systems. This is because many office environments use more than one platform and I want to avoid "OS tunnel vision". Students familiar with both Windows and Mac platforms will be in a better position to judge their respective merits.
Some of the main points covered during the 1996 course included:
Problems
The most significant quandary concerned the program's educational focus: should an EFL computer literacy course focus more on language or computer skills? Though I attempted to do both, it wasn't easy. Some students couldn't understand key concepts in English. Others had difficulty understanding some computer concepts. This problem was never fully resolved, but alleviated somewhat when proficient students explained key points to others. In fact, a lot of the real "teaching" was from peers. I did a lot of rephrasing of Japanese comments and focussed on the macro-structure of the program; much of the "micro-teaching" was peer-based.
A second problem involved computer use: some students used computers only infrequently outside of class. A few class members used their own PCs regularly, but most visited the computer lab once a week. As a result, the gap between regular and infrequent computer users developed into a chasm. Eventually, I asked the best students to mentor other classmates.
A third point was some students lacked prior typing experience. Though they managed to type required assignments with one finger, they experienced more frustration than others who typed effortlessly. I recommended a supplemental computer typing program and it was partly successful.
Summary
One thing that became clear from this pilot program is that substantial time is needed to develop
computer literacy skills. During the course, students gained a rudimentary understanding of some
computer concepts and vision of what the Internet offers, but none came close to reaching cybernerd status.
Computer proficiency, like foreign language proficiency, takes many hours and in some respects is a lifelong
process. Since the nature of computer technology is changing so rapidly, everyone using a computer must be a
continual learner. In some ways the whole phenomena is infernal: those failing to keep abreast of technological
changes will be marginalized and unable to use the hard/software standards of today. Ten years ago
PC DOS Ver. 3.3, Mac System 6, and UNIX Ver. 4.3BSD / SVR4 were mainstream languages; today they are mere
historical curiosities. In another ten years what languages will dominate? It is almost certain that they will
differ from today's standards.
During the final lesson students gave presentations about their Web pages
and feedback on the course. This class was small enough to permit direct verbal feedback. Many students indicated that the most significant impact of this pilot program was affective. Instead of being daunted by computers, many came to
view them as tools which aren't so difficult to use if approached gradually.
The biggest danger in teaching computer literacy is creating tasks of manageable size.
Flooding students with too much information is one of the best ways to provoke computer phobia. I was careful about the cognitive load of each lesson, keeping new material to a level which would not elicit too much anxiety. The amount of new information regarding computer technology is so daunting that some people become afraid to learn. Though the "it will be out-of-date in a year or so" mentality is valid in some respects, many basic principles regarding computers haven't changed for decades. By techno-time standards, that's an eternity.
References
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