ARTICLE: IMPORTANCE OF COMPUTER LITERACY

Another interesting  Article from my Friend Comrade Ilemobayo Samson, if you missed the first one you can read it here. You too can send in your write up
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now to the subject

Computer Literacy is the knowledge and ability to use computers and
technology efficiently. Computer Literacy can also refer to the
comfort level someone has with using computer programs and other
applications that are associated with computers. Another valuable
component of computer literacy knows how computers work and operate.
As of 2005, having basic computer skills is a significant asset in the
developed countries.

The precise definition of "computer literacy" can vary from group to
group. Generally, literate (in the realm of books) connotes one who
can read any arbitrary book in their native language [s], looking up
new words as they are exposed to them. Likewise, an experienced
computer professional may consider the ability to self - tech (i.e. to
learn arbitrary new programs or tasks as they are encountered) to be
central to computer literacy. In common discourse, however," computer
literacy" often connotes little more than the ability to use several
very specific applications (usually Microsoft word, Microsoft Internet
Explorer, and Microsoft Outlook) for certain very well - defined
simple tasks, largely by rote. (This is analogous to a child claiming
that they "can read" they have rote - memorized several small
children's books. Real problems can arise when such a "Computer
Literate" person encounters a new program for the first time, and
large degrees of "hand holding " will likely be required.) Being
"literate" and "functional" are generally taken to mean the same
thing.

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The pervasiveness of computers continues to grow at an outstanding
rate. Computers always change; they become smaller, faster and more
powerful. These changes have motivated the modern society to become
comfortable with basic computer - related skills.

The level of computer literacy one must achieve to gain an advantage
over others depends both  on the  society one is in and one's place in
the social hierarchy. Prior to the development of the first computers
in the b1950s, the word computer referred to a person who could count,
calculate, compute. The fear of some educators today is that computer
training in schools will serve only to train data-entry clerks of the
next generation, low level workers of the  so called knowledge
industries. On the other hand, some hope that enhanced computer
literacy will enable  a new generation of cultural producers to make
meanings and circulate those in the public sphere. The wildfire of
cultural production associated with sites such as Youtube seems to
support this notion.

Different countries have different needs for computer literate  people
due to their society standards  and level of technology . The world's
digital divide is now an uneven one with knowledge nodes such as India
disrupting old North/South dichotomies of knowledge and power.

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Computer Literacy is considered to be a very important  skill to
possess while in the first world. Employers want their  workers to
have basic computer skills because their company becomes ever more
dependent on computers. Many companies try to use computers to help
run their company faster and cheaper.

Computers are just as common as pen and paper for writing, especially
among youth. For many applications - especially communicating-
computers are preferred over pen, paper, and typewriters because of
their ability to duplicate and retain information and ease of editing.

As personal computers become common place and they become more
powerful , the concept of computer literacy is moving beyond basic
functionality to more powerful applications under the heading of
literacy.

Of course, arguments about computers being common - place in the first
world has equal access to the latest forms of technology. however,
there is a pronounced digital divide that separates both physical
access to technology and the ability to use that technology
effectively. Where computers are widespread, they are also a part of
education. Computers are used in schools for many applications such as
writing papers or searching the Internet information. Computer skills
are also a subject being specifically taught in many schools,
especially from adolescence onward - when the ability to make
abstractions forms.