Ashley Chiasson, M.Ed

When I was working through my undergraduate degree, majoring in Linguistics, I was always fascinated my the broad concept of literacy, particularly I lived in an industrialized country that still had high instances of illiteracy. As technology becomes more prevalent in our society, the issue of digital literacy is of equal interest to me.

Digital Literacy

Digital literacy involves having the general knowledge/skills/behaviours to use digital technology such as computers, smartphones, and tablets that are (in most circumstances) connected to the Internet. For even the most novice of digital literates, one should be able to troubleshoot digital technology issues, even if that troubleshooting involves a simple google or youtube consultation.

In the Learning and Development (L&D) community, digital literacy should be a priority. With an aging workforce, our training really does need to cater to the younger demographic. However, we need to ensure equal access for those in the workforce who are not considered ‘digital natives’. The younger generation is accustomed to using and troubleshooting technology; some of these individuals may not even remember dial-up internet or corded telephones, but they are most often than not extremely literate when it comes to using digital technologies.

This is why, in developing e-learning, content should be geared toward the digital literate, but should also consider elements that are important to those not so literate, such as navigation help, interface explanation, etc.

When I think of digital literacy (which I often take for granted), I think of my parents. My mom who is fairly literate in the technology world, but keeps a bag of computer cables ‘just in case’ (most of which have become obsolete and will never be needed), and my dad who has maybe done an internet search 10 times in his entire life.

In taking for granted my own digital literacy, I’ve noticed that my mom can now outperform me when it comes to getting around on her Android tablet, and my dad is keeping me updated on all of the latest media streaming services and how to use them. In considering this, I realized just how important it is to be continually learning, as even though I work in a technology-driven industry, my skills and knowledge can become just as outdated just as quickly as technology.

I suppose my point is this: digital literacy might be taken for granted, especially in the world of L&D professionals, who are entrenched in creating cutting edge training programs. As professionals, we need to ensure we’re being just as inclusive to those non-digital natives as we would be for programs requiring 508 compliance. Just because it seems logical to us, it might not be as straight-forward to our learners.

Continuing on with theories related to thinking, I’ve seen several articles in recent weeks discussing Design Thinking, so I figured it would be a timely term to discuss.

Design Thinking

The concept of design thinking came to be as a method for solution-based thinking. This idea ties in with last week’s discussion of convergent and divergent thinking (considering one, solitary, correct solution, and considering many solutions), as design thinking begins with divergent thinking to identify many potential solutions and ends with convergent thinking to identify one of the many potential solutions that will be employed as THE solution.

The process of design thinking includes several phases (define, research, ideate, prototype, choose, implement, and learn), which in education can be easily compared to Instructional Design models, such as ADDIE. Define/Research = Analysis, Ideate = Design, Prototype = Develop, Choose/Implement = Implement, and Learn = Evaluate. Very familiar, no?

If you’ve participated in workshops or interactive conference sessions, you’ve likely witnessed design thinking first hand. Last year, I was involved in a workshop-style presentation of research findings. In this presentation, participants were prompted to provide some guided feedback at several junctures. At the end of the presentation, it was then revealed that the researchers were conducting data collection throughout the workshop, and our feedback would be used within their research. Genius! Design thinking in action!

Design thinking isn’t a new concept, and it isn’t always employable within our organizations and/or institutions, but it is a great method for eliciting creativity to solve broader problems.

Interested in reading more? 

‘Design thinking’ is changing the way we approach problems big and small by T. Johnson

Design Thinking and How it Will Change Management Education: An Interview and Discussion by D. Dunne and R. Martin

When we come decisions, we most often employ a process for making those decisions. We may weigh the pros and cons, we may jump immediately to a ‘correct’ solution, or we may choose the wrong solution and have to go back to the drawing board. However you make decisions, there’s more going on inside your brain than you might realize.

Convergent Thinking

Convergent thinking is a process where you tend to choose the ‘correct’ response, given very little mental output. Think of multiple choice exams as an example (now, I know this isn’t the case for all multiple choice exams, but how many times have you ever guessed a response?).

With this method of making decisions, the individual is often focused on patterns, responding in a way that is most probable based on previous experiences. It is a method that tends to be entrenched in logic and familiarity and is often the quickest route to making a decisions.

Divergent Thinking

Divergent thinking is a decision making process that emphasizes the consideration of many ‘correct’ or potentially correct solutions to a problem, which tends to require increased mental output. This method may not be as fast as convergent thinking, but it tends to generate many options and is often viewed as spontaneous, emphasizing principles of free association, brainstorming, and critical-thinking.

Using this method, individuals provide an initial spew of ideas, and then use logic to critical connect various concepts related to the problem in an effort to reach the most appropriate solution.