It's a digital world
KAMALA BALACHANDER
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Computer literacy is now an important part of the school curriculum.
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Bijoy Ghosh
"I am an illiterate!" said Padmini. Considering that she was a teacher, this was puzzling. "I needed an appointment for the U.S. visa interview and was told to get it from the Net. I had no clue as to how to access the Net, so I had to ask my grand nephew for help", she said!
Mastery of the three Rs alone is no longer enough. A fourth R — ComputeR, is essential.
It was around the mid 1980s that schools woke up to the reality of the fourth R. But catching up at the curricular content level, does not bridge the digital divide that exists in the education that the privileged kids enjoy and that which the underprivileged, receive. Insufficient infrastructure in terms of number of computers, coupled with an errant power supply in the rural areas, has resulted in the computer science becoming yet another teaching subject. At best, children are made to write notes on the computer terminology and features of a PC. They draw flow charts in notebook and write programs in languages.
At elite city schools, children do get hands-on experience. School projects and assignments are routinely done with the help of the Internet.
Parents and educators unanimously acknowledge the educational potential of home computers. With the result, a range of interactive educational CDs is available. The libraries in professional colleges are equipped with computers and students access them for reference.
Computer literacy is certainly the order of the day. But it is important that we learn to use it as its master; not end up being its slave.<232>
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