This week has taught me how similar learning how to use a computer and learning how to read is. In both situations you start off slow, learning little things like what a letter is or how to turn a computer on. You slowly learn more and more until you can read an entire sentence or type up an email. The more you use these new skills the better you get even if you don't really notice your improvement.
These days almost every young person has used a computer and is fairly advanced in their level of computer literacy. Without even thinking about it we use hot-keys, scroll down pages, and google any thing we need to know about. Most of us can enroll in classes, pay our bills, book plane tickets and buy our text books in under ten minutes. This all seems pretty easy when you've been on a computer since your age was in the single digits but to someone who has just started using a computer while in their 60's it all seems down right scary.
What I consider to be my biggest success this week is helping a new computer user get more comfortable on the internet by showing her little things that make the experience more effective and efficient. I never realized the time a few clicks of the tab, control, and enter key really saves you and how much more someone can get done when they make the effort to come out and further their learning.
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