Can you figure out how to use a new software program? Can you find what you want online using your "Google-fu"? Are you showing your children how to use computers...or are they showing you? A new article by Henry Jenkins highlights the importance of obtaining what he calls "new media literacies." Here's a blurb:

"A growing body of scholarship suggests potential benefits of these emergent forms of participatory culture, including opportunities for peer-to-peer learning, a changed attitude towards intellectual property, the diversification of cultural expression, the development of skills valued in the modern workplace, and a more empowered conception of citizenship. Access to this participatory culture functions as a new form of the hidden curriculum, shaping which kids will succeed and which will be left behind as they enter schools and workplaces."

Clearly, developing new media skills is important for school children. But, what about adult learners who grew up before the personal computer was a household staple? Many older online learners need extra assistance to develop the skills that will put them ahead in the workplace. In most professions primary skills just don't cut it anymore. Just about everyone needs to develop technological skills that will help them communicate with colleagues and find information online.

To read the rest of Jenkin's article check out: What Wikipedia Can Teach Us About the New Media Literacies.