Computer Literacy Essay

The figurer technology became a very important aspect in human lives that is heavy(p)ly relied upon. Nowadays personal computers are made quite affordable and allow for easy and fast counsel to access entropy and solve problems in daily life. Life is a continuous information discussion and technological systemal progress cares accelerate this exchange. However, the great unwashed are so dependable on computers that they do non realize the impact it has on literacy.Computer literacy is essential in our modern society but with great advant climb ons of this skill come disadvantages that can have a negative impact on the three radical skills such as reading, makeup and arithmetic. Reading is a skill that is taught from a very young age that makes people more intellectual and formed in an everyday life. Technology made access to information very simple which is why many people turn to computers for news, books and some others sources of information.A trip to a library or a newspaper shop is a thing of the past since everything is available at your fingertips in the comfort of your own home. However reading from a computer covert can be ofttimes slower and inefficient. In the following quote,These differences in reading speed are assumed to be imputable to a declined sense of orientation when reading long lines of online text presented in single wide columns it is bare that reading from a computer screen can affect the reading speed when comparing to reading from the book.A person can easily lose track of where they are when reading from a screen and as a result this can affect comprehension of the text. This is evident in the Failure to draw by Jane Healy, Reading from the screen is slower, more fatiguing, less(prenominal) accurate, and more subject to information overload than archetype reading. In several studies, students tested for comprehension after reading from a screen demonstrated less understanding and poorer memory than those getting t he same information from a book. They tended to get lost or make too quickly through the screens without reading .When reading of the computer screen people tend to watch and blink less causing static stare which increase chances in eye air travel and headaches, bit on the paper thither is rapid and rhythmic eye movement which significantly causes less strain on the eyes. Reading printed text gives a reader time to reflect and imagine thus creating an overall different environment. Clifford Stoll also points out a negative effect of computer literacy on reading, he writes As computers replace textbooks, students will become more computer literate and more book illiterate.Theyll be exploring virtual(prenominal) worlds, watching dancing triangles, downloading the latest Web sites. But they wont be reading books . When computers were invented there was an argument that this technology will sharpen intellectual skills and their development which in part is true through the use of various educateing software. However it seems that people spend more time on pleasure such as online chatting and playing games rather than taking an advantage of reading an intellectual book which is surely intended to see. Writing is another skill that produces human literacy.Writing on the computer changes the way of compose and the nature of the relationship between the writer and his writing. Writing requires snap attending, and anything that diverts attention away from the process of writing (in particularly, thinking somewhat what to write) is going to affect the quality of the break down produced . As mentioned by Armstrong and Casement writing requires focused attention and writing on the computer can be very distracting since online chatting software or other means of distractions are only a click away.Writing can be frustrating at times since organizing and expressing your thoughts is always difficult but it can be much harder to do using the computer due to dis tractions. Work written using the computer appears stilted and less considerable even though it is neater. However, the hand written work appears better organized, and has a better expression of thoughts as there is no distraction. There is an advantage to reviewing several pages at the same time when hand writing rather than on the computer where you can only see a page at once.People tend to focus more on how their work looks paying more attention to things such as font size and alignment instead of organizing their thoughts and what to write. Many people think that writing aids on the computer are peachy for their writing, but this is not true. As Jane Healy says, Computers will not themselves teach writing skills , computer ought to help in writing, but they will not teach those skills. Due to the word processing software a lot of students cannot write clearly and punctually nowadays. Clifford Stoll made a very good point about writing on the computer, he said Instead, you typ e delete or undo.Your mistakes dont teach you as well . Since it is so easy to use spell-check that people tend to not pay attention to their mistakes and let word processing software do the job. Quite frequently the software automatically corrects mistakes opus typing that a person does not realize he spelled the word incorrectly. The trend of online chatting and text electronic messaging also has a huge impact on writing skills due to the use of short forms. arithmetical is the third basic skill which develops human logic. Computer is not a way to develop logic because it only gives someone elses logic.There are schedules which solve problems and calculate answers, but they certainly teach nothing. Students find answers to problems online or in special software without understanding and manipulating the concepts. As the example of this problem, The World blanket(a) Web will tell me the volume of water behind Egypts Aswan Dam a fact. furthermost more useful is to know how to calculate this number a skill . The use of calculators can greatly affect the understanding of numerical relationships since students go from numbers to answers skipping the fundamentals of understanding the concept.This is evident in game Tech Heretic by Clifford Stoll, No surprise that students weaned on calculators cant procreate in their heads. They cant divide. Theyre minimally cognizant of basic arithmetic . Computer programs and calculators work against learning basic arithmetic and have a big effect on the arithmetic skills. Students are dependent on computer programs and calculators that without the use of this technology, their skills are very limited because they are taught on how to scolder in the numbers to get answers without understanding the concept.As another example of a computer program Logo, I see Logo as a means that can, in principle, be used by educators to support the development of new ways of thinking and learning. However, Logo does not in itself produc e good learning anymore than paint produces good art. . Logo does not fit in mathematical skills, because it is in effect(p) a program that solves the problems. The program makes to believe that there is always answer to the problem-solving, where one click on the mouse will show you the answer.The very good point was in the book The Cult of nurture by Theodore Roszak, he says The problem that AI(Artificial Intelligence) has encountered in pursuing its inflated claim are illuminating, if for no other reason that they reveal the limitations of the mathematical mind when it strays beyond the boundaries of pure reason or rather seeks to persuade those boundaries into the real world . Mathematics is a translation of problems into an abstract view where numerical solutions are born-again into understanding which neither computer programs nor calculators can do.Nowadays, there is surprisingly a big amount of people that do not get the mathematical concepts and the logic of solutions . Computer literacy has a negative influence on the three basic skills. There is nothing taught using computers, except of a bad access of information, the trend of its presentation, manipulation, and the easy answers. Computer cannot impart information to a human. It can only changes human views to a life. They wispy the skills we use in everyday life .