Resources for Teaching (and Learning) Digital Literacy Skills

The Covid-19 crisis has pushed us all online… for working, for teaching and for learning. If you want to help your students improve their digital literacy skills (or brush up on your own) Northstar Digital Literacy provides a set of tools to develop and measure ability.

• The Northstar Digital Literacy Assessments define basic skills needed to use a computer and the internet in daily life, employment, and higher education. Online, self-guided modules assess the ability of adults to perform these tasks. There are 12 modules divided into three main areas: Essential Computer Skills (Basic Computer Skills, Internet Basics, Using Email, Windows 10, Max OS); Essential Software Skills (Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint): and Using Technology in Daily Life (Social Media, Information Literacy, Career Search Skills, Your Digital Footprint). Modules assess skills in a contextual manner that requires actual demonstration of skills in a realistic setting. The assessments are free and open to anyone. Individuals who take (and pass) assessments in a proctored setting receive certificates.

• Northstar Online Learning (NSOL) allows for independent study tied to the assessment standards. Each module consists of online lessons with clear, slowly- spoken audio coupled with written words, to accommodate a variety of learning styles and levels. The online lessons include instruction followed by a task, prompting learners to perform the skill just learned. At the end of each segment, learners are given a quiz to show mastery, before moving on to the next segment. A quiz at the end of the entire module, indicates whether the learner is ready to take the assessment, or should invest more time in studying. Currently, Basic Computer is the only module available in NSOL, with Internet Basics due out by end of May, and Career Search by end of June.

• External Resources Northstar staff curates a collection of publicly-available resources that align with the topics on the assessments.

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