Digital literacy

We all learned how to read and write at school. Such knowledge and skills allow us to study, communicate and, more importantly, to undersand and better use our own language. Today, though, we don’t just have to communicate with people and it’s not just people from whom we receive signals and information, but we communicate with computers, digital systems and platforms and, in our case, with industrial machines as well.

A different type of reading and writing

Today, for International Literacy Day, we will talk about digital literacy. These two words describe the ability to use the new medias, making it easier to actively take part in a more digitalised society. Long story short: it’s the ability to understand and use new technologies and digital systems, with the same benefits as learning a local language after you moved in another country.

It would be superficial, though, to limit digital literacy to the mere ability to use modern digital medias correctly. Such ability, in fact, also applies to be able to write and use different programming languages. One line of coding, that translates in a certain command in one programming language, could equal to a completely different command or contrl in a different programming language.

Do I really have to learn how to program?

Learning the basics principles of programming never hurt anyone, although digital literacy doesn’t mean that everyone has to be a programmer. Nine out of ten, learning the meaning of the most used technical terms and being able to recognize certain events is more than necessary when we browse on the web or scroll throug a social network feed. Troll, debug, bait, phishing, click-bait, spam, cracked version, ping, for instance, are words with a specific meaning and are used every day on a regular basis, but not everybody knows their actual meaning, nor understands how important it is to recognize them when they happen.

Digital literacy at work

We already talked about how the Industry 4.0 concept is changing. However, we cannot ignore that this change is led by digital literacy. In fact, what’s the point in having ultra technological machines and plants, if the line personnel does not even know where the start button is? Line operators do not just have to learn how to use more digitalized machines and systems, they also have to know what technicians and systems integrators are talking about, using those specific words to accurately describe what caused an error or a malfunction. The training in the use of digital systems also extends to employees that would normally be found working in an office. Technicians, sales managers, accountants and managers have to be as versed in understanding signals – exchanged between MES, SCADA systems and machines – as the line operators.

Ferrazza can also offer services to traing the customer’s line opearators, so that the installed application softwares and digital systems can be fully used. Contact us to find out how we can help you for your company’s digital literay