Connectivity is key! So how do we help make it happen?
AT&T helped newly connected parents, caregivers and families gain the skills and confidence they need to use technology with free digital literacy workshops in Detroit, Hastings, Jackson, Adrian, and Kalamazoo this month. The workshops were built on a series of FREE digital literacy courses we’ve created in collaboration with the Public Library Association (PLA).
Joshua Elling, CEO of Jefferson East, Inc. in Detroit hosted one of the workshops in his organization’s new AT&T Connected Learning Center. He said: “Tackling an issue as broad as digital literacy is not easy, but we strongly believe that on-the-ground, individualized support is the best way to make a difference for our most vulnerable local families.”
According to the U.S. Department of Education, about 16 percent of U.S. adults are not digitally literate. In addition, about 40 percent of disconnected students face significant adoption barriers, including insufficient digital literacy skills, according to a report from Common Sense Media. To close the digital divide, it’s important that families have accessible and affordable internet connectivity, but equally as important is that they have the digital literacy skills needed to use and benefit from the internet.
Together with the Public Library Association, we were proud to offer online courses and free workshops to help learners advance those very skills.
