SECOND ESSAY °°°MY EVOLUTION IN ELECTRONIC LITERACY°°°

°*°*MY EVOLUTION IN ELECTRONIC LITERACY*°*°

Nowadays, the use of electronic tools has taken importance for doing several things. First of all, it is important to mention how I started to use computers. Because of the necessity of having formality in some important documents, in secondary school, I had to start using the computer. At the beginning I did not know how to use it, but my brother taught me the most essential tools. It was not difficult because I was interested on that, so I could learn easily. Secondly, I had the necessity of starting to use Internet when I entered to high school. It was because I had to look for specific information to fulfill some homework. I faced some problems because I did not know how to use these electronic tools. My brother was the person who helped me to learn how to use them. Doing this, I found some advantages and disadvantages.

Electronic tools, as everything, have advantages and disadvantages. Talking about computers, they are really useful to keep much information related to any topics; in addition, we can have photo albums, music, videos, etc. Some disadvantages are that computers waste too much electricity; also they can cause visual problems. It is because people force much their sight. On the other hand, internet is a very useful tool to look for any information; for example, recipes, tips, fashion, jokes, pictures, videos, etc. In addition, if we want information and the address of certain place, we can use satellite navigators to locate a street or an avenue; also we can buy many things. Sometimes these two advantages are disadvantages. These purchases are not legal or true, so people are swindled. Another one is that because students have to hand in homework, there is much plagiarism. Certainly, computers and internet have been used since the past for educational purposes.

These two important tools, computers and internet, have been really useful. I have used them since secondary school. Nowadays, I have the opportunity to see many improvements about computers and internet; for example, dictionaries, translators, etc. These agents have helped me to improve my knowledge about learning English language. It is because through internet and computers I can look for information about the language, also I can practice it. It has influenced in a positive way because surfing the net I could practice and learn better another language. Some of my strengths using electronic tools are that I know how to use some tools that computers and internet give us; such as blogs, mails, word processors, etc. On the contrary, there are some weaknesses that do not permit me have a good development using these tools. It is because there are many improvements in computers and internet, so I do not know everything that these agents offer.

Talking about word processors, they are kind of complex. On one hand, there are the ones that almost every computer has. That is Word, Excel, Power Point, etc. These tools are really helpful for several things. Using them, we are able to hand in homework with a good presentation; we can make mathematic calculations, presentations to show any topic, etc. Sometimes we do not know all the tools that these processors have; they are infinite. On the other hand we have e-mails, chats, blogs, etc. These spaces are useful to communicate with any person. To illustrate, we can be chatting with a person who is in the other side of the world, with blogs we can be seen and known by any person. I have to mention that it could be dangerous.

It seems that electronic tools are still improving, so we have to be prepared for the future. Researchers from the Technological Institute of Georgia have found that this is not all about computers, and that something better is going to come. They explain that computers are going to be faster that now and that word processors are going to be better. I expect that we improve next to these electronic tools, so we have to deal with these advances. I have been thinking that online courses, masters, degrees, etc are essential to improve my L2, so I will consider taking one of these courses because it is something that sometimes is free.

In short, electronic tools are common nowadays; we did not have the opportunity of using them in the past. As it was said, I have improved my electronic literacy during the time, but I think it is not enough. We could see that computers and internet have advantages and disadvantages and the usefulness that they have. Additionally, these agents have improved and influenced my learning of a new language. It was said that word processors have lots of tools to make us do good homework, presentations, etc. Finally, it is important to take into consideration that internet offers us hundreds of opportunities to improve our knowledge. I think that this technology is going up every day. To conclude, we have to be prepared to face all the advances and surprises that electronic tools have to offer to us.