Digital Literacy Corps to Bring Widespread Training?

On March 16th the FCC sent it’s National Broadband Plans (pdf) to Congress.  The Plan included some exciting recommendations:

National Digital Literacy Corps to organize and train youth and adults to teach digital literacy skills and enable private sector programs addressed at breaking adoption barriers.

The recommendation for National Digital Literacy Corp modeled after Americorps.

Recommendation 9.3: The federal government should launch a National Digital Literacy Program that creates a Digital Literacy Corps, increases the capacity of digital literacy partners and creates an Online Digital Literacy Portal.

• Congress should consider providing additional public funds to create a Digital Literacy Corps to conduct training and outreach in non-adopting communities.

Congress, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) should commit to increase the capacity of institutions that act as partners in building the digital literacy skills of people within local communities.

• Congress should consider providing additional public funds to IMLS to improve connectivity, enhance hardware and train personnel of libraries and other community-based organizations (CBOs).
• OMB consulting with IMLS should develop guidelines to ensure that librarians and CBOs have the training they need to help patrons use next-generation e-government applications.

On March 26th the FCC gave the International Briefing on the U.S. National Broadband Plan it include a section on Adoption:

Launch a three-part National Digital Literacy ProgramAdoption

1.Create a Digital Literacy Corps-

• Goal: Put Corps members into communities to help users get online and complete basic skills education
• Also serves as workforce development/job skills platform
• New appropriation to NTIA, to collaborate with CNCS (AmeriCorps,SeniorCorps) to design, fund and administer Corp

2. Increase capacity and training in libraries and community centers to provide digital literacy support

• Goal: Increase infrastructure and capability of local partner sites to become the “where”–the locations for skills training and e-govapps support
• New appropriation to IMLS, and guidelines created with OMB/IMLS

3.Create an Online Skills Portal

• Goal: Give every American access to free, age-and language-appropriate content to impart digital skills
• Created by collaboration among FTC, FCC, Department of Education, NTIA and others (along lines of OnGuardOnline.gov), but in partnership with private and non-profit sector who develop such content
• New appropriation to support initial content development, outreach and evaluation

Under Universal recommendations:

Ensuring that schools and libraries have access to affordable broadband

• Increase flexibility and bandwidth
• Remove barriers to shared use with other community institutions
• Improve program efficiency
• Foster innovation with pilot programs, such as funding for wireless connectivity for devices off campus

The Plan cites the CyberNavigators from the the Chicago Public Library.  The CyberNavigators offer small group classes and one-on-one sessions at 42 library locations throughout the city. One-on-one sessions are by appointment only and may last up to one hour.

Right now this is a just a plan and there is no implementation. However, it is worth keeping an eye on many of us provide this type of training to the public already. The possibility of a large scale movement is exciting.  At this time it is not clear if the plan is for library staff to provide some or all of the training.  That it is being modeled after Americorps suggests volunteers or outside trainers.

Read more about the Digital Literacy Corps

• National Broadband Plan
• Key Takeaways for Libraries from FCC National Broadband Plan
• FCC Proposes Digital Literacy Corps

Bobbi Newman