“It stresses me out with the new technology now,” said Annabel Williams, one of the participants of the second six-week Digital Resilience workshop at the Forest Park Public Library. “I feel like I’m still living in the past, like I’ve been so behind.”
This free 12-person workshop is taught by the founder of Wright to Learn, Xandi Wright, and covers topics such as managing media and online safety. It is the second of two cohorts the library has hosted as it works to close the ‘digital divide’ and increase accessibility to the internet and computers community wide.
Skye Lavin, manager of adult services at the library, says one reason people feel left behind by technical advancement is because they do not have a credible place to ask questions and try newer tools.
“Many feel unclear and overwhelmed even about what questions to ask,” said Lavin. “What I love about Xandi’s digital resilience instructional approach is that there is an emphasis on increasing confidence. Developing solidarity and trust amongst the participants, instructor, and librarians while offering ongoing opportunities to learn helps participants engage with technology in ways that can be life changing.”
Many attendees, like Williams, hope to apply their new talents to everyday life. As an educator, she says these skills will also help her advance professionally. She had previously considered teaching online before realizing it required using unfamiliar programs such as PowerPoint, Excel and Google Classroom.
“I don’t know how to use it,” said Williams. “I’m still on the traditional way of teaching using visual aids, physical aids. I was hoping that with this class, I’ll be able to have some idea how to use this in my future plan for my teaching career.”
She also seeks to become better equipped to assist her 11-year-old son with his schooling.
“I’m scared of pressing something because I’m quite scared that I might erase everything,” said Williams. “Like one time they sent me a magic code to sign up for something from the school. I accidentally unlinked the account of my son. I was so stressed.”
Another participant, Cecily Roland, said one of her motivations for enrolling was to learn about privacy protection. She is especially alert after an incident involving spam phone calls requesting her personal information.
“I just want to be safe on the computer,” said Roland, a military veteran. “To be more aware of what to look out for.”
Before retiring, Roland says she used computers at her banking job. Now, more than seven years removed from the workforce, she is ready for a refresher.
“When you don’t work with something for a little while then you kind of lose your edge on it,” she said. “This will bring me back up to speed.”
Another reason Roland found the program inviting was because completing it meant she got to take home a new computer, provided to the participants by PCs for People. But overall, she just wants to feel more independent.
“Sometimes you’ll ask a person, and they can do it for you, but you really need to learn how to do it yourself,” she said.
Michelle Fitz-Henry signed up for the course while on a quest to learn more about artificial intelligence. At the suggestion of Forest Park librarians, she decided to go back to the basics and polish skills she already has. But because of her age, she says there are things she still finds difficult to do.
“I wasn’t brought up with technology,” said Fitz-Henry, a retired firefighter and military veteran. “I struggle with it a bit. I have a foundation now, but it’s weak, it’s not structurally super sound.”
One of the course topics that Fitz-Henry, a board member for the League of Women Voters, is most excited for covers mindfulness. She finds when approaching a new computer task, it is hard not to have thoughts of inadequacy.
“I am totally walking in the door with negativity,” she said. “When approaching something I need to do, that I am not familiar with, it’s a little bit intimidating. But that’s half of the battle right there, your mindset walking in. This is really going to help me change that.”
Additional resources for tuning digital skills are available at the library – including a free and open workshop on the ethics of AI at 1p.m. on Oct. 8 in the Austin room. This program, “AI and Us: Ethical Choices and Everyday Actions” is part of Digital Inclusion Week. The National Digital Inclusion Alliance hosts this week to raise nationwide awareness about the growing importance of digital equity.
To learn about other digital literacy programs such as one-on-one tech appointments and more, visit www.fppl.org.
Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of stories about the Forest Park Public Library’s digital inclusion efforts. The series is underwritten by a grant from the Cook County Digital Equity IMPACT Small Grants program. The grant is a shared effort between Wright to Learn, the library and Growing Community Media, publisher of the Forest Park Review.
