Cetic.br Publications Launched at the Cycle Culture, Education, and Technologies in Debate Meeting

The speaker Cristina Ponte emphasized the importance of public policies for digital literacy, considering the participation of young people in this process

The last meeting of the 3rd edition of the Cycle Culture, Education, and Technologies in Debate was marked by discussions about literacy for digital citizenship and included the launch of the publications of the surveys TIC Education 2018 and TIC Kids Online Brazil 2018. The event, held by the Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) of the Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br), Sesc São Paulo and Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC-SP), took place on November 5, in São Paulo.

In the opening, Danilo Miranda (Regional Director of Sesc São Paulo) emphasized the importance of education and the process of cultural appropriation to alleviate social inequalities. Complementarily, Fernando Almeida (professor at PUC-SP) pointed out that “understanding the country's situation, especially in the field of education, is essential to think about future strategies.”

Alexandre Barbosa (manager of Cetic.br) discussed the importance of survey data on access and use of ICT to support initiatives aimed at the critical and responsible use of the Internet. “Technology allows broad access to information, but it is essential to develop a critical stance with the information accessed online. Therefore, society needs to be digitally literate,” he notes. Barbosa also emphasized the importance of .br domain resources for the development of Cetic.br's surveys, which map the appropriation of ICT in the country, and concluded his presentation by showing videos highlighting the 2018 editions of the surveys TIC Education and TIC Kids Online Brazil.

Literacy for Digital Citizenship

Moderated by Patrícia Blanco (executive president of the Open Word Institute), researcher Cristina Ponte (associate professor at the New University of Lisbon) presented the lecture “Literacy for Digital Citizenship”. The speaker drew attention to the recommendations of the Council of Europe to promote open, inclusive, and safe use of the Internet.

Ponte highlighted the guarantee of children's rights in the digital sphere. “Everyone should have access to the digital environment, with the guarantee of freedom of information and expression, participation and involvement in recreational activities, the right to assemble and associate, privacy and data protection, and the right to education.”

According to the professor's assessment, digital literacy and education for digital citizenship allow children to use the Internet safely and responsibly. For this, technical skills and abilities involving the creation and critical understanding of content and opportunities and risks in the online environment are necessary. Ponte highlighted the importance of schools and organizations working for and with young people in developing digital literacy initiatives.

Concluding the event, the researcher pointed out the importance of public policies for digital education supported by evidence, which must consider young people as active participants in this process.

Also launched during the meeting, the second volume of the Cycle Culture, Education, and Technologies in Debate publication brings together texts from discussions promoted by Sesc São Paulo, Cetic.br/NIC.br, and PUC-SP in the first half of 2019, and can be accessed for free at https://cetic.br/publicacao/cultura-educacao-e-tecnologias-em-debate-volume-2/. The TIC Kids Online Brazil 2018 and TIC Education 2018 publications are available at https://cetic.br/publicacoes/indice/pesquisas/.

This content was automatically translated with the support of artificial intelligence.