A profile of today`s computer literacy student

Reviewer: Diane Walz

This paper reports the results of a survey of 317 students entering computer literacy classes at two universities. Students were asked to report their levels of computer experience and to answer questions about their attitudes and expectations for the class. A large percentage of students already had experience using computers. The specific type of experience was different for traditional (21 years of age or younger) versus older students. Half of the traditional students had previously taken a computer course and many reported that they were already comfortable using computers. Most of the students stressed the importance of “hands on” experience, learning terminology, use of packages, and programming. They expressed an appreciation for the computer's relevance to business applications. While specific results about students with little or no computer experience were not reported, inferences about the inexperienced students can be made from the reported experience level statistics. Literacy classes are often geared to the average student, with little or no computer experience assumed. This paper should prove useful to administrators and teachers of such classes since this documented profile of an actual class population differs from the population for which such classes are intented.