SPOTLIGHT ON MADISON, WIThe Smartphone Generation
Needs Computer Help
Young people may be expert social-media and smartphone
users, but many lack the digital skills they need for today’s
jobs. How can we set them up for success?O
n a recent summer afternoon, six teens burst into
Kenneth Cole’s classroom at the Boys & Girls Club
of Dane County, located on a quiet residential street in
Madison, Wisconsin. With smartphones in hand, they text-
ed and scrolled, chatting with friends both online and in
person. It was Cole’s job to direct the teens to another
type of screen: those of the desktop computers sitting
in rows that filled the dark, cozy space.A recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin–Madison,
Cole has been working at the Boys & Girls Club for nearly
a year. As an instructor for the Club, helping with a new
pilot partnership with Grow with Google, he is tasked
with a crucial mission: equipping teens with fundamen-
tal digital skills (think: organizing data in a spreadsheet,collaborating in a digital space, and creating slideshow
presentations), which they need to succeed in school,
the workforce, and life.The classes Cole teaches use Grow with Google’s Applied
Digital Skills online curriculum. One day he may lead Club
members in a lesson on building a digital résumé that
can be customized quickly and make job-seeking easier
when applying online. Another day they may create a blog.
On this particular day, they drew up a budget for an
upcoming event using a spreadsheet. For kids who are
often glued to their smartphones, these types of digital
tasks, surprisingly, can be new experiences. Many have
never learned how to create a spreadsheet. Some have
never worked collaboratively on a document before.
“They love technology,” Cole says, “but not necessarily the
parts of it that will be most helpful for them.”Find out how the Boys & Girls Club is training
digital natives: TheAtlantic.com/IOMYouthPhotography by Ty ColeSPONSOR CONTENT