When we first heard: “I did this myself”

March 2025

“Don’t help me.”

That’s what a participant in the digital skills course said when we approached her computer. A document was open on the screen. A blank page, a blinking cursor at the top.

“I’ll do it myself,” she added. “If I get stuck, I’ll ask.” A quiet tension filled the room. Like a first performance. Like a first reading aloud.

She began to type. Slowly. Carefully. Glancing at the keyboard from time to time.

She was creating her first digital document.

We used to create on paper

We wrote by hand. We corrected with an eraser. We crossed out mistakes. If a sheet was too full, we took a new one.

Design was limited. Headings were larger because we wrote them in bigger letters. Underlining meant drawing a line.

Today, with just a few clicks, we can change the font, size, color, and alignment. We add images, links, and tables.

Creating has become more technically sophisticated. But also more demanding.

From Typing to Design

DigComp Competence 3.1 focuses on the development of digital content. It’s not just about writing, but about designing, adapting, and understanding how content functions in a digital environment.

At UPI Žalec, we’ve noticed an interesting phenomenon. Participants who are excellent storytellers initially struggle with a blank digital page. Not because they lack ideas, but because the tool is new.

A blank page on paper feels familiar. A blank page on a screen feels different.

When the first heading appears

That participant wrote the heading. Then she selected it and increased the font size. Then she centered it.

She turned to me and asked, “Is this too much?”

It wasn’t about aesthetics. It was about a sense of correctness. Digital creation also involves making decisions about appearance.

When we showed her how to use heading styles, how to insert an image and align it with the text, she was cautious at first. Each new feature was a small step out of her comfort zone.

But then she began to explore.

Creation as Empowerment

In one of our previous sessions, she said she had never considered herself a “computer person.” That it was something for younger people. That she “wasn’t into that sort of thing.”

And then, that day, she created a document that had a title, subtitles, an image, and a neat layout.

When she finished, she didn’t say, “I’m done.”

She said, “I did this myself.”

The difference is huge.

Creating digital content isn’t just a technical exercise. It’s a statement of capability.

Our Role Behind the Scenes

As part of DigCompAE, we’ve also been thinking about how much help is too much help. If we jump in too quickly and edit a document for the participant, we create a nice product—but we don’t build competence.

That’s why we sometimes take a step back. We let someone click the wrong alignment. Let the image drift to the edge of the page. Let the title not be perfectly centered.

Mistakes are part of the creative process.

And when the individual corrects them on their own, the learning is deeper.

Digital Content as a Personal Seal

When we look at the documents created by our participants today, we don’t just see text. We see growth. We see courage. We see the transition from observer to creator.

In the digital world, there is a lot of content consumption. We browse, read, watch.

But when someone creates something of their own, the relationship changes. They become a co-creator of the digital space.

At UPI Žalec, we believe that this shift is crucial. It’s not just about knowing how to use the tools, but knowing how to express a thought with them.

When the participant closed the document that day, she was no longer someone learning to use a computer.

She was someone using it to express herself. And that is much more than a technical skill.