What is digital literacy?

What is digital Literacy?

My research experience on Digital Literacy was enlightening. I think the whole process was overwhelming at first as it was a topic I had very little knowledge on, and struggled on where to start, (like I have with any essay I have ever written). First I needed to understand what Digital Literacy was.

(retrieved from youtube)

There is not one definition to what digital literacy is. With that said all of the articles and references I did look into stated very similar responses to that question; digital literacy is to be literate in critical thinking skills, communicating globally and the use a variety of devices.

When I stated this project I looked at it form an academic lens of textbooks and journal articles. It was not until receiving feedback that I realized I narrowed my search results by sticking to academic references. I should have explored other blog posts, videos and Ted talks about Digital Literacy. I was able to find many articles on digital literacy but very few that pertained to Canada, maybe that is not an issue as we are evolving more globally? There are still a lot of issues on digital literacy within the province I work in in Alberta. Nowhere in our curriculum is there anything for technology, or implementation of digital literacy. It is up to the teacher to implement technology rich environments within the classroom. Which this was pretty congruent with all the articles I did read and how digital literacy has become a new skill for students to help them become successful global citizens.

(image retrieved from ETraining Pedia)

There was an absence of literature pertaining to my interest in how to bring digital literacy into the classroom at such a young age and what that would look like. I still found that there were not a lot of articles that pertained to primary grades. When doing further research with broader key terms I was able to find a great article on Education world that had 8 resources available for teachers on how to bring digital literacy into the classroom.

1. Professor Garfield: The Professor Garfield Foundation's website offers students fun activities and games to enhance their digital literacy. The site also offers a teachers resource center, instructional materials, printables, links, digital stories, and more. 
2. Lesson Plan Booster: Digital Literacy and Online Ethics: In this article on Education World, teachers have access to a list of lesson plans they can use to teach their students about digital literacy, including digital etiquette, essay questions, and more. 
3. ThinkB4u: ThinkB4u is a website that partners with Common Sense Media, ConnectSafely, National Consumers League, and more. ThinkB4u provides teachers with videos, resources, and other sources for the classroom. 
4. TheNewsLiteracyProject.org: On this website, students work with professional journalists who instruct them how to sort fact from fiction in through videos, workshops, classroom programs, and resources for teachers. 
5. Common Sense Media: With Common Sense Media, teachers can share videos, activities, printables, and other resources for teaching digital literacy. 
6. Tweeting History: A Digital Literacy Lesson: In this lesson plan provided by Education World, students will be able to use historical knowledge and digital literacy skills to tweet clues and guess the historical figure, period or event. 
7. November Learning: This site offers educators resources including articles, podcasts, videos, quizzes, tutorials, and more for teaching digital literacy.
8. Digital Literacy Resources: Cornell University provides teachers with information regarding privacy and the Internet, copyright resources, and a research guide for students. 

(Retrieved from Education World by Granata, K)

  

The key learning’s I have taken away from this in-depth research is to keep your key terms broad to be able to get a bigger scope of possibilities. Digital literacy will never have a global definition, but rather multiple definitions that we as educators must interpret and develop and redevelop over time. That as a teacher I will need to redevelop my teaching from year to year dependent on my class abilities and available resources. While teaching in a primary classroom digital literacy will look slightly different then higher grades, as students need to learn foundation skills of literacy before they can become digital literate.

  

 Bibliography

C. Kosnik, S. White, C. Beck (2016). Building Bridges: Rethinking Literacy Teacher Education in a Digital Era. Retrieved from https://link-springer-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/content/pdf/10.1007%2F978-94-6300-491-6.pdf

Crowley, B. (2014, October 29). What digital literacy looks like in the classroom. Retrived from

http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2014/10/29/ctq_crowley_digitalliteracy.html

Granata, k. (n.d). Ten Digital Literacy resources For Teachers. Retrieved from

http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/ten-digital-literacy-resources-teachers.shtml

It Futures. (2014, Jan 11). What is digital literacy. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESSIcLO3Z_Q

Learning and Technology Policy Framework. Retrieved Sep 15 from: https://education.alberta.ca/media/1046/learning-and-technology-policy-framework-web.pdf

Media Smarts. Retrieved Sep 15, from: http://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy-fundamentals/digital-literacy-fundamentals

Udoewa, V; Mathew, N; Al-Hafidh, L; Bhog, L; Gupa, A; et al. Helping the Next 4 Billion Go Online Part I: Design Research for Digital Literacy Education. International Journal for Service Learning in Engineering; University Park 11.2 (fall 2016): 18. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/docview/1834981639?pq-origsite=summon&accountid=14656