Debbie Parker
Digital literacy is a rapidly emerging field of study in the social sciences, and there appears to be a gap between digital trends and educational realities, according to the International Literacy Association, a global advocacy and membership organization of more than 300,000 literacy educators, researchers, and experts across 86 countries (Zygouris-Coe, 2018). Teachers express an interest in digital content that incorporates differentiated instruction and allows digital literacy instruction without sacrificing content of core competencies. Elementary educators may prioritize teaching core competencies that are on standardized tests over a social science like digital literacy.
RQ # 1 : Could using a cross-curricular approach that reinforces core competencies while teaching digital literacy increase the amount of time educators spend teaching digital literacy?
RQ #2: Do educators understand what digital literacy is and how to implement effective digital literacy pedagogy?
"Could using a cross-curricular approach that reinforces core competencies while teaching digital literacy increase the amount of time educators spend teaching digital literacy?"
Digital literacy is an academic discipline that has emerged within the past three decades. In 1997, Paul Glister first coined the term in his seminal work “Digital Literacy.” The formal definition and essential components of digital literacy are stilt widely debated, but the discipline is founded on previous work in information literacy and computer literacy (Belshaw, 2012). Futurelab suggests that digital literacy across the curriculum has eight key components (Hague & Payton, 2011): functional meaning making, creativity in digital environments, critical thinking in the use of technology, cultural understanding of the role of technology in our society, finding and selecting information online, effective online communication, and e-safety. Belshaw (2012) suggests ambiguity may be necessary to fully embrace the essence of digital literacy but also argues the following eight elements are essential to digital literacy: cultural, cognitive, constructive, communicative, confident, creative, critical, and civic.
During the first phase of research, a survey will be administered to 50 educators in five elementary schools to measure their understanding and perception of digital literacy in the classroom. Semi-structured interviews wilt be conducted with six teachers at each elementary grade level to identify both their students’ greatest core competency deficit and their current digital pedagogy practices in the classroom. Observational research will also be conducted in each of these teachers’ classrooms. During the second phase of research, a classroom will be selected to participate in a cross-curricular digital literacy lesson. The teacher will participate in developing content to address a core competency using a digital platform. The students’ knowledge of the selected core competency will be measured before and after participating in the digital literacy lesson. The students’ knowledge of digital literacy will be measured before and after the lesson. The teacher’s impression of a cross-curricular approach to digital literacy will be measured before and after the lesson.