Digital Learning Literacies for the 21st Century Learners – A Validation Study

Author(s):

Yehuda Peled(presenting / submitting)Gila Kurtz

Conference:

ECER 2016

Network:

06. Open Learning: Media, Environments and Cultures

Format:

Paper

Session Information

06 SES 05, Media Literacy - Digital Competence

Paper Session

Time:

2016-08-24

13:30-15:00

Room:

NM-G109

Chair:

Theo Hug

Contribution

The turn of the century brought with it a dramatic change which originated in the emergence of web 2.0 technologies and its implication on social behavior as well as on changes in the digital literacy terminology. Various researchers offered definitions to digital literacy (DL) (for example see: Gilster, 1997; Bawden, 2001; Lankshear & Knobel, 2008). 21st-century skills are different than 20th-century skills (Dede, 2010), hence, DLs needed by the 21st-century learner. Although there are numerous suggestions as to what the needed DLs are (for example see: Eshet-Alkalai & Amichai-Hamburger, 2004; ETS, 2007; Bates, 2009; Dede, 2010; Dudeney, Hockly & Pegrum, 2013), there are few empirical tools to measure what DL's a learner has or needs (see for example Jung & Latchem, 2012). The current research is aimed to fill the gap between the theory and the practice of DL's. The research is based on previous work by Beaudoin, Kurtz, Jung, Suzuki and Grabowski (2013) who tested and validated a set of performance statements (PS) identifying twenty DLs needed by the learner in the second decade of the 21^st century. These PS's will enable teachers to identify the level of competency the learner has in each DL, thus identifying students’ strengths and weaknesses that must be addressed in order to facilitate learning in the current era.

This paper presents the results of an empirical study that enabled the research team to finalize the validation of PS's for an inventory of digital literacy skills required for learning. The purpose of the validation process is to gather empirical evidence regarding the criticality of seven Digital Learning Domains (DLD) and sixty-six performance statements as perceived by students with experience in learning via ICT. The seven DLD's identified: Social Responsibility, Team-based Learning, Information Research and Retrieval, Information Management, Information Validation, Processing and Presentation of Information and Digital Integrity.

Method

Instrument Development: The main purpose of the current research was to gather empirical evidence regarding the criticality of a digital literacies inventory developed by the research team. This innovative inventory was built based upon an extensive review of research literature, examination of definitions, concepts, case-studies and theoretical models that deal with 21st-century digital skills required for learning. Thus, a list of DLD's and PS's was compiled and distributed to six expert researchers in the educational technology field and seven graduate students of ICT and learning at the College of Academic Studies in Israel for pre-validation review and comments. The experts and the students were asked to provide a critical review of the DLD's and PS's by responding to open-ended questions related to fit, appropriateness, missing items, revision, rephrasing, and clarity. Their comments were analyzed by the research team to determine what, if any, revisions to the DLD's should be included in the final survey that was to be used in the current validation survey. Participants and Data Collection: Eighteen hundred and eighty-nine students at a College in the northern part of Israel were invited by e-mail to respond to an online questionnaire. Collection of the questionnaire data was carried out during May and June 2015. Two hundred and fifty-three students filled out the questionnaire (13.4% response rate). The majority of respondents (76.9%) were female while 23.1% were male (which is in accordance with the gender distribution at the college). Half of the respondents are between 19-24 years of age while the other half are between 25 to 40 years old (Mean= 27.8, SD=9.5). Almost all the respondents (98.4%) were undergraduate students at the Department of Education.

Expected Outcomes

Most of the participants evaluate themselves as digitally literate with regard to the basic information research and retrieval skills, validation and information management. But when it comes to PS that require complex decision making or higher order thinking strategies it seems that a large number of participants lack these skills. Also, a number of students perform the learning task without knowing what is expected of them in terms of allocating relevant learning information. These findings imply that a considerable share of the participants lack learning skills appropriate for the 21st-century learning process. Social responsibility and digital integrity domains are perceived as known by the participants but not reflected in their behavior: a significant percentage of respondents say they do not take any pro-active measures to enforce appropriate digital behavior, or to avoid illegally downloaded music or movies. A surprising finding refers to one of the essential learning strategies in the eyes of educators: collaborative and cooperative learning. Though most respondents believe they know how to learn as a member of a team of learners, a large percentage do not like working with peers and prefer to learn independently. Although the findings indicate a clear trend it should be treated with caution. These findings can be partly explained by the fact that the research population was selective, relatively mature, and experienced, for better or for worse, in the use of digital literacies for learning. For the next research stage, we plan to extend the statistical analysis beyond the descriptive statistics presented in this paper. Also, we plan to distribute the questionnaire among diverse learners from various educational settings in Israel. In addition, we are working to collaborate with research teams in order to examine the proposed DLD inventory in international settings.

References

Bates, T. (2009). E-learning and 21st century skills and competen ces. E-learning & Distance Education Resources http://www.tonybates.ca/2009/06/24/e-learning-and-21st-century-skills-and-competences. Bawden, D. (2001). Information and digital literacies: a review of concepts. Journal of Documentation, 57(2), 218–259. Beaudoin, M., Kurtz, G., Jung, I., Suzuki, K., & Grabowski, B. L. (2013). Online learner competencies: Knowledge, skills, and attitudes for successful learning in online settings. USA: Information Age Publishing. Dede, C. (2010). Comparing frameworks for 21st century skills. 21st century skills: Rethinking how students learn, 51-76. Dudeney, G., N. Hockly, & M. Pegrum (2013). Digital literacies. Harlow: Pearson

Author Information

Yehuda Peled (presenting / submitting)

Western Galilee College

Eilon

Gila Kurtz

The College for Academic Studies, Israel

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