What is Digital Literacy and its Role in Education?
What is digital literacy and its key skills?
Digital literacy is the comprehensive capability to access, manage, comprehend, integrate, communicate, assess, and produce information effectively and securely using digital technologies. This proficiency is essential for academic success, future career prospects, and participation in today's technologically driven society.
Here are a few digital literacy skills that are essential in today’s world:
Critical thinking: Sifting through vast amounts of information in various formats in the digital age involves searching, evaluating, applying, and producing information with a discerning mindset.
Communication skills: Effective communication is vital in virtual environments. It encompasses expressing ideas clearly, asking relevant questions, maintaining respect, and building online and offline trust.
Practical skills: Using technology to access, manage, manipulate, and create information ethically and sustainably requires up-to-date knowledge. Given the constant evolution of apps and updates, it's a continuous learning process.
Why is digital literacy important for the youth?
In the digital age, every individual encounters technology as a part of their life, which means mastering digital tools is essential now more than ever.
Countries worldwide display varying levels of digital literacy, with low-income countries having the lowest literacy. The disparities among middle and high-income countries are significant as well.
A study by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) found that in Chad and the Central African Republic, only 1.6% and 2.4% of adults, respectively, have ever copied or moved a folder. Skills like using basic formulas in spreadsheets are also drastically low in low and middle-income countries.
In more developed countries, like the US, Americans have varying degrees of digital knowledge. While a significant portion demonstrated an understanding of basic digital concepts like phishing scams, many struggled with more advanced topics. For instance, only 28% could identify two-factor authentication, and just 24% understood the limitations of "private browsing" modes, as published by a 2019 Pew Research Center study. This disparity in digital literacy underscores the importance of continuous education, especially as technology becomes increasingly integrated into daily life.
With a lack of digital literacy evident worldwide, albeit in different proportions, the demand for digital skills in countries still needs to be met. While several African countries are seeing a rising demand for basic digital skills, several European countries and the US demand more advanced digital dexterity, based on reports by the UNIDO and World Economic Forum. Digital job postings in the U.S. rose by 24% between 2018 and 2021, with a 116% surge in listings for data engineers, with proficiency demanded in advanced data analytics, cybersecurity, programming, automation, and digital business skills.
The rise of remote work has also increased the significance of digital skills and online communication. Digital etiquette and understanding online norms and behaviors are vital in professional settings. Additionally, the ability to discern and utilize online information is crucial to stay adept in the evolving world. While digital literacy offers vast opportunities to ensure global economic participation, it protects against online threats like cyberbullying and scams, providing safe digital interactions.
What is the role of digital literacy in education?
Educational institutions faced a paradigm shift during the COVID-19 pandemic, transitioning swiftly to online learning. Digital learning and education have seen significant growth and transformation in recent years, with hybrid learning taking center stage. Projections indicate that the global e-learning market is set to exceed 243 billion U.S. dollars by 2022.
This growth underscores the critical importance of digital literacy for academic success and better learning outcomes, particularly in higher education. Using digital tools in education, from online portals to advanced research databases, enhances learning outcomes. For instance, 81% of US college students state that digital learning technologies helped them boost their grades, as published by Statista in 2016.
Universities also play a crucial role in developing students’ future career prospects. Students with the right digital skills and supporting soft skills like creativity, problem–solving, collaboration, and critical thinking are likely to land better and higher–paying jobs after they graduate. With well-rounded digital skills, graduates are also better positioned to leap into entrepreneurship and thrive.
Teaching digital literacy in educational institutions
Encourage critical thinking: Universities should prioritize teaching students to critically evaluate digital content, understand data privacy, and be aware of cybersecurity, ensuring they can navigate the digital world safely and effectively. Providing resources like e-textbooks and online databases while encouraging students to search, critique, absorb, and reference multiple sources in their work will help build critical thinking skills.
Incorporating technology into the curriculum: It's essential for educational institutions to seamlessly integrate digital tools and platforms into their curricula, enhancing learning experiences and familiarizing students with the latest technologies. Institutions can ask students to create videos, animations, podcasts, or digital magazines as a part of their coursework.
Ethical use of technology: With the rapid advancements in AI and big data, there are several tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney for students to leverage. Universities must educate students about the ethical considerations, potential biases, and societal impacts of these digital innovations and how best to use them.
Provide opportunities for collaboration and problem-solving: Offer digital collaboration experiences. Virtual group work helps students develop digital literacy skills, benefiting from diverse peer experiences and a better understanding of digital communication tools. Students can improve their skills through virtual meetings, shared cloud documents, and other digital collaborative tools like Figma to understand how to communicate and work together in virtual environments.
Challenges faced in implementing digital literacy programs in education
Resource limitations: Many educational institutions, especially in underserved areas, lack the necessary infrastructure, tools, and resources to support digital literacy programs. Inadequate computer labs, outdated software, and limited access to high-speed internet are primary sources of the problem.
Training and professional development: Even with the right tools, educators might not be adequately trained to teach digital literacy. Continuous professional development is required to ensure educators are updated with the latest digital tools and practices.
Resistance to change: Both educators and students might be resistant to the integration of technology in the classroom. This resistance can stem from misconceptions about digital literacy, fear of technology, or a preference for traditional teaching methods.
Evolving digital landscape: The digital world constantly changes, with new tools, platforms, and technologies emerging regularly. Keeping up with these changes and ensuring the curriculum remains relevant can be challenging.
Strategies for enhancing digital literacy programs
Joint Initiatives
Building alliances among schools, governmental agencies, and non-profit organizations can pool resources, share expertise, and amplify the impact of digital literacy programs. ConnectED Initiative, launched by the Obama administration, aimed to connect 99% of students in the U.S. to high-speed wireless internet. It brought together schools and tech companies like Adobe, Microsoft, and Prezi to provide affordable access to technology.
Hands-on Learning
Integrating real-world problem-solving through projects and internships allows students to apply their digital skills in practical settings, ensuring a deeper understanding and better knowledge retention. Innovation studios like Futurize help support universities in building innovation programs that bring students together to work collaboratively and create solutions to complex problems. Students develop skills around design thinking, researching, virtual working, and communication, which are essential for the digital world.
Ongoing Educator Development
Older teachers may need to be more familiar with current digital tools. Bridging the digital skills gap among educators requires district-level initiatives to be formed through partnerships with the educational sector, communities, and media. This collaboration ensures teachers receive the necessary training and resources to teach digital literacy in today's digital age effectively.
The future of digital literacy
Digital literacy is increasingly becoming a cornerstone for youth employability in the modern world. The indispensability of digital skills for global citizens is underscored by its role not just in communication but also in securing employment, comprehensive education, and fostering inclusive societies. While the importance of introducing digital literacy in schools and universities is recognized, many educational systems globally are grappling with challenges such as inadequate infrastructure and insufficient educator training. On a brighter note, global initiatives are in motion to bridge this gap. The United Nations' sustainable development goals (SDGs) highlight the urgency of equipping both youth and adults with information and communication technology (ICT) skills. Moreover, ambitious targets like the European Union's aim to ensure 70% of adults have basic digital skills by 2025 signal a collective move towards a digitally literate future.
To turn goals into action, universities, governments, non-profits, and tech companies must unite to help the youth worldwide enhance their digital skills through better education.
Are you an organization or institution looking to enhance digital literacy among young adults?
Futurize can foster collaborations between academic institutions, governments, corporations, and startups to help build innovation and digital literacy programs. Get in touch with us at hello@futurize.studio!
