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To cite this article: Ana Pérez-Escoda, Rosa García-Ruiz & Ignacio Aguaded (2019) Dimensions
of digital literacy based on five models of development / Dimensiones de la alfabetización
digital a partir de cinco modelos de desarrollo, Cultura y Educación, 31:2, 232-266, DOI:
10.1080/11356405.2019.1603274
Article views: 25
Within this context, as illustrated in Figure 1, assimilating the need for digital
literacy will be the key to enabling a change in the educational ecosystem, whose
efficiency will depend on the effective development of this literacy.
As can be seen in Figure 1, new learning environments are appearing with
techno-pedagogical methodologies that will maximize learning potential via
technological resources (web 2.0 software and connected devices) along with
the emerging communicative narratives. They specifically include e-learning,
PLEs, PLNs, m-learning and social learning (Attwell, 2007). Innovative teach-
ing-learning models are emerging based on students’ and teachers’ digital skills
needed in the twenty-first century. One example is the iSkills Assessment cham-
pioned by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), which in 2002 presented
a conceptual framework, Digital Transformation. A Framework for ICT Literacy,
to develop assessments of what it called ‘ICT Literacy’; it included a series of
digital skills designed in conjunction with the Association of Colleges and Research
Libraries (ACRL), which was working to define IT competences (ETS, 2002).
In 2009, the University of Melbourne and corporate sponsors like CISCO,
Intel and Microsoft created Assessment and Teaching of 21st-Century Skills,
a consortium that gathered together 250 researchers to develop the assessment of
these skills, the LDN-ICT assessment (Learning in Digital Networks and
Information Communication Technologies) (Binkley et al., 2012).
(a) Core subjects for the twenty-first century, providing students with the
basic competences: language (in this case English, since it is from the
USA), world languages, art, mathematics, economics, science, geogra-
phy, history and government and civics. The new feature is interdisci-
plinary contents like global awareness (which involves understanding
other cultures, their difficulties and the humanitarian work underway),
financial and business literacy, civic literacy and health and environ-
mental literacy.
(b) Learning and innovation skills, which includes three skills: creativity and
innovation, in terms of critical thinking, creative work and innovative
implementation; critical thinking and problem-solving; and the ability to
communicate effectively and work with others while showing respect,
flexibility and responsibility.
(c) Information, media and technology skills. This area includes three kinds of
literacy: information, media and technology. Information literacy refers to
Dimensions of digital literacy / Dimensiones de la alfabetización digital 237
Figure 2. P21 model of digital literacy (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2009).
The rings on the lower part of the figure refer to the analytical-critical system
needed to guarantee mastery of the twenty-first-century skills. They are stan-
dards and assessments, the establishment of a specific curriculum to attain the
skills described, professional development and learning environments (contex-
tual aspects mentioned at the beginning of this article).
the 2006 educational reform (An Information Society for All) and the new
curriculum for primary and secondary school, New Curriculum for Knowledge
Promotion (2006), the government turned digital literacy into one of the five
basic competences in the compulsory education curriculum.
To foster the development of this literacy in Norway, it is essential to mention
the three cornerstones on which this development rests, with which it rose to the
challenge of introducing digital literacy into compulsory education at all levels
of education and in all subjects:
● The strategic plan that developed digital skills for all citizens, Programme
for Digital Competence, Strategic Plan for 2004–2008 (Ministry of
Education and Research, 2004)
● The Knowledge Promotion, an educational reform which promoted the
reform of the curriculum starting in primary school and introduced the five
core skills, including digital skills.
● The Norwegian government’s direct involvement in training primary and
secondary school teachers in order to guarantee the quality of the training
(The Teacher, the Role and the Education, About Teacher Education,
MOK, 2009; General Plan for Teacher Education, MOK, 2010).
entailing the safe, critical use of the information society technologies (IST) for
work, entertainment and communication. It is sustained on basic competences in
ICTs: the use of computers to obtain, assess, store, produce, present and exchange
information and communicate and participate in networks of cooperation via the
Internet (DO, L394, 2006, p. 15).
However, its recognition in 2006 did not entail its implementation, so in 2011,
the Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS), under the oversight of
the Education and Culture DG, articulated a project to study digital competence
known as DIGCOMP, which had one clear objective: to create a European
framework of reference for understanding and developing digital competence.
It revolved around three objectives:
240 A. Pérez-Escoda et al.
This was the first report; it was a theoretical survey which stressed the
importance of the concept and the relevancy of a conceptualization of digital
competence for citizens. The report stressed digital competence as a key element
in the development of digital literacy, referring to the work of Bawden (2008),
Martin and Madigan (2006) and Deurse (2010). The result was the presentation
of a conceptual model in which the skills and knowledge included were divided
into three major groups and different sections within each group (Ala-Mutka,
2011): instrumental skills and knowledge, revolving around use; advanced skills
and knowledge, considered the areas of knowledge needed to apply the instru-
mental capacities in digital environments; and attitudinal skills and knowledge,
representing thoughts and motivations in digital environments.
… the set of knowledge, skills, attitudes, abilities, strategies, and awareness that
are required when using ICT and digital media to perform tasks; solve problems;
communicate; manage information; collaborate; create and share content; and build
knowledge effectively, efficiently, appropriately, critically, creatively, autono-
mously, flexibly, ethically, reflectively for work, leisure, participation, learning,
socializing, consumption and empowerment (Ferrari, 2012, p. 4).
The last report contained the contributions from the entire project and provided
a proposal in which digital competence was broken down into five competence areas
(information, communication, content creation, security and problem-solving), which
were, in turn, divided into 21 competences. The organization of the report was
presented in five dimensions from each competence area: definition of the area,
definition of the sub-competences, attainment levels, examples and application of
each sub-competence to different purposes. It proposes a descriptive framework which
is applicable to different contexts, and the report warns of the need to specialize and
adjust the descriptors to the needs of each country or circumstances if they are taken as
a reference (Ferrari, 2013).
The project concluded in 2012; however, the unstoppable pace of society’s
evolution meant that it was revisited in 2016 for a conceptual revision which
would allow the list of digital skills to be updated according to the needs of
a changing society (Vuorikari, Punie, Carretero, & Brande, 2016).
The success of the DigComp model as a reference for the development of
specific models of digital competence, and therefore of digital literacy, was so
resounding that there were a variety of initiatives in the European countries via
their respective ministries of education: in Spain the ‘Common Framework of
Teachers’ Digital Competence’, in England ‘Digital Literacy Across the
Curriculum’ (Becta) and the ‘Digital and Information Literacy Framework’ (The
Open University), in Malta the ‘Green Paper: Digital Literacy’, in Italy the ‘Italian
Digital Agenda’, in Poland ‘Digital Poland, 2014–2020’, in Portugal the
‘2015–2020 Strategy and Action Plan for Digital Jobs’, etc. In March 2017, the
model evolved towards called DigCompEdu, a pedagogical perspective more in
line with literacy and less focused on competences, as illustrated in Figure 4. This
242 A. Pérez-Escoda et al.
is a proposal had been subjected to the opinions of the European Union member
states that were interested in participating, and its results were published in the
‘European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators’ (2017). The
proposal is truly comprehensive, with six competence and attainment areas for
digital literacy (European Commission, 2017).
Table 1. Fostering digital literacy via the ISTE standards for teachers (source: authors).
(Continued )
244 A. Pérez-Escoda et al.
Table 1. (Continued ).
suggest a single model of digital literacy that is appropriate for everyone, or even to
suggest that the same model is appropriate for the same person throughout their entire
lifetime’.
It has been proven that digital literacy is closely related to a new concept of
multi-literacy (Kress, 2005; Martin & Madigan, 2006), regardless of the approach
taken: digital literacy, media literacy, multi-literacy, etc. The fact is that digital skills
are part of any interpretation of the new literacy as necessary and helpful for the
qualitative change that education demands at all levels in a liquid society (Area &
Pessoa, 2012; Beetham & Sharpe, 2013; Pérez-Escoda, 2017).
After studying these five models of development of digital literacy, we can
conclude that it is dynamic, flexible and constantly changing due to the fact that the
skills, abilities, competences and knowledge it entails and the degree of knowledge are
also constantly changing, marked by the pace of the advance of society and techno-
logical development. For this reason, we can state that there is no one single way of
viewing digital literacy, nor is there a single parameter to define the degree of literacy
of a person in the twenty-first century. However, it can be defined and developed
bearing in mind a threefold dimension developed based on the models studied, which
interplays three different, simultaneous factors, which will be the three strands upon
which a person’s digital literacy can be evaluated:
Field of application, degree of fluency and critical capacity and responsibility are
the starting point when discussing the degree of digital literacy of any citizen, teacher
or student, bearing in mind the dimensions that define it, as presented below based on
the study of the five models. This is illustrated in Figure 6, and they were developed by
integrating the dimensions, areas and competences of the five models previously
analysed.
Dimension 1: Learning. In this dimension the individual, regardless of their status,
is in the phase of adopting basic lessons, contents and themes, functional and instru-
mental access to digital resources and connected devices, fostering basic digital skills.
Dimension 2: Being able. The individual adopts and adapts the contents
learned in the personal competences. This is a phase in which they are capable
of creating their own learning strategies.
Dimensions of digital literacy / Dimensiones de la alfabetización digital 247
● Surge el fenómeno Web 2.0 como ruptura definitiva con los moldes del
siglo XX: la ‘world wide web’ se convierte en plataforma de encuentro
global y busca el aprovechamiento de una incipiente inteligencia colectiva
y conectiva (Area & Pessoa, 2012; Downes, 2012).
● Nace un nuevo ciudadano, una generación cuyas características socio-
cognitivas lo convierten en el nativo de una nueva era, la digital (Palfrey
& Gasser, 2010). Se expresa de modo distinto, consume información
multimodal e hipertextual, procesa la información más deprisa por la
cantidad de estímulos que recibe, es capaz de realizar varias tareas al
mismo tiempo ‘multitasking’, está continuamente conectado (lo que le da
la posibilidad de buscar al instante cualquier conocimiento que necesite)
y se mueve con soltura en un ciberespacio sin tiempo ni distancias (Reig &
Vilchez, 2013).
(a) Asignaturas y temas básicos para el siglo XXI, aportando las competencias
básicas para el alumnado: lengua (en este caso inglés, ya que estamos en el
contexto de EE.UU.), lenguas del mundo, arte, matemáticas, economía,
ciencias, geografía, historia y gobierno y civismo. Incluyendo como novedad
contenidos interdisciplinares como: conciencia global (que implica el enten-
dimiento de otras culturas, sus dificultades y el trabajo humanitario que se
252 A. Pérez-Escoda et al.
Figura 2. Modelo de Alfabetización Digital P21 (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2009).
adquisición desde que adopta en su práctica las TIC, pasando por una fase de
adaptación, luego apropiación de las herramientas, hasta que consigue alcanzar la
innovación; y (b) (eje vertical) que indica el nivel de conciencia que el docente
tiene sobre el uso de la tecnología en su práctica profesional, también escalable
en una gradación que va desde una falta total de competencia y conciencia de la
misma, hasta que alcanza un nivel alto de competencia y de conciencia, como
puede observarse en el gráfico.
El modelo parte de una premisa de base, que es que el profesor posee un nivel
básico de habilidades TIC (modelo TPACK) sobre el que construirá y conseguirá su
alfabetización digital (digital bildung). Krumsvik (2008) trata la competencia digital
como: ‘la habilidad de usar dispositivos digitales como parte integrante de su
enseñanza y ser conscientes de las implicaciones que eso tiene para el aprendizaje,
las estrategias de aprendizaje y la alfabetización en general’ (p. 109).
Ciudadanía (DO, L149, 2005, DO, L394, 2006) donde, por primera vez, se
reconoce y define la competencia digital como la que
Se trató del primer informe y supuso una revisión teórica, haciendo hincapié en la
relevancia del concepto, y en la pertinencia de una conceptualización de la compe-
tencia digital para la ciudadanía. El informe puso de relieve la competencia digital
como elemento clave en el desarrollo de la alfabetización digital, tomando como
referencia el trabajo de Bawden (2008), Martin y Madigan (2006) y Deursen (2010).
El resultado fue la presentación de un modelo conceptual en el que las habilidades
y conocimientos que incluía se dividían en tres grandes grupos y en distintos bloques
cada grupo (Ala-Mutka, 2011): habilidades y conocimientos instrumentales, cen-
tradas en el uso; habilidades y conocimientos avanzados, consideradas las áreas de
conocimiento necesarias para aplicar las capacidades instrumentales en entornos
digitales; y, habilidades y conocimientos actitudinales, representando pensamientos
y motivaciones en entornos digitales.
256 A. Pérez-Escoda et al.
(Continúa )
260 A. Pérez-Escoda et al.
Tabla 1. (Continuación).
Tabla 1. (Continued ).
4 PROMOVER Y EJEMPLIFICAR CIUDADANÍA DIGITAL
Y RESPONSABILIDAD
(a) Promover, modelar y enseñan el uso seguro, legal y ético de la
información digital y de las TIC, incluyendo el respeto por los derechos
de autor, la propiedad intelectual y la documentación apropiada de las
fuentes de información.
(b) Atender las necesidades de todos los aprendices ofreciendo acceso equi-
tativo a recursos y herramientas digitales apropiados.
(c) Promover y ejemplificar la etiqueta digital y las interacciones sociales
responsables relacionadas con el uso de las TIC y la información.
(d) Desarrollar y modelar comprensión de diferentes culturas y conciencia
global usando herramientas de comunicación y colaboración de la era
digital.
Discusión y Conclusiones
El trabajo que aquí se presenta supone una actualización de trabajos teóricos
anteriores como los de Bawden (2001, 2008), Pérez Tornero (2004) y Cope
y Kalantzis (2009), ofreciendo unas dimensiones de referencia para la
continuación de estudios realizados en este ámbito académico como los de
Cabero y Llorente (2008); Beetham y Sharpe (2013), Coll y Rodríguez Illera
(2008), McDougall, Berger, Fraser, y Zezulkova (2015) y Brites y Jorge (2017).
La necesidad de desarrollar y establecer un modelo de alfabetización digital está
supeditada, como se ha visto en los distintos modelos a diferentes circunstancias que
implicarán un distinto desarrollo o concepción. Resulta vital, en este sentido, estudiar
diferentes modelos de desarrollo teniendo en cuenta quién sea el protagonista: alum-
nado, docentes o ciudadanía en general, aspecto crucial más si hablamos de plantear
modelos actualizados o aplicados a las escuelas. Es más, como apunta Bawden (2008,
p. 28) ‘no es prudente sugerir un solo modelo de alfabetización digital para que sea
262 A. Pérez-Escoda et al.
apropiado a todo el mundo, o incluso sugerir que sea apropiado el mismo modelo para
la misma persona durante toda su vida’.
Queda evidenciado que la alfabetización digital está estrechamente relacionada
con un nuevo concepto de multialfabetización (Kress, 2005; Martin & Madigan,
2006), independientemente del enfoque que se le dé: alfabetización digital,
mediática, multialfabetización, etc. Lo cierto es que las competencias digitales
aparecen en cualquier interpretación de la nueva alfabetización como necesarias
y coadyuvantes del cambio cualitativo que la educación demanda en todos los
niveles educativos de una sociedad líquida (Area & Pessoa, 2012; Beetham &
Sharpe, 2013; Pérez-Escoda, 2017).
Tras el estudio de estos cinco modelos de desarrollo de la alfabetización
digital, se concluye que esta es dinámica, flexible y en constante cambio debido
a que las destrezas, habilidades, competencias y conocimientos que comporta
y el grado de conocimiento se encuentran en un flujo constante de cambio
marcado por el ritmo de avance de la sociedad y del desarrollo tecnológico.
Por este motivo se puede afirmar que no existe una única visión para contemplar
la alfabetización digital, ni un mismo parámetro para definir el grado de
alfabetización de una persona en el siglo XXI. No obstante, se puede definir
y desarrollar teniendo en cuenta una triple dimensión, desarrollada a partir de los
modelos estudiados, que conjuga 3 factores distintos, simultáneos y que serían
los tres ejes sobre los que evaluar la alfabetización digital de una persona:
Acknowledgements / Agradecimientos
This study was performed as part of the MEDIA IN ACTION (MIA) project
LC00632803, funded by the Directorate General for Communications Networks,
Content and Technology (DGCONNECT), European Union. / Esta investigación se ha
realizado dentro del proyecto MEDIA IN ACTION (MIA), LC00632803 subvencionado
por la Dirección General para Redes de Comunicación, Contenidos y Tecnologías
(DGCONNECT), Unión Europea.
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