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Shuana Niessen
19/04/2013
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 2
In this inquiry paper, I explore answers to the questions: How important is digital fluency? What
is digital fluency? How is digital fluency different from digital literacy/literacies? and What are
the components of fluency? I became interested in this topic of digital literacies and digital
fluency because as an English Language Arts teacher, I think in terms of literacy and language
fluency. Technology provides not only another forum for communication, but also a preferred
and prevalent forum. In the 21st century, digital fluency is an important and necessary skill for
Technology and social medias are increasingly utilized for information, communication, and
maintaining and building connections. Digital skills at a level of fluency are understood to have
both positive and negative impacts on student achievement and successful employment. Digital
literacy and fluency are important for increasing positive information communication technology
(ICT) effects. Thus, there has been increasing demand for educational systems to integrate
technology and digital literacy into curriculum. Technology is an engaging medium for teaching
and learning, and broadly used by students as a means of communication, information retrieval,
and entertainment.
However, while technology has extended the ability to learn, communicate, connect,
collaborate, create and enjoy the creations of others internationally in engaging, timely ways
unlike any previous time, there are several problems associated with Internet technology that can
be addressed through increased digital skills and fluency. Hobbs (2010) highlights many
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 3
widespread sales promotion of unhealthy products, hate sites that promote prejudice,
sexism, racism and terrorism, cyber bullying, cyber terrorism, and unethical online
marketing practices. Stalking, online bullying and cell phone harassment may affect
physical and psychological safety. Intellectual property and reputation are also vitally
Miller and Bartlett (2012) offer several reasons for the problems experienced online. Online
anonymity allows for credentials and identity to be easily faked, as well as for open production
“tester[s] of the veracity of claims” (p.37). Pseudo-sites and propaganda are created to promote
agendas, conspiracy theories, and misinformation. Imagery is also being used in manipulative
ways. Algorithms are filtering information searches according to preferences. Finally, there is a
A survey conducted by Bartlett and Miller (2011) reveals that 88% of the teachers
surveyed considered Internet-based research to be important for students’ schoolwork, and 95%
report that students have brought information from the internet to the classroom; 95% believe
that digital fluency is an important skill for their students but that students have below average
digital skills; 47% reported students bringing misinformation or propaganda to school, and 48%
report having arguments with students over conspiracy theories found on the Internet; 88% think
that digital fluency should be given more prominence in the national curriculum (p.7). Therefore,
while Internet sources of information are seen as important, students do not have the necessary
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 4
skills for evaluating and analyzing information. Thus, digital fluency is currently being
incorporated into curriculums, frameworks and models are being developed, and content and
pedagogical strategies are being developed within subject areas, and through common essential
http://www.education.gov.sk.ca/Instruction/digital-fluency).
So, what is digital fluency? Miller and Bartlett (2012) write that there is “a profusion of different
terms – digital literacy, media literacy, cyberliteracy, visual literacy, information technology
fluency – [which] have emerged that reflect these different approaches to the problem of literacy
online.” Many use the terms literacy and fluency interchangeably. Fieldhouse and Nicholas
Definitions of digital and information literacy are numerous. Within this pool of
definitions, terms often are interchangeable; for example, “literacy”, “fluency” and
“competency” can all be used to describe the ability to steer a path through digital and
“Fluency”
The online Oxford English Dictionary (2013) defines fluency as “(a) The quality or state
of flowing or being fluent; (b) A smooth and easy flow; readiness, smoothness; esp. with regard
to speech; (c) Absence of rigidity; ease; and (d) Readiness of utterance, flow of
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 5
Communication involves both the out flowing aspects, such as speech, writing, and representing
and the inflowing aspects, such as hearing, reading, and viewing. Each of these require abilities
in understanding and interpreting, and at the level of fluency this would involve understanding
humour, catching nuances, irony–all of which involve “not only speaking the language
effortlessly and accurately, but also being familiar with different registers of the language, and
also the culture associated with the language” (Ager, 2009, para. 5). Resnick, Rusk, and Cooke
(1998) write, “Technological fluency means much more than the ability to use technological
become truly fluent in a language (like English or French), one must be able to articulate a
complex idea or tell an engaging story–that is, to be able to make things of significance with
these tools” (p. 2). Digital fluency involves not only the technological ability, but also the
creation and communication of complex ideas and meaning are part of digital fluency, as well as
Pace of change. As I considered the word “flowing,” I was struck with the
appropriateness of using the term “digital fluency,” not only because the digital realm is another
medium for communication requiring a certain level of ease and proficiency in its outward and
inward flowing communications, but also because fluency or flowing is required for keeping up
with the dynamic, quickly moving, flowing river of change associated with the digital realm.
Briggs and Makice (2011) write that since the 19th century’s discovery of electricity as a means
for encoding and sending messages instantly over long distances, and because communication is
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 6
Change could happen far quicker, at greater distances, and with less perceived cost. Since then,
the pace of change has steadily increased, with widespread effects on what we know, what we
can do, and our understanding of the way the world works. (p. 12)
What, then, are the skills necessary for dealing with this fast pace of change?
Lifelong learning. Hobbs (2010) connects the pace of change with the need for lifelong
learning:
as preschool and running well into old age in order to use evolving tools and
resources that can help them accomplish personal, social, cultural and civic
activities. (p.15)
A 21st century, digitally fluent citizen must, then, be a lifelong learner who is adept at finding
new tools and resources to help them achieve desired activities. This would also involve the
Evolving aptitude. With the understanding that a definition of fluency ought to include an
understanding of fast-paced change, I noted the Boise State University (BSU) definition of
digital fluency, which includes the idea of change, using the term “an evolving aptitude”:
According to BSU, digital fluency is “an evolving aptitude that empowers the individual to
effectively and ethically interpret information, discover meaning, design content, construct
knowledge, and communicate ideas in a digitally connected world” (para. 1). Along with the
idea of an evolving aptitude, BSU offers a method of developing this type of fluency. “We
believe this aptitude thrives when inquiry, play, and exploration are valued and encouraged as
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 7
meaningful learning experiences” (para. 1). Briggs and Makice (2011) help me understand why
inquiry, play, and exploration might be necessary for developing this aptitude. They suggest that
new experiences with new medias are also part of the lifelong learning toolkit: “Fluency is never
a static achievement. Without new experiences, the same box of tools will become less useful
over time” (p. 68). Self-directed inquiry, play, and exploration would facilitate new experiences.
also considers the concept of Flow. He suggests that literacy has been such a stable concept
because of the stable or static technology (paper) upon which the concept was built. He thinks
the word “flow” is positive because with this term, “[l]iteracy becomes a staging-post on the
journey instead of the destination itself” (p. 192). Further, he states that focusing on digital flow
would transform the conversation from endless lists of literacies, to a “creative act” (p.193).
This concept of flow over time suggests that creative response or action is an aspect of fluency.
The National Research Council (NRC) (1999), in Being Fluent with Information Technology
connects their preference for the word “fluency” over the word “literacy” to the pace of change;
they write, “Literacy is too modest a goal in the presence of rapid change, because it lacks the
necessary ‘staying power.’ As the technology changes by leaps and bounds, existing skills
become antiquated and there is no migration path to new skills” (p.2). The Planning Committee
on ICT Fluency and High School Graduation Outcomes, NRC (2006), suggests that it is this
emphasis on lifelong learning “which led to the report’s well-received tripartite framework of
ICT skills, ICT concepts, and intellectual capabilities (p.12), (see Appendix A for details of
framework).
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 8
Miller and Bartlett (2012) concur that the terms literacy and fluency are not
interchangeable, but are interrelated. They use the term fluency to describe the complex mixture
of new skills required to navigate effectively through the epistemological hazards of the online
realm:
[We] collectively terms these skills ‘digital fluency’ rather than digital literacy to
capture the cross-cutting, transecting nature of the skills required to meet the
Briggs and Makice (2011) start with the basic idea of fluency as “an ability to reliably achieve
desired outcomes through use of technology” (p. 62). They attempt to further define fluency by
what it is not, comparing fluency to literacy, “a literate person would understand what to do and
how to do it, but would not be able to articulate the when and why [emphasis added]” (p.63).
For instance, a digitally fluent person would understand not only the function of Twitter, but also
when and why its use is valuable. A fluent person who is aware of the changing nature of
Twitter would understand that a prompt change such as “What are you doing?” to “What is
happening” changes the focus from inward to outward, changing the function of the social
media. Significantly, Briggs and Makice (2011) add to their definition the aspect of context or
situation, external factors that can affect fluency: “Digital fluency is an ability to reliably achieve
desired outcomes through use of digital technology. This ability is helped or hindered by the
situational forces and the digital fluency of others” (p.65). Developing a digitally fluent personal
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 9
David Crystal (2010), in a YouTube video interview entitled, David Crystal – Texts and
Tweets: Myths and Realities, speaks to this ability to use language appropriately, (when and why
we use certain mediums) when he describes teachers who are interested in “replacing the older
black and white, incorrect/correct concept of language by a more sophisticated notion that every
style of language has its purpose.” They understand that certain subject matters work for one
medium and certain subject matters work for another: “What sorts of information are usefully
communicated by text? What sorts of information are usefully communicated by essay?” This,
in my opinion, would be part of digital fluency or fluency in general—knowing when and why
A Socio-Cultural Lens
Though Belshaw (2011) prefers the term “digital literacies,” his thesis work adds the socio-
cultural lens to my understanding of components of fluency. Belshaw (2011) suggests that there
The cultural element is about “the need to understand the various digital contexts an
The cognitive is a “mind expansion” that “comes through the co-creation and
definition…” (p.208). Essentially, Belshaw (2011) is denying that objective facts can be
known or taught, that all we have are lenses and perspectives that we co-construct. I tend
to think that there are knowable facts and these are an important in early stages of
learning. Only later, with much broader understandings, do we begin to learn and see the
nuances (see section below: Socio-Cultural Digital Literacies and Content Knowledge).
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 10
Constructive: This is about “creating something new, including using and remixing content
from other sources to create something original” (p.209). I learned through ETMOOC
conversations that with new creations there is movement towards not crediting those whose
works have been used to create something new, the remix, with the idea that crediting
people was too much work. Again, I am skeptical of taking it this far. I think it is
important to credit those whose ideas or creations one uses to create something new.
(p.209). I noted that in the ETMOOC that I took, there were social conventions for twitter
chats being promoted and taught. In addition, twitter lovers will say, “If you can’t say it in
140 characters, it isn’t worth saying.” Blog readers will complain of long paragraphs.
Civic: This is about participation, social justice, and civic responsibility, within which lies
Critical: This involves “the reflection upon literacy practices in various semiotic domains.
Who is excluded? What are the power structures and assumptions behind such literacy
Creative: This addresses the lack of gatekeepers and the importance of creating and co-
Confident: This “confidence is based on the understanding that the digital environment
can be more forgiving in regards to experimentation than physical environments” (p. 210),
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 11
training and competence, the forms of literacy put forward by the sociocultural
practices model involve interaction and creativity. This almost ‘meta’ form of
literacy is defined by the “mashup” and the remix; it could be seen as post-
Belshaw (2011) also writes, regarding the difference between the eight elements of literacy and
fluency, “Imagine ‘digital fluency’ in the centre of this dartboard, as the bull’s eye, with the eight
essential elements distributed clockwise around this centre point” (p. 215). He places both
fluency and remix (or sense-making, creative acts) at the centre of his elements of digital
literacy. It seems Belshaw (2011) is suggesting that fluency and remix are corresponding ideas.
Some, however, are critical of advocates of digital literacies and skills. Pondisco (2009)
The 21st century skills movement has a problem. It’s a problem that can’t be
solved by all of the innovation, creativity and information literacy lessons under
the sun, yet it can be deftly handled by a little bit of science knowledge. Call it
The tree octopus problem refers to the false content found on this web page:
researchers to develop an argument that kids need online learning skills (Murphy Paul, 2011).
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 12
Pondisco (2009) points out that rubrics, such as the Relevance, Appropriateness, Detail,
Currency, Authority, Bias (RADCAB), (see http://www.radcab.com/), cannot solve the issue of
lack of content knowledge. He argues that there are limits to digital literacies, and they cannot
replace content knowledge. While there is need for Belshaw’s (2011) digital literacies, for new
knowledge, remix, sense-making in a digital age which is changing what we know and how we
learn, and though critical thinking cannot be accomplished without an understanding of how
knowledge is socially-constructed, in the sense that societies agree on what they know, I also
don’t think we should be throwing out the knowledge we already have. As Dan Willingham, (as
cited by Murphy Pauls, 2011) a professor of psychology at the University of Virginia, who
Thinking well requires knowing facts, and that’s true not only because you need
something to think about…The very processes that teachers care about most—
There is an epistemological debate going on between socio-cultural theory and empirical theories
of knowledge. As with most arguments, there is truth to both sides. Therefore, I agree that
knowledge construction and remix are important to fluency, as well as traditional content
knowledge. It seems a false dichotomy to adopt one and not the other.
I tend towards a moderate view of fluency that blends old and new literacy skills, such as what
That the future of the Internet as a socially and personally beneficial resource is
really staked on meeting a central challenge: to equip each person, and especially
young people, with the savvy and knowledge they need to distinguish good
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 13
information online from its many imposters. This skill-what we call digital
fluency-is a blend of old literacy skills with new skills and knowledge required to
Teacher as Mediator
I wonder what Pondisco or Willingham would say of Sugata Mitra’s (2013) “Build a School in
the Cloud,” TED talk in which Mitra asks a question about whether we are heading for or living
in a future where knowing is obsolete. Mitra is a researcher devoted to the exploration of self-
organized learning environments. For his experiment, he places a computer under a tree in a
remote village in India, demonstrating that children could learn 30% of basic molecular biology
content unassisted, and with encouragement from an adult, could achieve 50% of the content.
The children had a limited number of websites to use to gather the information, and I think,
therefore, his assertion of the role as teacher, extends beyond the two points he recognizes: the
teacher’s role of asking the research question, and finding a friendly, encouraging mediator.
Even the selection of websites from which to learn was a mediation provided by Mitra. He
provided the content, and then left the children to discover its meaning. Thus, successful
development of digital fluency would also involve the teacher acting as a mediator in a digital
gatekeepers), Wood, Bruner, and Ross’s (1976) concept of scaffolding, along with Vygotsky’s
(1896-1934) social learning theory of the zone of proximal development become important
learning theory for building digital fluency. Wood, Bruner, and Ross (1976), write that
scaffolding involves an “adult controlling those elements of the task that are essentially beyond
the learner’s capacity, thus permitting him to concentrate upon and complete only those elements
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 14
that are within his range of competence” (p. 118). As seen in Mitra’s research, students need a
mediator to assist them in the learning process, temporary scaffolding to limit the freedom while
learning a new skill. The children also needed each other as they collaboratively (Vygotsky)
worked on learning the function of the computer, the language of the computer, and the content
itself.
Conclusion
It is clear from the number of definitions and components referenced in this paper that digital
fluency is a complex concept that goes far beyond mere computer skills or information literacy.
Any definition must be adaptive and creatively responsive to rapid change. Digital fluency
produced by the Internet’s greatest asset, its openness, and accessibility to everyone, including
those who would use it to harm others. The digital fluency discourse parallels language fluency
discourse, also adopting socio-cultural linguistic aspects. Belshaw introduces a critical theory
lens to the mix. As a language, some Internet enthusiasts, such as Mitch Resnick (2012), think
that html code is the language of the future. Those who know how to code will be considered
literate. This is an example of how a definition of digital fluency continues to evolve, resisting
objective definition. Out of all the definitions, I like the idea that fluency is an emerging aptitude
that involves knowing when and why we use the digital media that we choose, and using it with
ease to communicate and/or retrieve information. Saskatchewan curriculum is well on its way to
developing digital fluency components both in the movement from English Language Arts to
English Language and Literacies objectives, as well as in the Common Essential Learnings,
which are developed through all subject areas. The ELA strands of reading, writing, speaking,
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 15
listening, viewing, and representing are not media or text specific. These are flexible aspects of
communication, which cut across medias, allowing for the development of digital fluency in
students.
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 16
References
Ager, S. (2009). How do you define fluency? Cactus Language Training. Retrieved from
http://www.cactuslanguagetraining.com/us/english/view/how-do-you-define-fluency/
Bartlett, J., & Miller, C. (2011). Truth, lies and the internet: A report into young people’s digital
Belshaw, D.A.J. (2011). What is digital literacy? A pragmatic investigation. (Doctoral thesis,
http://neverendingthesis.com/doug-belshaw-edd-thesis-final.pdf
http://at.boisestate.edu/home/definition-of-digital-fluency
Briggs, C., & Makice, K. (2011). Digital fluency: Building success in the digital age. Social
Lens.
Crystal, D. (2010, Jun 28). David Crystal – Texts and tweets: Myths and realities [Video file].
Hobbs, R. (2010). Digital and media literacy: A plan of action. Washington, D.C. : The Aspen
Institute.
Miller, C., & Bartlett, J. (2012) ‘Digital fluency’: Towards young people’s critical use of the
Mitra, S. (2013). Build a school in the cloud [Video clip]. Retrieved from
http://www.ted.com/talks/sugata_mitra_build_a_school_in_the_cloud.html
Murphy Paul, A. (2011, October 26). ‘Digital literacy’ will never replace the traditional kind.
never-replace-the-traditional-kind/
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 17
National Research Council (NRC), (1999). Being Fluent with Information Technology.
http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=6482&page=2
Oxford English Dictionary (2013). Fluency. Oxford University Press. Retrieved from
http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/72066?redirectedFrom=fluency#eid
Planning Committee on ICT Fluency and High School Graduation Outcomes, National Research
Council, (2006). ICT fluency and high schools: A workshop summary. Retrieved from
http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=11709&page=12
Pondisco, R. (2009, February 5). The Core Knowledge Blog: 21st Century skills and the tree
http://www.ubc.ca/okanagan/library/citations/apa.html
Resnick, M., Rusk, N., & Cooke, S. (1998). The Computer Clubhouse: Technological fluency in
the inner city. In D. Schon, B. Sanyal, & W. Mitchell (Eds.) High technology and low-
http://web.media.mit.edu/~mres/papers/Clubhouse/Clubhouse.htm
Resnick, M. (2012) 10 places where anyone can learn to code [Video Clip]. Retrieved from
http://www.ted.com/talks/mitch_resnick_let_s_teach_kids_to_code.html
Wood, D. J., Bruner, J. S., & Ross, G. (1976). The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal of
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 18
Appendices
1
Retrieved from http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=6482&page=4
WHAT IS DIGITAL FLUENCY? 19
2
Retrieved from http://www.knightcomm.org/digital‐and‐media‐literacy/learning‐and‐teaching‐what‐works/