The Intersection of Digital and Media

Literacy
In this section we outline how skills and competencies for digital literacy and media literacy
intersect and provide us with essential skills for playing, learning and working as citizens of the
digital world.

Because both digital and media literacy are fairly new concepts, there is considerable debate
amongst experts and academics around the world as to how they should be defined. It is
generally agreed that skills and competencies for digital literacy and media literacy are closely
related to each other and to additional “21st-century” skills that are needed for living and working
in media- and information-rich societies.[i] For example, the key concepts for media literacy –
that media is constructed; that audiences negotiate meaning; that media have commercial, social
and political implications; and that each medium has a unique aesthetic form that affects how
content is presented – are as equally applicable to watching TV news as to searching for health
information online.

Digital literacy encompasses the personal, technological, and intellectual skills that are needed
to live in a digital world. As the lines between ‘traditional’ and ‘new’ media become blurred and
digital technology becomes increasingly central for full participation in society, our
understanding of ‘digital competence’ has expanded from a focus on technical ability to include
the broader social, ethical, legal and economic aspects of digital use. At the same time, digital
literacy also encompasses many practical competencies for playing, learning and working  in a
knowledge economy that are separate from media literacy skills.

Media literacy is a critical engagement with mass media, which nowadays includes digital
technologies. Additionally, as media and communications platforms converge our media
practices are changing – from being external spectators and receivers of entertainment and
information, to being active participants within an immersive media culture. This shift has
necessitated an expanded notion of what it means to be media literate, which now includes an
appreciation of individuals as both producers and consumers of media content and an
understanding of the resulting social and cultural shifts that take place because of this.[ii] As a
result, competencies for media literacy now include a variety of critical thinking, communication
and information management skills that reflect the demands and reality of digital culture.

The following chart illustrates how skills for digital literacy and media literacy connect and
intersect with each other and with other core literacies to provide a full range of competencies for
21st century life.
Although digital and media literacy are closely related, and both draw on the same core skill of
critical thinking, there are important differences in how the two have traditionally been
approached from an educational standpoint: media literacy generally focuses on teaching youth
to be critically engaged consumers of media, while digital literacy is more about enabling youth
to participate in digital media in wise, safe and ethical ways. However, it is important to keep in
mind that competencies for digital literacy and media literacy are not separate, but rather
complementary and mutually supporting and are constantly evolving and intersecting in new and
interesting ways.

An example of this can be found in the evolution of gaming. Early video games like Pac Man
took place in a strictly linear fashion that demanded an action on the part of the player, who had
to respond appropriately or lose. Even more complex games like Final Fantasy still operated
under a traditional media model where the story and its outcome were already written. However,
in the past decade and a half, gaming has undergone a radical shift through online games such as
Warcraft III, The Sims and Second Life, where players interact with the games and each other to
integrate their own custom experiences into their online play. These new kinds of games involve
a whole series of new skills. In addition to the more traditional media literacy skills of casting a
critical eye on the game’s content and narrative and analyzing the economic imperatives and
power relations that operate both overtly and behind the scenes, users must now also manipulate
data and negotiate social interactions with other players.
Explore the Digital Literacy Fundamentals and Media Literacy Fundamentals sections of
our website to understand more about the underlying aspects and principles for each of these
skill sets.

http://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy/general-information/digital-media-literacy-
fundamentals/intersection-digital-media-literacy

[1] Hobbs, Renee (2010). “Digital and Media Literacy: A Plan of Action”. The Aspen Institute
Communications and Society Program 2010.
http://www.knightcomm.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Digital_and_Media_Literacy_A_Plan
_of_Action.pdf

[2] Poyntz, S. and Hoechsmann, M. (2011) Teaching and Learning Media: From Media Literacy
1.0 to Media Literacy 2.0. Wiley-Blackwell Publishers.

Media Literacy Fundamentals

This section looks at the various aspects and principles relating to media literacy. The
relationship between media literacy and media education is also explored and tips are provided
for integrating media literacy into the classroom in subjects across the curriculum.

What is Media Literacy?

Media are powerful forces in the lives of youth. Music, TV, video games, magazines and other
media all have a strong influence on how we see the world, an influence that often begins in
infancy. To be engaged and critical media consumers, kids need to develop skills and habits of
media literacy. These skills include being able to access media on a basic level, to analyze it in a
critical way based on certain key concepts, to evaluate it based on that analysis and, finally, to
produce media oneself. This process of learning media literacy skills is media education.

The importance of media education in Canada can be seen through the inclusion of media
literacy outcomes in provincial and territorial curricula. But defining exactly what media
education and media literacy are – and how best to integrate them into the classroom – isn’t
always straightforward.

This section has been created to clarify what media literacy is all about, and to offer practical
suggestions to help you make media education happen

 What is Media Education?
 Why Teach Media Literacy?

 Key Concepts for Media Literacy

 Tips for Integrating Media Literacy in the  Classroom

  Media Literacy across the Curriculum

 Assessing and Evaluating Media Literacy Work

 Media Education in Canada: An Introduction

What is Media Education?

Media education is the process through which individuals become media literate – able to
critically understand the nature, techniques and impacts of media messages and productions.

Media education acknowledges and builds on the positive, creative and pleasurable dimensions
of popular culture. It incorporates production of media texts and critical thinking about media to
help us navigate through an increasingly complex media landscape. That landscape includes not
only traditional and digital media, but also popular culture texts such as toys, fads, fashion,
shopping malls and theme parks. Teachers don’t have to be media experts to incorporate media
education in the classroom, because it is all about asking questions.

For example:

 Who is the audience of a media production and why? From whose perspective is a story
being told?
 How do the unique elements and codes of a specific genre affect what we see, hear or read?

 How might different audiences interpret the same media production? Because media issues are
complex and often contradictory, the educator’s role isn’t to impart knowledge, but to facilitate
the process of inquiry.

Today, the chief challenges are to locate and evaluate the right information for one’s needs and
to synthesize what one finds into useful knowledge or communication. Media literacy – with
critical thinking, reflection and ethical behaviour at its core – is a key part of what it means to be
educated in today’s world.

Why Teach Media Literacy?

Why teach media literacy? Here are ten good reasons:

1. Media literacy encourages young people to question, evaluate, understand and appreciate their
multimedia culture. It teaches them to become active, engaged media consumers and users.
2. Media education brings the world into the classroom, giving immediacy and relevance to
traditional subjects such as History, English, Health, Civics and the Creative Arts. It serves as a
perfect bridge for subject integration and interdisciplinary studies.
 3. Media education embodies and furthers current pedagogy, which emphasizes student-centred
learning, the recognition of multiple intelligences, and the analysis and management – rather
than just the simple storing – of information.

4. Media education is grounded in the sound pedagogical approach of starting learning where kids
are at. The media – music, comics, television, video games, the Internet and even ads – are a
part of life that all kids enjoy. Media create a shared environment and are, therefore, catalysts
for learning.

5. Media education encourages young people to use multimedia tools creatively, a strategy that
contributes to “understanding by doing” and prepares them for a workforce that increasingly
demands the use of sophisticated forms of communication.

6. In a society concerned about growing youth apathy to the political process, media education
engages young people in “real-world” issues. It helps young people to see themselves as active
citizens and potential contributors to public debate.

7. In a diverse and pluralistic society, the study of media helps youth understand how media
portrayals can influence how we view different groups in society: it deepens young people’s
understanding of diversity, identity and difference.

8. Media literacy helps young people’s personal growth and social development by exploring the
connections between popular culture – music, fashion, television programming, movies and
advertising – and their attitudes, lifestyle choices and self-image.

9. Media literacy helps children critique media representation, teaching them to distinguish
between reality and fantasy as they compare media violence and real-life violence, media
heroes and real-life heroes, and media role models and real-life roles and expectations.

10. With most Canadian students turning first to the Internet for research, media education is an
essential component of Information Communications Technology education, assisting young
people in developing critical thinking skills and strategies for optimizing searches, evaluating and
authenticating information and examining issues of plagiarism and copyright.

Key Concepts for Media Literacy

Media educators base their teaching on key concepts for media literacy, which provide an
effective foundation for examining mass media and popular culture. These key concepts act as
filters that any media text has to go through in order for us to critically respond. To teach the key
concepts to students see the resources in our Media Minutes program.

1. Media are constructions

Media products are created by individuals who make conscious and unconscious choices about
what to include, what to leave out and how to present what is included. These decisions are
based on the creators’ own point of view, which will have been shaped by their opinions,
assumptions and biases – as well as media they have been exposed to. As a result of this, media
products are never entirely accurate reflections of the real world – even the most objective
documentary filmmaker has to decide what footage to use and what to cut, as well as where to
put the camera – but we instinctively view many media products as direct representations of
what is real.

Ask:

 Who created this media product?

 What is its purpose?

 What assumptions or beliefs do its creators have that are reflected in the content?

2. Audiences negotiate meaning

The meaning of any media product is not created solely by its producers but is, instead, a
collaboration between them and the audience – which means that different audiences can take
away different meanings from the same product. Media literacy encourages us to understand how
individual factors, such as age, gender, race and social status affect our interpretations of media.

Ask:

 How might different people see this media product differently?

 How does this make you feel, based on how similar or different you are from the people
portrayed in the media product?

3. Media have commercial implications

Most media production is a business and must, therefore, make a profit. In addition, media
industries belong to a powerful network of corporations that exert influence on content and
distribution. Questions of ownership and control are central – a relatively small number of
individuals control what we watch, read and hear in the media. Even in cases where media
content is not made for profit – such as YouTube videos and Facebook posts – the ways in
which content is distributed are nearly always run with profit in mind.

Ask:

 What is the commercial purpose of this media product (in other words, how will it help
someone make money)?
 How does this influence the content and how it’s communicated?

 If no commercial purpose can be found, what other purposes might the media product have (for
instance, to get attention for its creator or to convince audiences of a particular point of view).

 How do those purposes influence the content and how it’s communicated?

4. Media have social and political implications

Media convey ideological messages about values, power and authority. In media literacy, what
or who is absent may be more important than what or who is included. These messages may be
the result of conscious decisions, but more often they are the result of unconscious biases and
unquestioned assumptions – and they can have a significant influence on what we think
and believe.

As a result, media have great influence on politics and on forming social change. TV news
coverage and advertising can greatly influence the election of a national leader on the basis of
image; representations of world issues, both in journalism and fiction, can affect how much
attention they receive; and society’s views towards different groups can be directly influenced by
how – and how often – they appear in media.

Ask:

 Who and what is shown in a positive light? In a negative light?

 Why might these people and things be shown this way?

 Who and what is not shown at all?

 What conclusions might audiences draw based on these facts?

5. Each medium has a unique aesthetic form

The content of media depends in part on the nature of the medium. This includes the technical,
commercial and storytelling demands of each medium: for instance, the interactive nature of
video games leads to different forms of storytelling – and different demands on media creators –
that are found in film and TV.

Ask:

 What techniques does the media product use to get your attention and to communicate
its message?
 In what ways are the images in the media product manipulated through various techniques (for
example: lighting, makeup, camera angle, photo manipulation)?

 What are the expectations of the genre (for example: print advertising, TV drama, music video)
towards its subject?

Tips for Integrating Media Literacy in the Classroom

Although media literacy is now a part of the official curricula of every province and territory, it’s
all too often left out or given cursory treatment in classrooms. This is the result of a variety of
factors, such as limited access to equipment, teachers’ lack of confidence with the material, and
especially the perception of media education as a “frill” in an age of standardized testing and
comprehensive curricula.

Here is some advice for making media education a meaningful and integrated part of your
classroom practice:
1. Exploit “teachable moments”
When students have free time, take an opportunity to listen to what they’re talking about. Most
likely, it’s related to the media they watch, play and listen to! Breaking news stories, blockbuster
movies, and celebrity meltdowns are all great opportunities for media analysis.
2. Give students a chance to create media, not just analyze it
Although there’s more to media education than just creating media, this is a key part of it:
there’s no substitute for hands-on experience to help kids understand how things like editing
and music can influence the way a movie or TV show affects us emotionally. Camera phones,
storyboards and even magazine collages are all affordable and easy options for bringing media
production into your classroom.

3. Start and end with the key concepts

Media education, and the media world, can feel overwhelming when you start to analyze it. By
always coming back to the key concepts of media literacy you can keep from getting sidetracked
as you analyze media products or cultural artifacts.

4. Recognize that kids – and adults – enjoy media

It’s important not to take a negative approach to media education. Teach kids that critiquing is
not necessarily the same thing as criticizing and that we can identify and talk about problematic
issues in the media we love without losing our enjoyment of them. Don’t forget to look at
positive examples when discussing things like gender, stereotyping and so on.

5. Teach about media, not just with media

It’s not enough to use media in your classroom unless students are learning about media as well.
Any time you’re using media in the classroom, look for a media education opportunity: for
instance, if you’re showing the movie version of a play or book, have students analyze the
differences between the two using the key concepts. How are the commercial considerations of
a movie different from those of a book or a play? What technical differences change how the
story is told? How are the expectations of a movie audience different from those of a play or a
book? How are the film-makers’ values and assumptions similar to, or different from, the
original author’s? How do all of these differences affect the explicit or implicit meaning?

6. Make media education about asking questions, not learning answers

Even though you may feel strongly about an issue or a media product, give your students room
to come to their own conclusions. This is especially important when you’re dealing with issues
such as stereotyping or body image, where your students (and you!) likely already have strong
opinions: you need to model the practice of keeping an open mind and using a critical analysis,
not your emotions, to lead you to a conclusion.

7. Fight the perception that “It doesn’t matter”

Students often try to avoid talking about the implications of media products by saying “it’s only
a TV show” – or a video game, or a music video, or so on. Remind students that media can have
meaning even if the creators didn’t plan it, and that we rely as much on the media as on
anything else to tell us about the world. For instance, research has shown persuasively that
media consumption can affect how we see others and how we see ourselves, even if we don’t
realize it – a condition known as implicit or unconscious bias – and the presence or absence of
different groups in media has been shown to affect how people feel about those groups.
 8. Assess and evaluate media literacy work
“Will this be on the test?” By doing formal assessment and evaluation of the media literacy work
students do, you communicate to them that it is valuable and important. Make sure that your
evaluations are as well thought-out and objective as they are for all your other assignments, and
keep them consistent: when in doubt, return to the key concepts to gauge your students’
knowledge, understanding, insight and skill. See Assessing and Evaluating Media Literacy Work
for tips on how to do this.

9. Let students bring their own media to the table

To get students more engaged, look for opportunities for them to do media literacy work with
their choice of media products. You can deal with concerns about content issues by making your
expectations clear and a part of the evaluation scheme (ethical and responsible use of media is
a key part of media literacy) and by having students only present excerpts of media products in
group or whole-class settings.

10. Keep up-to-date with media trends and developments

You don’t have to be a media expert to teach media literacy, but it helps to be current about
what kids are watching, playing, reading, wearing and listening to, not to mention what they’re
doing online. This is a great opportunity to let kids be the experts and teach you about the
latest thing!

Media Literacy Across the Curriculum

Media education has a place in nearly every course and subject. You can see our Curriculum
Charts to get specific information on how each of our lessons and resources meets the curriculum
of different courses in your province or territory. Here are some ideas just to get you started:

Social Science: In History classes, students can look at how their views of history and historical
events have been shaped by media. Studying films, newspapers and even their own textbooks
can help students see how the nature of each medium shapes how history is told. In Geography
and World Issues classes, students can analyze how news coverage influences how we view
different parts of the world – and the people who live there.

Science: How are students’ views of science, and what scientists do, shaped by media? Where
does the idea of a “mad scientist” come from, and where do we see this trope today? How do the
commercial demands of newspapers and TV news influence reporting of science stories?

Family Studies: How are families depicted in different media? How has this changed with time?
Do media portrayals of family follow trends in society, or do they influence them (or both)?
What do various media products popular with youth say about gender roles, and how do youth
interpret these messages?

Health and Physical Education: What influence does media consumption have on what we eat?
How does it affect our decisions about smoking, drinking, and drug use? What kinds of
relationships do we see modeled in media products popular with youth, and what messages do
youth take from them? How do digital media such as cell phones and the Internet affect our
relationships with others, and how can we maintain healthy relationships using these media?
Music: How do the commercial pressures of the music industry affect the creation of music?
How are things like gender, class, relationships, or alcohol and drug use depicted in music (and
music videos), and how do youth interpret these messages? How do different musical genres and
styles (pop, rock, hip hop, R&B, etc.) influence the content of music and music videos? How are
musicians portrayed in media, and how does that influence how youth see them?

Law: How do media products popular with youth portray crime and the criminal justice system?
How are these portrayals influenced by the values or assumptions of the media creators, by
commercial considerations, or by the influence of different genres (cop shows, action games,
etc.)? How are digital media affecting our views on issues such as intellectual property, hate
speech, harassment and defamation of character?

Visual and Fine Arts: How do artists use, appropriate and deconstruct media products to create
new art? What rights and responsibilities do artists have towards the original media creators
or owners?

Assessing and Evaluating Media Literacy Work

As with any subject, it’s important that work students do in developing their media literacy is
assessed and evaluated. Students need regular feedback to be able to reflect on their progress and
develop mastery, and this also tells them that the work they’re doing is an important part of the
course. However, teachers sometimes find it more difficult to create assessment and evaluation
tools for media education than for other subjects. This may be because they feel they lack the
technical knowledge to evaluate work in the medium in question; it may also be that since media
education is all about finding the right questions to ask, rather than learning previously
determined answers.

There are two important steps to creating objective, comprehensive and meaningful assessment
and evaluation tools for media literacy work. The first is to use an evaluation tool such as a
rubric that allows you to assess work in more than one way and that makes expectations clear to
students. The second is to frame the expectations within the rubric in terms of the key concepts
of media literacy.

In general, media literacy work can be evaluated in three ways:

1. Based on how well the student understands the key concepts of media literacy and the specific
concepts and ideas being explored in the lesson or assignment.
2. Based on the depth and quality of the student’s inquiry and analysis of the questions raised in
the lesson or assignment, as well as the student’s thoughtfulness in identifying issues and
questions to examine.

3. Based on how well the student applies specific technical skills associated with either the
medium being studied (movies, TV, video games, etc.), the medium used in the evaluation tool,
or both.
Within each of those four areas, you can create expectations using questions based on the key
concepts:

Media are constructions:

Does the student show an understanding of how the media product was created? (Few media
products are made by a single author. What were the different contributions of different creators
to the final product?)

How well does the student analyze how the creators’ beliefs or assumptions are reflected in
the content?

Audiences negotiate meaning:

Does the student show an understanding of this concept, and of what elements in a medium or a
particular product would be relevant to it? Can the student identify the intended audience of a
media product, as well as which other possible audiences might view it differently?

How well does the student identify and analyze the ways that different audiences might view
the media product differently?

Media have commercial implications:

Does the student show a knowledge and understanding of the commercial factors influencing
the creation of this media product? Does the student show a knowledge and understanding of
how the media product was financed and who owns it?

How well does the student analyze how the content of the media product was influenced either
by commercial factors or by who created and/or owned it?

Media have social and political implications:

Does the student show an understanding of this key concept? Does the student show a
knowledge and understanding of how this medium communicates ideas and values? (For
example, what kinds of characters are present and which kinds are absent? Who is shown in a
positive light, and who is shown in a negative light? Who is shown as having control over their
lives, and who is not?

How well does the student analyze the significance of the conscious or unconscious, explicit or
implicit messages identified in a media product?

Each medium has a unique aesthetic form:

Does the student show a knowledge and understanding of the technical elements of the
medium and the tropes, clichés, codes and conventions of the medium (TV, movies, video
games, etc.) and genre (situation comedies, documentaries, role-playing games)?
How well does the student analyze how the use of these technical elements and genre tropes
influence the conscious or unconscious, explicit or implicit messages identified in media
product? (How are elements such as music, costuming, and shot composition used to influence
our opinion of a character in a movie? How are characters given or deprived of agency, control
and power in a video game?)

For all of the key concepts, you can evaluate any work according to the following terms:

How well does the student apply knowledge of the key concepts and of the medium being
studied? How well does the student apply knowledge of the medium of the evaluation tool? For
instance, if the student is writing an essay about a TV show, he or she would be expected to
apply an understanding of how TV shows are created and how they convey meaning, both
explicitly and implicitly, and also to apply their knowledge of how to write a successful essay by
using an effective structure, well-developed and supported arguments, correct spelling and
grammar, and so on. (Successful use of process steps such as editing, checklists and pre-
evaluation assessment can be included here as well.) If the product being studied and the
evaluation use the same medium – a mock print ad being used to deconstruct magazine
advertising, for instance – the student would still be evaluated separately on how they apply their
knowledge to analyze magazine ads and how they apply their knowledge to create the mock ad.

Now that you’ve figured out the expectations of your evaluation tool, you need to determine
how students will show achievement. This is often done on a scale of one to four (sometimes
represented as “Insufficient” and then numbers one to four). To create a scale, start by writing
what you want your students to do in Level Three and work up and down from there. This can be
done in two ways:

1. By using exact, quantitative expectations. For example, if you want a Level Three student to
successfully identify four ways in which the product communicates messages about gender,
then a Level Two might successfully identify three ways, a Level One two ways, an Insufficient
one or zero ways and a Level Four five or more ways.
2. By using qualitative descriptions of the work you want to see. If you define Level Three as being
competent work, for example, you might define Level Two as developing work, Level One as
beginning work, Insufficient as failing work and Level Four as confident work.

Each of the approaches has its own strengths and weaknesses: quantitative expectations are
generally better because there is little or no ambiguity, but using them too much can change the
emphasis from thinking and analysis to following procedure and “checking all the boxes.” Most
often you’ll use a mixture of the two, using quantitative expectations to evaluate knowledge and
application of specific skills and using qualitative expectations to evaluate inquiry and analysis.

For example, a rubric for the “Design a Video Game” assignment in the lesson First Person
might look like this:

  Insufficient Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4

 Game design
Game design Game design shows a Game design shows Game desig
shows an shows a beginning developing a competent a confident
insufficient understanding of understanding of understanding of understandi
understanding of diversity issues in diversity issues in diversity issues in diversity iss
diversity issues in video games video games video games video game
video games
Knowledge
Game design Game design Game design shows Game desig
and Understanding
Game design shows a beginning shows a a competent a confident
shows an understanding of developing understanding of understandi
insufficient video game genres understanding of video game genres video game
understanding of video game genres
video game genres      
 
Game design does Game design Game design
Game design Game desig
not successfully successfully successfully
successfully successfully
identify any ways identifies one way identifies two
identifies three identifies fo
in which video video games ways video games
ways video games video game
games communicate communicate
communicate communica
communicate messages messages
messages messages
messages about diversity about diversity
about diversity about divers
about diversity
Game design Game design
Inquiry and Analysis Game design Game desig
Game design demonstrates a demonstrates a
demonstrates a demonstrate
demonstrates little beginning analysis developing
competent analysis confident an
or no analysis of of how analysis of how
of how commercial how comme
how commercial commercial commercial
pressures and pressures an
pressures and pressures and pressures and
medium and genre medium and
medium and genre medium and genre medium and genre
characteristics characteristi
characteristics characteristics characteristics
influence meaning influence m
influence meaning influence meaning influence meaning
Game design Game design Game design Game design Game desig
Application of Skills successfully uses successfully uses successfully uses successfully uses successfully
and Knowledge one or fewer two elements of three elements of four elements of the five or mor
elements of the the medium and the medium and medium and genre elements of
medium and genre genre studied genre studied studied in class medium and
studied in class in class in class studied in c
Game design
Game design Some game Game design elements and other Game desig
elements do not design elements elements are elements are chosen elements an
successfully are chosen to mostly chosen to to effectively elements are
communicate the effectively effectively communicate the to successfu
student’s communicate the communicate the student’s communica
understanding student’s student’s understanding student’s
and analysis understanding understanding and analysis understandi
and analysis
 and analysis and analysis used to crea
appealing an
    creative pro

A final tool that is extremely helpful in evaluating media literacy work is giving students
exemplars. These are examples of evaluation pieces that show students what you’re looking for
in a competent work. Annotate the exemplar to make clear what it does right and go through it
with the class when you give out the assignment. (Make sure the exemplar is different in some
key way from the assignment – an analysis of a different movie, for example – to avoid having
students simply copy it.) The easiest source of exemplars is your own students’ work, but if you
are doing an assignment for the first time you can either create one yourself or have a peer helper
or a more senior student create one.

Media Education in Canada: An Introduction

Canada is considered a world leader in this field. But there’s still a long way to go before the
subject is integrated fully into Canadian classrooms.

Media education is “on the books” with outcomes for media education included across the
curriculum and media education programs being implemented in pockets and districts throughout
the country. Still, the quality and practice are uneven and media education is not yet widely
taught in all provinces and territories or at all levels.

Research findings support the notion that media literacy needs to start at the very early stages of
learning. At the elementary level, media literacy education is often “hidden” in the Language
Arts strand. It may be referred to as “viewing and representing” or “oral and visual
communication”. Although it is a mandated curriculum area, teachers at the elementary level
have very few resources available to them and very little in the way of professional development
to support them. With the disappearance of the school librarian and other specialists in most
elementary schools, classroom teachers have become “generalized specialists” in many areas,
one of which is media education. Teachers and parents are eager to help their children become
media wise, and they are open to new ideas, skills and strategies that will help them in
this regard.

Media educators have identified an urgent need to increase professional development

opportunities, to update the approach to reflect the digital wireless landscape, and to integrate the
disciplines of media analysis and media production across the curriculum in Canada’s
education system.

PROVINCIAL AND TERRITORIAL OVERVIEWS AND MEDIA

EDUCATION OUTCOMES

Media education initiatives vary across Canada. This section provides detailed information on
the status of media education for each province and territory, information on provincial/territorial
media education organizations, and a listing of media education curricular outcomes, by grade,
with links to supporting MediaSmarts resources.

http://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy/general-information/digital-media-literacy-
fundamentals/media-literacy-fundamentals

Digital Literacy Fundamentals

This section looks at the various aspects and principles relating to digital literacy and the many
skills and competencies that fall under the digital literacy umbrella. The relationship between
digital literacy and digital citizenship is also explored and tips are provided for teaching these
skills in the classroom.

Introduction

Today’s youth are often called ‘digital natives’ by adults because of the seemingly effortless way
they engage with all things digital. It’s easy to see why: Canadian youth live in an interactive,
“on demand” digital culture where they are used to accessing media whenever and wherever they
want. Instant-messaging, photo sharing, texting, social networking, video-streaming, and mobile
Internet use are all examples where youth have led the charge in new ways of engaging online.

But this enthusiasm masks a potential problem: although young people don’t need coaxing to
take up Internet technologies and their skills quickly improve relative to their elders, without
guidance they remain amateur users of information and communications technology (ICT),
which raises concerns about a generation of youth who are not fully digitally literate, yet are
deeply immersed in cyberspace.

In order to be literate in today’s media-rich environments, young people need to develop

knowledge, values and a whole range of critical thinking, communication and information
management skills for the digital age. As increasing numbers of businesses, services and even
democratic processes migrate online, citizens who lack digital literacy skills risk being
disadvantaged when it comes to accessing healthcare and government services and opportunities
for employment, education and civic participation.[1]

A basic question, then, is what exactly is digital literacy?

This section looks at the various aspects and principles relating to digital literacy and the many
skills and competencies that fall under the digital literacy umbrella.

 What is Digital Literacy?
 The Multi-Literacies of the Digital Age

 Where does “Digital Citizenship” Fit In?

 Fostering Digital Literacy in the Classroom

 

What is Digital Literacy?

Digital Literacy Model

  
This model[2] illustrates the many interrelated elements that fall under the digital literacy
umbrella. These range from basic access, awareness and training to inform citizens and build
consumer and user confidence to highly sophisticated, and more complex creative and critical
literacies and outcomes.[3] There is a logical progression from the more fundamental skills
towards the higher, more transformative levels, but doing so is not necessarily a sequential
process: much depends on the needs of individual users.

Use, Understand, Create

Traditional definitions of literacy have focused on skills relating to numeracy, listening,

speaking, reading, writing and critical thinking, with the end goal being developing active
thinkers and learners who are able to engage in society in effective and meaningful ways.[4]
These skills are needed for full participation in digital society as well, but they are only part of a
larger set of skills and competencies that are required.

Competencies for digital literacy can be classified according to three main principles: Use,
Understand and Create.

Use represents the technical fluency that’s needed to engage with computers and the Internet.
Skills and competencies that fall under “use” range from basic technical know-how –  using
computer programs such as word processors, web browsers, email, and other communication
tools – to the more sophisticated abilities for accessing and using knowledge resources, such as
search engines and online databases, and emerging technologies such as cloud computing.

Understand is that critical piece – it’s the set of skills that help us comprehend, contextualize,
and critically evaluate digital media, so that we can make informed decisions about what we do
and encounter online. These are the essential skills that we need to start teaching our kids as soon
as they go online.

Understand includes recognizing how networked technology affects our behaviour and our
perceptions, beliefs and feelings about the world around us.

Understand also prepares us for a knowledge economy as we develop – individually and

collectively – information management skills for finding, evaluating and effectively using
information to communicate, collaborate and solve problems.

Create is the ability to produce content and effectively communicate through a variety of digital
media tools. Creation with digital media is more than knowing how to use a word processor or
write an email: it includes being able to adapt what we produce for various contexts and
audiences; to create and communicate using rich media such as images, video and sound; and to
effectively and responsibly engage with Web 2.0 user-generated content such as blogs and
discussion forums, video and photo sharing, social gaming and other forms of social media.

The ability to create using digital media ensures that Canadians are active contributors to digital
society. Creation – whether through blogs, tweets, wikis or any of the hundreds of avenues for
expression and sharing online – is at the heart of citizenship and innovation.
Given how quickly and frequently our media world is evolving, developing and maintaining
one’s digital literacy is a lifelong process. The specific skills that are needed will vary from
person to person depending on their needs and circumstances – which can range from basic
awareness and training to more sophisticated and complex applications.

The Multi-Literacies of the Digital Age

Digital literacy is more than technological know-how: it includes a wide variety of ethical,
social, and reflective practices that are embedded in work, learning, leisure, and daily life.

The term “multi-literacies” is often used to describe the various aptitudes and abilities that are
needed for us to use, understand and create digital media. Given this, it’s helpful to think of
“digital literacy” not as a concrete set of skills, but as a framework that draws from and expands
on numerous literacies and competencies.

Under the “digital literacy umbrella” are a wide range of interrelated skills that traditionally fall
under media literacy, technology literacy, information literacy, visual literacy, communication
literacy and social literacies.[5]

Media literacy:

With its expanded notion of ‘text’ that includes images, audio and digital media, media literacy
is closely associated with digital literacy. Media literacy reflects our ability to access, analyze,
evaluate and produce media through understanding and appreciation of:

 the art, meaning and messaging of various forms of media texts

 the impact and influence of mass media and popular culture

 how media texts are constructed and why they are produced

 how media can be used to communicate our own ideas effectively

Critical thinking is central to both digital and media literacy.  Learn more about media literacy
in the Media Literacy Fundamentals section.

Technology literacy:

Proficiency with technology is most often associated with digital literacy. This ranges from basic
computer skills to more complex tasks like editing a digital film or writing computer code.

We have to be careful, though, not to confuse proficiency with knowledge and understanding: a
teched-up teen with superb technology skills may still trust much of the information he/she finds
online, copy straight off the Web for school projects, and not give a thought to the privacy
implications of his/her online activities.  Digital literacy involves both skills and a set of good
online habits that include reflection, critical awareness and responsibility.
Information literacy:

This is another important aspect of being digitally literate that includes the ability to assess what
information is needed, to know how to find it online and how to critically evaluate and apply it.
Originally developed for library use, this literacy translates well into the digital domain where, in
a sea of unfiltered online information, knowing how to think critically about sources and content
is essential.

Visual literacy:

At its most basic, visual literacy reflects our ability to understand and produce visual messages,
whether through objects, actions or symbols. Visual literacy is essential to both learning and
communication in modern society.

Communication literacy:

These competencies form the foundation for thinking, organizing and connecting with others in a
networked society. In particular, today’s youth need not only to understand how to integrate
knowledge from multiple sources such as music, video, online databases, and other media[6]; they
also need to know how to use multiple sources to disseminate and share knowledge.

Social literacy:

Social competencies are also needed for full participation in digital society, which media scholar
Henry Jenkins describes as a “participatory culture” that is developed through collaboration
and networking.

In such a world, youth need skills for working within social networks, for pooling knowledge
within a collective intelligence, for negotiating across cultural differences that shape the
governing assumptions in different communities and for reconciling conflicting bits of data to
form a coherent picture of the world around them.[7]

Jenkins identifies a series of “new literacies” that are built upon and reinforce these social skills.
These include:

Play – the capacity to experiment with one’s surroundings as a form of problem-solving

Performance – the ability to adopt alternative identities for the purpose of improvisation
and discovery

Simulation – the ability to interpret and construct dynamic models of real-world processes

Appropriation – the ability to meaningfully sample and remix media content

Multitasking – the ability to scan one’s environment and shift focus as needed to salient details
Distributed Cognition – the ability to interact meaningfully with tools that expand
mental capacities

Collective Intelligence – the ability to pool knowledge and compare notes with others toward a
common goal

Judgment – the ability to evaluate the reliability and credibility of different information sources

Transmedia Navigation – the ability to follow the flow of stories and information across
multiple platforms (understanding a storyline that’s told both on a TV show and a website, for
instance, or following a news story through various different outlets)

Networking – the ability to search for, synthesize, and disseminate information

Negotiation – the ability to travel across diverse communities, discerning and respecting
multiple perspectives, and grasping and following alternative norms.[8]

Globally, the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) frames its benchmarks
for digital literacy around six standards: creativity and innovation; communication and
collaboration; research and information fluency; critical thinking, problem solving, and decision
making; digital citizenship; and technology operations and concepts.[9]

Where Does “Digital Citizenship” Fit In?

Digital Citizenship is “character education” in a networked world. As one teacher puts it:

One of the big mission statements and themes of our school is building character today for
communities of tomorrow, so we are always tying things back into good character and how we
want to be perceived by others; how we want to treat others; and how we want others to treat us
… technology provides one more way to teach it, one more way to make it relevant to students.[10]
Being a critically engaged user and consumer of media is an essential part of active citizenship in
the 21st century: we use media to inform ourselves, to help shape our opinions, to interact with
our communities and to make our voices heard.

Models for digital citizenship are generally framed around elements such as rights and
responsibilities, participation or civic engagement, norms of behaviour or etiquette and a sense of
belonging and membership.[11][12]

Digital citizenship is closely aligned to civics in a traditional sense, where understanding digital
media and being able to use it is becoming a vital part of active citizenship. As media messages
dominate our political debates and tools such as Facebook and Twitter are used for activism and
organizing political movements around the world, it’s increasingly important for young people to
be able to view media critically and be prepared to be engaged digital citizens who contribute to
their communities in a positive way. To do so, they need the full range of skills we associate with
media and digital literacy to be able to know and exercise the rights they hold as consumers, as
members of online communities, as citizens of a state and as human beings.

Fostering Digital Literacy in the Classroom

Many teachers are using technology in their classrooms to support different learning styles and to
engage students: what’s missing are guidelines to help them do this in ways that promote
innovative thinking and collaborative work, promote ethical practices and strengthen their own
professional development.

Teachers, interviewed by MediaSmarts, identified several key factors that limit the ability of
educators to help students build digital literacy skills. They also offered some solutions to these
problems, including the need to:

 provide students with authentic learning opportunities that are enhanced through
technological tools;
 position teachers as facilitators and co-learners, instead of “drill and kill” experts;

 focus teacher training on how to use technology to enhance learning and meet curricular
outcomes; and

 create reasonable policies and less restrictive filters in schools so that teachers can better help
students develop and exercise good judgement. [13]

Technology has shifted the traditional classroom paradigm that positions the teacher as the
expert. This can be hard for many educators to accept, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing. In our
quickly evolving technological world, we are all learners, and teachers who are willing to share
responsibility with students are more likely to be comfortable – and effective – in a
networked classroom.

This is where our education system can benefit from models in the youth engagement sector,
where young people are acknowledged as decision-makers, partners and agents of social change,
and adults assume the role of trusted guides and lifelong learners alongside youth.[14]

One of the supporting principles of Manitoba’s Continuum Model for Literacy with ICT is the
gradual release of responsibility from teacher to student.[15] According to this principle, teachers
act as facilitators and guides who provide scaffolding to help students develop higher-level
critical and creative thinking and deeper understanding relating to ICT as they gradually become
more autonomous users of networked technology.[16]

This principle fits well into effective programs for digital literacy and digital citizenship that:

Are holistic, building links between school, home and the community and taking into account
both online and offline opportunities for engagement and empowerment

 Are evidence-based
 Are proactive, as opposed to reactive

 Position digital technology as a right and a responsibility

 Reinforce positive and pro-social uses of technology

 Provide a wide range of tools and resources

 Focus not just on safety, but the whole range of digital literacy skills and competencies
  Are built upon traditional aspects of character and moral education as well as a broader
interpretation of civics education

 Are child-centred and youth-led – building on the reality of young people’s lives and providing
real and authentic experiences

 Foster a gradual release of responsibility towards independent practice by youth – working with
youth in building resilience, finding solutions and promoting positive engagement
with technology

 Position adults as supportive mentors and facilitators

MediaSmarts is working with academics and educators across the country to identify where
digital literacy skills are situated in provincial and territorial frameworks and curricula – and to
highlight the innovative ways that teachers are helping their students develop the critical thinking
skills that are central to lifelong learning and citizenship in the digital age. With your input, this
section will continue to grow and evolve.

[1] Hobbs, Renee (2012). “Hobbs: Info literacy must be a community education movement” 
http://www.knightcomm.org/hobbs-info-literacy-must-be-a-community-education-movement/
[2] This figure is based on models from the Report of the Digital Britain Media Literacy
Working Group. (March 2009), DigEuLit – a European Framework for Digital Literacy (2005),
and Jenkins et al., (2006) Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education
for the 21st Century. http://www.newmedialiteracies.org/files/working/NMLWhitePaper.pdf
[3] Jenkins, H. et. al. (2006). Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media
Education for the 21st Century. MacArthur; Chicago Ill. p 4.
[4] Combes, B. (2010). How much do traditional literacy skills count? Literacy in the 21st
century & reading from the screen. http://www.slideshare.net/IASLonline/literacy-skills-
challenged
[5] Martin, A. (2008). “Digital Literacy and the “Digital Society” in Digital Literacies:
Concepts, Policies and Practices: Lankshear C., Knobel, M. (Eds.) New York: Peter Lang
Publishing, Inc.
[6] Bertram C. Bruce (2002) in Jenkins, H. et. al. (2006). Confronting the Challenges of
Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century. MacArthur; Chicago Ill. p. 19.
[7] Jenkins, H. et. al. (2006). Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media
Education for the 21st Century. MacArthur; Chicago Ill. p 20.
[8] Jenkins, H. et. al. (2006). Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media
Education for the 21st Century. MacArthur; Chicago Ill. p 4.
[9] International Society for Technology in Education (2007) iste.nets.s: Advancing Digital Age
Learning. Iste.org/nets.
[10] Young Canadians in a Wired World, Phase III – Teachers’ Perspectives at
/english/corporate/media_kit/upload/YCWW-III-Teachers-Perspectives_EN.pdf
[11] Collier, A. (2011). “Making the Case for Digital Citizenship.” Slideshare presentation.
http://www.slideshare.net/annecollier/making-the-case-for-digital-citizenship-111104
[12] The Ministry of Education in New Zealand includes these elements for digital citizenship in
its curriculum. http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Professional-learning/Professional-development/
Digital-citizenship-modules/Digital-citizenship-and-cybersafety/What-is-digital-citizenship.
[13] Young Canadians in a Wired World, Phase III – Teachers’ Perspectives at
/english/corporate/media_kit/upload/YCWW-III-Teachers-Perspectives_EN.pdf
[14] Youth Infusion. “Continuum of Change”. http://www.youthinfusion.com/
[15] Government of Manitoba, Ministry of Education, Citizenship and Youth (2006). A
Continuum Model for Literacy with ICT Across the Curriculum.
www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/tech/lict/index.html
[16] Ibid.

http://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy-fundamentals/digital-literacy-fundamentals