Working group 1
Digital literacy in homes and communities
Digital literacy in homes and communities
The WG had the following objectives:
To identify the current state of academic knowledge in the area.
To identify the way in which media in each participating country across Europe was used and contextualise this within the international arena.
To address discourses related to young children’s engagement with digital media and technologies and to monitor the effects of emergent technologies.
To identify the implications of research findings across COST.
To identify key research questions in the field for future study.
To identify key messages for policy makers.
Original mission statement
The WG will identify the current state of knowledge on young children’s digital literacy and multimodal practices in homes and communities, including synthesising research on parental support of children’s digital literacy development.
It will consider issues such as the digital divide and the impact of socio-economic status, ethnicity, identity status (for example, refugee, immigrant, indigenous) gender, language, physical ability on digital literacy development. It will examine emergent technologies and their impact for the early years of childhood. It will explore the status of digital literacy in early childhood in European cultures.
Finally, the WG will identify the future research agenda in this area and examine the implications of all of the areas investigated for policy in relation to education, parenting and the media industry.
Activities
Literature review
We conducted literature reviews focusing on the digital literacies of young children in homes. This activity was led by Kristiina Kumpulainen (University of Helsinki) and Julia Gillen (Lancaster University). We wrote a literature review, focusing on the digital literacies of young children in homes.
View the report (PDF, 664KB)
Parenting for the digital future: tips and tricks
The objective of this project was to offer realistic tips and tricks for those parenting or otherwise caring for children aged 0–6. We sought to empower parents and carers in homes and communities to be confident participants in their children’s digital activities through co-use, co-creation and thoughtful mediation. This research strand was led by Nicolette Vittadini (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milano) and Donell Holloway (Edith Cowan University).
A day in the digital lives of 0–3 year olds
The aim of this study was to identify the way in which digital technologies informed the daily lives of children aged from birth to three in a number of European countries. Very few studies had considered this age group, yet there was increasing evidence that children were embedded in a digital environment from birth. The study used ‘A Day in the Life’ methodology, appropriately adapted. This research strand was led by Julia Gillen (Lancaster University).
Outputs
Gillen, J, Matsumoto, M, Aliagas, C, Bar Lev, Y, Clark, A, Flewitt, R, Jorge, A, Kumpulainen, K, Marsh, J Morgade, M, Pacheco, R, Poveda, D, Sairenen, H, Sandberg, H, Scott, F, Sjöberg, U, Sundin, E, Tigane, I and Tomé, V (2019) A day in the digital lives of children aged 0–3. Full report by DigiLitEY ISCH COST Action 1410, working group 1: digital literacy in homes and communities, March, pp. 74. ISBN: 978-0-902831-53-7.
Gillen, J et al. (2018) A day in the digital lives of children aged 0–3. Summary report by DigiLitEY ISCH COST Action IS1410. Working group 1: digital literacy in homes and communities.
Kumpulainen, K and Gillen, J (2017) Young children’s digital literacy practices in the home: a review of the literature. COST Action ISI1410, DigiLitEY. ISBN: 9780902831469.
Resources
WG1 meeting report – Riga, June 2018 (PDF, 302KB)
Tips and tricks for digital parenting – Bologna 2017 (PDF, 550KB)
Record of working group meeting – Bologna, 31 August 2017 (PDF, 537KB)
‘A day in the life’ by Dr Julia Gillen presented at the third DigiLitEY meeting in Cyprus, 17–18 March 2016 (PDF, 328KB)
Summary working group 1 –18 March 2016 (PDF, 183KB)
WG1 presentation –18 March 2016 (PowerPoint, 5.8MB)
