Based in Research

This Digital Media & Data Literacy course was designed with a Canadian lens, but took into account digital, media & information and data literacy frameworks from other countries (Australia, United Kingdom) and organizations (DALI, MediaSmarts, UNESCO). Please see the full list of references utilized at the bottom of this page.

Digital Media and Data Literacy for Adults in Canada

Canada does not have an accurate baseline measurement of digital media literacy skills (McAleese et al., 2022). Without a common understanding of what a basic level of literacy is, it’s difficult to promote digital literacy in a uniform way across Canadian students, workers and citizens (Hadziristic, 2017).

It’s imperative for a civil society to have citizens fully participate in the new media landscape where digital and media interactions are embedded (The New London Group, 1996). To be able to wholly participate, adults need “the set of skills, knowledge and attitudes required to access digital information effectively, efficiently and ethically” (Julien, 2018). Like Julien et al. (2021) and UNESCO (Grizzle et al., 2021), MediaSmarts (McAleese et al. 2022) recognizes that, “a healthy democracy needs citizens who are resilient to mis- and disinformation,” and without this literacy there are significant consequences for citizens and communities, affecting their quality of life, civic engagement and economic health. Adults who lack digital media literacy are not as well equipped to assist and advise on the challenges plaguing kids in online environments. Families, educators, and communities are an important part of developing the digital well-being of youth, through an approach “grounded in trust, information, and empowerment so that youth also have the skills and resources they need to be safe, responsible and ethical citizens (MediaSmarts, 2023). Though 91% of Canadians aged 15 and older use the Internet, there are still groups (includes those who haven’t completed high school, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, immigrants, seniors, people in northern, rural and remote communities) who are new to being online or who haven’t discovered the benefits of it (Government of Canada, 2023). Spreading DML to these groups of citizens will help them succeed in employment, enhance their safety when traversing online, and better ensure their freedom of thought and expression (Brisson-Boivin & Johnson, 2024).

Built Upon a Framework

The guiding topics and competencies outlined in this digital media and data literacy framework form a structured approach to building curriculum for adults. The framework provides high-level criteria for competencies on what adults should know and understand, focusing on social context and critical thinking.

Who This Course Is For

This entry-level course is designed for adults living in Canada. For those who want to feel more confident in their daily use and consumption of digital media via: the Internet, applications (mobile apps), social media, news content, email, and marketing. Adult individuals, parents, caregivers, grandparents, teachers, managers, community leaders… everyone can benefit from the information shared in this course.

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About the Author

This course was developed by Andrea Martens, MET and supervised by Professor Rachel Horst, PhD as part of the Masters of Educational Technology program through the University of British Columbia. For Andrea’s final term in the MET program, digital and data literacy was selected as an area of focus she wanted to develop a course about, targeted to adults in Canada; a large demographic in need of guidance in this subject area. Many thanks to Rachel Horst for all of her guidance and mentorship throughout this project!

What inspired the creation of this course, in addition to other coursework in the program, is Andrea’s reflections on how her family and friends interact with digital media as well as observations of mis- and disinformation on social media and how users freely and unknowingly share data online. There is a desire to assist adults in making choices that are informed by knowledge and understanding to support their own creativity, safety, citizenship and relay that support throughout their communities.

More information about Andrea, her contact information, and her work can be found at andreamartens.ca .

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References

Commonwealth of Australia. (2020, April). Foundation skills for your future: digital literacy skills framework. Australian Government: Department of Employment and Workplace Relations. https://www.dewr.gov.au/foundation-skills-your-future-program/resources/digital-literacy-skills-framework

Brisson-Boivin, K., Johnson, M. (2024). To protect freedom of thought, we must commit to digital media literacy. Centre for International Governance Innovation. Retrieved January 28, 2025 from https://www.cigionline.org/articles/to-protect-freedom-of-thought-we-must-commit-to-digital-media-literacy/

DALI. (2023, July 28). Dali Data Literacy Framework. https://dalicitizens.eu/index.php/dali-data-literacy-framework-2/

Government of Canada. (2021, January 12). Canada’s digital charter. Retrieved on January 23, 2025 from https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/innovation-better-canada/en/canadas-digital-charter-trust-digital-world

Government of Canada. (2023, July 7). Digital literacy exchange program. Retrieved January 23, 2025 from https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/digital-literacy-exchange-program/en

Gov.UK. (2021, August 10). Online media literacy strategy. Department of Digital, Culture, Media & Sport. GOV.UK. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-media-literacy-strategy

Grizzle, A., Wilson, C., Tuazon, R., Cheung, C.K., Lau, J., Fischer, R., Gordon, D., Akyempong, K., Singh, J., Carr, P.R., Stewart, K., Tayie, S., Suraj, O., Jaakkola, M., Thésée, G., Gulston, C., Andzongo Menyeng, B.P., Zibi F., Paul, A., (2021). Media and information literate citizens: think critically, click wisely! UNESCO Digital Library. Retrieved January 27, 2025 from https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

Hadziristic, Tea. (2017, April). The state of digital literacy in Canada: A literature review. Brookfield Institute. https://dais.ca/reports/the-state-of-digital-literacy-a-literature-review/

Julien, Heidi. (2018). Digital literacy in theory and practice. In Encyclopedia of Information Science and Technology, 4th ed., Khosrow-Pour, M. (Ed.). Hershey, PA: IGI Global.

Julien, H., Gerstle, D., Detlor, B., Rose, T. L., & Serenko, A. (2021, October 1). Digital literacy training for Canadians, Part 1: It’s … just core public works. The Library Quarterly. 91(4), 437-456. https://doi.org/10.1086/715918

Julien, H., Gerstle, D., Detlor, B., Rose, T. L., & Serenko, A. (2022, January 1). Digital literacy training in Canada, Part 2: defining and measuring success. The Library Quarterly. 92(1), 87-100. https://doi.org/10.1086/717233

McAleese, S. & Brisson-Boivin, K. (2022). From access to engagement: a digital media literacy strategy for Canada. MediaSmarts. Ottawa. https://mediasmarts.ca/research-reports/access-engagement-building-digital-media-literacy-strategy-canada

MediaSmarts. (2023). Young Canadians in a wireless world, phase IV: trends and recommendations. MediaSmarts. Ottawa. https://mediasmarts.ca/research-and-evaluation/young-canadians-wireless-world/ycww-phase-iv/young-canadians-wireless-world-phase-iv-trends-and-recommendations

Rice, Faun. (2022, October 4). How to teach digital media literacy and equip Canadians to navigate mid- and disinformation. Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC). https://ictc-ctic.ca/articles/how-to-teach-digital-media-literacy-and-equip-canadians-to-navigate-mis-and-disinformation

Ridsdale, C., Rothwell, J., Smit, M., Ali-Hassan, H., Bliemel, M., Irvine, D., Kelley, D., Matwin, S., & Wuetherick, B. (2015). Strategies and best practices for data literacy education: knowledge synthesis report. Dalhousie University. http://hdl.handle.net/10222/64578

Street, Brian. (2008). New literacies, new times: developments in literacy studies. In Encyclopedia of Language and Education. Hornberger, N.H. (Ed.). Springer US. 418-431. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30424-3_31

The New London Group. (1996). A pedagogy of multiliteracies: designing social futures. Harvard Educational Review. 66(1). 60-92. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.66.1.17370n67v22j160u

Zuboff, Shoshana (2019). The age of surveillance capitalism: the fight for a human future at the new frontier of power. New York: PublicAffairs.