Digital Literacy (Call for Papers)

April/May 2021: Digital Literacy Deadline August 1, 2020 "Never before has there been a more powerful influence on human behavior, irrespective of country or culture, than the combined effect of digital technologies."—Mervyn Eyre, executive vice president, Fujitsu Americas

Digital literacy, as one of the 21st-century learning skills, is defined as the ability to find, evaluate, share, and create content using the internet. How are preschool and elementary teachers finding opportunities for students to develop and grow their digital literacy? What innovative ways are teachers using digital platforms to excite, engage, provide differentiation opportunities, and promote lifelong learning?

We all use the internet to find quick answers, yet digital literacy goes beyond simple "Googling." Students can use digital literacy to deepen their own learning, communication skills, creativity, and cultural understandings. Digital literacy includes understanding e-safety, enhancing collaborative learning, and evaluating sources of information. Digital literacy plays an essential role in the collection and communication of information and claims. Students need to develop their ability to discern, evaluate, and then effectively communicate using digital platforms.

Additional focus for this issue may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Share how integrated digital literacy enhanced a lesson or instructional sequence within the science and engineering classroom.

• Describe how including digital literacy has provided opportunities for collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking in solving problems and finding solutions.

• Describe how innovative digital opportunities promote engagement in all aspects of science learning (DCI, SEP, CC).

• Identify how a teacher can effectively use digital literacy in differentiating lessons for students with special needs. Share student alternatives for seeking, analyzing, and sharing information.