Digital media literacy in the 2011 Horizon report

Listed under ‘critical challenges’ in the Educause/NMC 2011 Horizon Report:

“Digital media literacy continues its rise in importance as a key skill in every discipline and profession… Although there is broad consensus that digital media literacy is vitally important for today’s students, what skills constitute digital literacy are still not welldefined nor universally taught. Teacher preparation programs are beginning to include courses related to digital media literacy, and universities are beginning to fold these literacy skills into coursework for students, but progress continues to be slow. The challenge is exacerbated by the fact that digital technologies morph and change quickly at a rate that generally outpaces curriculum development.”

The problem, perhaps, is the elision between basic digital (ICT) skills and the established notions of media literacy and information literacy. Whilst we should not be overly-precious about how terms are used, we do need some clear thinking and demarcation around what we mean by certain terms, ‘digital media literacy’ included.