Nurturing digital citizenship at home : a longitudinal investigation of digital technology use and digital literacy among primary school students

Abstract

Nurturing digital citizenship and acquiring digital literacy are key educational objectives. This thesis examines the notion of digital citizenship and the relation between children’s digital literacy and digital technology use at home in four interrelated studies. Study 1 reviewed the conceptualisation and measurement of digital citizenship. A systematic search of 11 databases identified 350 articles published before 2019 containing the term “digital citizenship” in the title or keywords. An analysis of 114 peer-reviewed articles showed the concepts of digital citizenship mainly focused on competence or participation. Although stakeholders shared similar concerns and research foci on digital citizenship across disciplines, there was a lack of empirical research on children. The following studies addressed this research gap. Study 2, a person-centred longitudinal study, examined predictors of digital literacy, a key component of digital citizenship. Students (91 boys and 89 girls) completed an online digital literacy assessment and digital technology use survey when they were in Primary 3 and again in Primary 5. Participants provided sociodemographic data. Notably, COVID-19- related school closures affected digital technology use at home. A repeated measures latent profile analysis revealed four digital technology use profiles: (i) consistently light use; (ii) consistently moderate use; (iii) decreasing use (high to moderate); and (iv) increasing use (high to heavy). Child’s gender and family SES contributed to prediction of profile membership. Furthermore, there were significant differences in digital literacy among digital technology use groups. Counterintuitively, students in the consistently light use group had higher digital literacy than those in the consistently moderate use and decreasing use groups, who in turn had higher digital literacy than the increasing use group. The findings suggest that the quality of digital technology use, not the quantity of digital technology use per se, may be critical for digital literacy development. Study 3 examined relations among students’ perceived experience of digital parenting, their digital technology use and digital literacy. Participants from Study 2 were surveyed on their experience of digital parenting in P3 and again in P5. Repeated measures latent profile analysis revealed two digital parenting profiles: (i) a moderate involvement profile that focused on autonomy-supportive restriction; and (ii) a high involvement profile. Student background did not differentiate the profile membership. However, students from the moderate involvement profile had better digital literacy than those from the high involvement profile. Additionally, digital parenting had an indirect effect on digital literacy; digital parenting is a strong proximal cause of digital technology use, which in turn influences digital literacy. In Study 4, six parents of participating students were interviewed about their experiences and concerns regarding their children’s digital technology use and their digital parenting. Parents’ perceived opportunities and risks of digital technology use informed their parenting strategies. Furthermore, there were consistencies between children’s and parents’ reports on socially restrictive and enabling digital parenting. That said there were some discrepancies in reports of technical monitoring and control. Findings suggest that the nature of digital parenting affects children’s digital technology use, and in turn, their digital literacy.