Declining digital literacy - Australia

A news stories comments that "Australian students have recorded their worst-ever results in national tests that measure digital literacy, with just 37 per cent of year 10 students [about 15 years old] and 50 per cent of year 6 students [about 11 years old] assessed as proficient."
They are commenting on the recently released results from the large scale test on ICT literacy carried out by Australia's National Assessment Program (NAP) in 2025. The news release from NAP mentions that the year 10 result is "the lowest percentage observed since the assessment's inception [in 2005]." This despite the fact that participants report using digital tools of various kinds at home and at school.
Although the full report from NAP has the most detail, I've included the news report as it has comments from various experts, providing different views - from "Blaise Joseph, a former teacher and current director of education at the Centre for Independent Studies" saying that AI was making digital literacy skills redundant (so perhaps the low score was no big deal) to "Therese Keane, a professor of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education at La Trobe University" seeing AI making digital literacy more, not less, important.
News report: Duffy, C. & McAloon, C. (2026, May 26). School students have grown up online but test shows digital literacy at new low https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-05-27/school-students-digital-literacy-at-new-low-test-shows/106724164
Full report on the NAP site: https://www.nap.edu.au/nap-sample-assessments/results-and-reports (elsewhere on the site you can find the survey instrument etc. and there is an interactive statistics dashboard)
Photo by Sheila Webber: bearded iris, May 2026

New articles: Use of AI; faculty development; upkilling with systematic reviews; guided inquiry; reflection; mis- and disinformation; open source communities

The latest issue (vol 20 issue 1) of the open access Journal of Information Literacy includes
- Critical thinking, disillusion, and dissent: Information literacy in a refused knowledge information landscape by Madelene Logren 
- The anatomy of collaborative open-source software development: A practice-based view on how open-source communities work by Renesa Tamannum, José Apolinário Teixeira , Gunilla Widén 
- Disinformation and gender issues: A study with young people from Salvador and Porto Alegre (Brazil) by Daniela Silva, Ana Cristina Prates, Josiene da Silva Niesciur 
- Digital literacy challenges in higher education: Information literacy in the face of misinformation by José G Casas-Puente 
- Information and digital literacy at school: A BRIDGE between critical thinking and equality values by Dora Sales, Christina Banou, Mara Morelli, Anna Antoniazzi, İpek Şencan, Serap Kurbanoğlu, Heidi Enwald, Noora Hirvonen, Stéphane Goldstein, Sarah Pavey, Konstantina Martzoukou, Petros Kostagiolas 
- Guided inquiry design for online information literacy media by Nove E Variant Anna, Miyarso Dwi Ajie, Piyapat Jarusawat, Yollanda Nundy Alshafa 
- Teacher, trainer, or facilitator? by Katie Smith, Jessica Waite 
- From one-shots to assignment design: Developing a library-led faculty development program by Nathaniel King, Alena Manjuck, Yvonne Tran 
- Subject librarian reflections on upskilling to support staff and students with systematic reviews: Our experience at UWE Bristol by Hannah Poore, Philip O'Shaughnessy 
- Promoting reflection by students on their use of information by Andrew K. Shenton 
- Articulating generative AI information literacy competencies: An ACRL Framework–driven model for academic libraries by Ladislava Khailova, Melissa Netzband Wathen , Melissa Jones 
- Adding a simple log to in-text citations to strengthen information literacy and argumentation while blocking casual misuse of generative AI by Peter Tamas, Leonie Kamminga 
plus book reviews and two reports on the 2026 LILAC conference (by Jane Pothecary and Tom Cross) 
Go to https://journals.cilip.org.uk/jil/issue/view/58 
Photo by Sheila Webber: spring roses, May 2026

Horizon Report 2026

The latest EDUCAUSE Horizon Report: Teaching and Learning Edition has been published. Using the Delphi method, this gives the perspective of (mainly North American) educational technology experts' views on the trends for the Higher Education sector. In addition to a STEEP analysis (aka a PESTLE analysis without the L), this year they identify "Signals of change" (which "point to early, often surprising, indicators of how teaching and learning might evolve.) 
The STEEP analysis has a good deal of AI in it, including under the "Social" factor "AI is reshaping trust in information. AI is changing how people decide what to trust by weakening traditional signs of credibility such as knowing who wrote something, where the information came from, and whether it was built through visible steps, including drafting, citing, and checking sources over time. ... Colleges and universities will increasingly need to help students focus on the skills underneath any tool: evaluating claims, checking evidence, explaining reasoning, and verifying information." hmmm - so .. information literacy needed? (sadly, that is not what they propose) 
The "Signals of Change" section presents practical examples from the (not very "surprising" imho) areas:
Evolving Use Cases for AI Technologies; 
AI Governance and Trust; 
The Changing Landscape of Education Systems; 
Attempts to Improve the ROI of Higher Education; External Pressures on Education Stakeholders. 
This year they don't present alternative scenarios, perhaps because all of the scenarios would end up looking grim (certainly last year's ones all seemed dystopian to me). 
Although I realise I'm sounding a bit sceptical, I do think it is always worth reading this report as it presents the consensus amongst people who have power of educational tech budgets, and does present some interesting examples. Also, it is concisely written. An omission is a statement about whether or not AI was used in producing it (a bit ironic, considering the nature of the report).
Go to  https://library.educause.edu/resources/2026/5/2026-educause-horizon-report-teaching-and-learning-edition 
Photo by Sheila Webber: a horizon, Vancouver, 2024

Social media corporate curricula for digital literacy

An interesting article from one of my colleagues, in which he and his co-author critically examine the ready-made digital literacy lesson plans that big corporates (including tech companies like Meta and Google) produce for schools, parents etc. 
Docherty, N. & Barragán, M.V. (2026). Civilizing users through social media corporate curricula. International Journal of Cultural Studies. Early online publication. (open access) https://doi.org/10.1177/13678779261425695 
Abstract: "The psychological, political and social risks of social media are commonly up for debate. In response, social media companies are producing free to access lesson plans, tool-kits, and other pedagogical materials that seek to educate users about responsible social media use. Through a document analysis of such resources released by Meta, including Facebook's Get Digital literacy campaign and Instagram's Community Programs and Guides, we show how the social media corporate curriculum invites learners to interpret, discuss, and act upon the problems of social media as if they were an individual issue. We argue that this not only entrenches neoliberalized values of personal resilience but also functions, following Norbert Elias, to civilize the user through the cultivation of manners, morals, and codes of digital conduct. We close by highlighting the contingency of such an arrangement, offering alternative pedagogical approaches that do not reproduce these universalizing effects." 
Photo by Sheila Webber: white cherry blossom and spring leaves, April 2026

#LILAC preview: Digital Literacy through arts and culture activities: supporting older adults

My next post sharing a preview of colleagues' LILAC conference presentations is from Dr Pamela McKinney, about a session which be on day 2 of the conference (31st March), Digital Literacy through arts and culture activities: supporting older adults. The abstract is here. Pam writes: 

This presentation will report on the findings from a small-scale pilot study that took place in Leeds in 2025 to understand how creativity can foster digital literacy and digital inclusion oin older adults. The project was led by my colleague Dr Sharon Wagg, and funded by the Arts Council. 
The project team, including PhD student Laura Woods and our collaborators, 100% Digital Leeds collected data from organisations in Leeds about their approaches to supporting digital inclusion in older adults that focused on arts, culture and creativity. We discovered a really broad spread of activities, including: 
- Digital art and multimedia creation e.g. digital collage, zine-making, animations, digital Christmas cards, digital embroidery 
- Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality e.g history experiences on VR headsets 
- Engagement with local history e.g. using the Leodis image archive for research 
- Digital photography e.g. to record experiences on an excursion, or to align wth other interests e.g. gardening, walking 
- Creative writing, storytelling, folklore and oral history 
- Online and hybrid arts and culture activities e.g. dance and cooking. 
- Digital music making 
We found that a caring orientation, which focused on fun and play, was really effective for supporting digital inclusion “by stealth”. Older people told us that the support they received these organisations helped them engage more with digital tools and services in other areas of their lives. The project website has links to our report, infographic and podcast, and the toolkit developed by 100% Digital Leeds
Photo of an older man with camera, "Photography", from the Centre for Ageing Better age-positive image library

#LILAC26 preview: information experiences of female engineering students; Learning Sets; Digital literacy

I continue sharing previews of Sheffield colleagues' sessions at the LILAC conference . Today's is from Laura Woods, talking about the three sessions she is involved with. Laura writes. 

I am fortunate to be speaking three times at LILAC this year! I’ve never given multiple presentations at a conference before, but all three of my presentations are from entirely separate projects, so I’m excited to be able to bring them all to LILAC. 
My first presentation is on day 1 of the conference, and will present preliminary findings from my PhD research into the information experiences of female engineering undergraduates at UK universities. I am actually revisiting a presentation I gave at LILAC in 2025, which shared results from my pilot study, at an earlier stage of my research. I’m hoping that any attendees who were there in 2025 will be able to see how my research has developed since completing all of my data collection and beginning data analysis.
My second presentation will be in the morning of day 2, where I will be presenting alongside Dr Pam McKinney. We are sharing the results of an Arts Council-funded project, looking at how creative and arts-based activities can be a gateway to digital literacy for older people. This has been a fascinating project that I’ve felt privileged to be part of, so I am looking forward to discussing the project with the LILAC audience. [There will be more about this from Pam, tomorrow!]
Finally, also on day 2, I am hosting a workshop to launch the Information Literacy Group’s (ILG) inaugural LILAC Learning Sets programme. This is a pilot scheme we are launching this year, aimed at enabling LILAC attendees to form connections and sustain these past the end of the conference. If you are attending LILAC and interested in participating in the LILAC Learning Sets, there is still time to sign up for the workshop - but places are limited! To register for the workshop, sign into your account on the LILAC website, then scroll down to “Book your conference sessions”.
Image: this year's LILAC logo, celebrating Sheffield's women of steel

Collaboration for Information Literacy Prize

A new press release from Florida State University, USA, celebrates the Collaboration for Information Literacy Prize from the Modern Languages Association to a Faculty-Librarian team at FSU who collaborated to deliver "“Paris World Capital,” an innovative course that invites students to critically examine Paris as a cultural and global icon while strengthening research and digital literacy skills."
The collaboration involved Professor of French, Aimée Boutin, and an interdisciplinary team from FSU Libraries, including Rachel Duke, Kelly Grove and Jonathan DaSo.
There is more information at https://news.fsu.edu/news/arts-humanities/2026/02/27/national-mla-award-recognizes-florida-state-universitys-innovative-faculty-librarian-partnership/
There is description of the course itself here.
Photo by Sheila Webber: in the gardens of the Musee Montmartre, Paris, November 2023

New book: Libraries Empowering Society through Digital Literacy

Todd, Heather; Dalrymple, Prudence W.; Marquardt, Luisa and Zou, Ning. (Eds.) (2026). Libraries Empowering Society through Digital Literacy. De Gruyter Saur. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110533583
This book has an international range of authors. There are 23 chapters divided into three parts: Part I Public and School Libraries Promote Digital Literacy through Digital Access and Skills Building; Part II Academic Libraries Take Novel Approaches to Advance Digital Skills; Part III The Influence of Digital Information
Photo by Sheila Webber: Xmas wreaths, December 2025

Bridging the grey digital divide: enhancing ICT learning for older adults; research report

A new UNESCO 80-page publication: 
UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, Shanghai Open University & Institute for the Future of Education. (2025). Bridging the grey digital divide: enhancing ICT learning for older adults; research report. UNESCO. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000396040 ISBN: 978-92-820-1261-1
Photo by Sheila Webber: autumnal tree in the park, November 2025.

Humanities, Humanism and Ethics in a Digital Context: Challenges for Digital Literacy Research and Learning #ECIL2025

It's the afternoon session at ECIL and this is Sheila Webber liveblogging Humanities, Humanism and Ethics in a Digital Context: Challenges for Digital Literacy Research and Learning authored by Paula Ochoa and Leonor Gaspar Pinto (Universidade Nova, CHAM, Portugal), Ana Novo (Universidade Aberta, CIDEHUS-UÉ, Portugal) and presented by Novo. There was a background of project collaboration e.g. specialised course development on digital culture and participation in a think tank. So this collaboration evolved organically. Novo presented Critical Information Literacy as a framework for considering the question "what challenges arise at the intersection of humanities transformation and digital literacy research and learning?" Digital fluency was seen as going basic competencies and literacy, but there are challenges. These include operational focus (looking to much at the skills agenda) and conceptual ambiguity.
Humanistic Information Studies was presented as having as key concepts of information experience, information creation and information work, with a culturally situated and reflective approach. This perspective on Information Science brings it closer to Digital Humanities.
Novo identified the need for digital ethics and an evolving ides of digital literacy. Arising from this they have recommendations: commitment to interdisciplinarity; instutionalisation of the process (embedding digital literacy fluency) and focus on systematic change.
Photo by Sheila Webber: under the linden tree in Bamberg, Germany, September 2025

Bridging the Digital Divide: A Practical Workshop on Digital Inclusion in Adult Education #ECIL2025

Sheila here, and the next workshop I'm blogging from the ECIL conference is Bridging the Digital Divide: A Practical Workshop on Digital Inclusion in Adult Education run by Violeta Trkulja and Juliane Stiller (Grenzenlos Digital e.V., Germany). The latter is a non profit organisation which aims for a joust, informed and inclusive digital society. They started by differentiating between equality (where everyone is treated the same) and equity (making unjust conditions into fair ones, so giving people different support to achieve eqity). I think they used this definition https://www.digitalinclusion.org/digital-inclusion-101/
They went on to talk about the term digital divide, which can be seen as a rather binary way of thinking about things. Unequal access, skills difference and differences in offline outcomes have been seen as different aspects of the digital divide. The presenters identified that now this is seen to simplistic a way of looking at things, and rather one would talk about digital exclusion and inclusion. They mentioned factors for exclusion and talked about digitally vulnerable groups (which might be "exposed to deeper new social and economic risks" through being digitally excluded.
In developing a programme, they have asked - what are the characteristics of the target group? how can we motivate, what are the competencies, how can we evaluate it? In terms of the courses, there needs to be 4 stages: recruitment, onboarding of participants, course format and support to guide people through the course.
Our activity involved adopting a persona of a target groups and address questions - what are the possible hurdles to participating in your course, what do you need to know about these? Which of the stages (see above) has hurdles? What do you need to do to overcome hurdles at each stage?

Rethinking Media Literacy and Digital Skills in Europe

The Rethinking Media Literacy and Digital Skills in Europe (REMEDIS) project has published a shorter version of their evaluation toolkit in addition to the full version. REMEDIS is an international project that aims "To understand what the impacts of media literacy and digital skills interventions in the different life domains are in terms of positive outcomes" https://remedis-chanse.eu/evaluation-toolkit/

I will also highlight their publication:
Vissenberg, J., Martinez, D., Edisherashvili, N., Puusepp, M., Tomczyk, L., Donoso, V., & d’Haenens, L. (2025). Advancing Media Literacy & Digital Skills Interventions: Recommendations for Stakeholders. https://zenodo.org/records/15879417

Recent articles: Digital literacy; Mobile information literacy; Data Literacy; AI literacy; Conterfeit citations

Volume 51 issue 3 (2025) of the Journal of Academic Librarianship (a priced publication) includes the following:
- Toward a conceptual framework on mobile information literacy in higher education by Maria Pinto, Alicia Segura (open access)
- A scoping review of digital literacy, digital competence, digital fluency and digital dexterity in academic libraries' context by Lesego Makhafola, Martha J. van Deventer, Marlene A. Holmner, Brenda van Wyk (open access)
- What's in a name? Exploring how voluntary library data literacy workshop titles and descriptions affect learner motivations to enroll by Michelle Kelly Schultz (open access) (there is also a correction to one of the tables in issue 4 of the journal)
- Scaffolding AI literacy: An instructional model for academic librarianship by Katherine A. LaFlamme
Go to https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/the-journal-of-academic-librarianship/vol/51/issue/3 

Volume 51 issue 4 (2025) of the Journal of Academic Librarianship includes the following:
- Enhancing library discovery: An approach to understanding user access to electronic resources by Patricia M. Dragon, Janet L. Mayo, Ann Carol Stocks, Rebecca Tatterson (open access)
- Towards digital information literacy guidelines for African libraries: a survey of the relationship between digital and information literacy of university students in Ghana by Martin Gameli Akakpo, Dorothy Owusuah Ahardy, Sita Sarpong Kumankumah
- The citation catastrophe: Propagation of AI-generated counterfeit citations in scholarship by Nathan T. Camp, Jason A. Bengtson, John C. Sandstrom
- Faculty opinion of subject librarians survey by Duane Wilson, Nate Cox, Emily Rodriguez
Go to https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/the-journal-of-academic-librarianship/vol/51/issue/4
Photo by Sheila Webber: hydrangea, June 2025

New articles: Digital health literacy; CPD scale; Information needs of nurses

Latest issue of open-access IFLA Journal (Volume 51, No. 2, June 2025) includes the following:
- TikTok and digital health literacy: A systematic review by Margaret Kristin Merga
- Development and validation of the Continuing Professional Development Scale: A knowledge transfer perspective by Syed Fakhar Abbas, Syeda Hina Batool and Kanwal Ameen
- Information needs and information-seeking behavior of Egyptian nurses during a health crisis: A survey by Amany M. Elsayed, Safaa Salah Ismail, Manar Hamza and Zeinab S. Said
Go to https://repository.ifla.org/handle/20.500.14598/4167
Photo by Sheila Webber: dandelions at different stages, June 2025

Recent articles: media & digital literacy; podcasting

An open access journal I don't think I've covered before, Media and Communication. Each annual volume consists of a number of special issues, and this latest one (volume 13 issue 467 2025) is on Balancing Intimacy and Trust: Opportunities and Risks in Audio Journalism including, for example
- Trust in Pod: Listener Trust of News Content Heard on Different Genre Podcasts by Kristine Johnson and Michael McCall
- Intimacy in Podcast Journalism: Ethical Challenges and Opportunities in Daily News Podcasts and Documentaries by Elvira García de Torres, José M. Legorburu, David Parra-Valcarce, Concha Edo and Lilly Escobar-Artola
Go to https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/issue/view/467 

Even more relevant to this blog is an issue of volume 13 (issue 466, January 2025) on Evaluating and Enhancing Media Literacy and Digital Skills including
- Fostering Media Literacy: A Systematic Evidence Review of Intervention Effectiveness for Diverse Target Groups by Leen d'Haenens et al. (I shall pause here just to sigh and point out that this is yet another sysytematic review that does not even notice - despite there being 23 authors involved - that they failed to search for INFORMATION literacy, although they searched for online, internet and media literacy and variations thereof. I assume that none of the 23 was a librarian, who might have pointed this out. It's a shame, as this is otherwise an OK review of quantitative studies)
- Effects of a News Literacy Video on News Literacy Perceptions and Misinformation Evaluation by Rita Tang, Melissa Tully, Leticia Bode and Emily K. Vraga
- Exploring Media Literacy Formation at the Intersection of Family, School, and Peers by Nika Šušterič, Katja Koren Ošljak and Veronika Tašner
- The Effectiveness of an Educational Intervention on Countering Disinformation Moderated by Intellectual Humility by Eduard-Claudiu Gross and Delia Cristina Balaban
Go to https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/issue/view/466
Photo by Sheila Webber: blossoms almost faded, April 2025

#IWD2025 celebrating women colleagues

To celebrate International Women's Day, I highlight papers by women colleagues in the Information School, University of Sheffield (all open access). Firstly, a report on health information literacy research that includes my colleagues Dr Pam Mckinney & Dr Laura Sbaffi:
McKinney, P., Sbaffi, L., Cox, A., Bath, P., Robinson, A. & Wiltshire, M. (2024). Health Information Literacy in Marginalised Communities: End of project report: Co-production workshops with the Sheffield Roma, Yemeni and Somali Communities. https://doi.org/10.15131/shef.data.25315672.v1 

Secondly, research on digital inclusion, with authors including colleagues Dr Sharon Wagg, Dr Bethany Aylward & Dr Sara Vannini:
Wagg, S., Vannini, S., Zammani, E., Klyshbekova, M. & Aylward, B. (2024). Digital inclusion network building: a network weaving analysis. UK Academy for Information Systems. Conference Proceedings 2024 https://aisel.aisnet.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1020&context=ukais2024 "This paper aims to investigate digital inclusion network building as a mechanism for reducing digital poverty. Analysing a rural digital inclusion network in the UK, and drawing on Network Weaving Theory (Holley, 2013), this case study analyses how people’s roles and places play a big part in both the construction and growth of the network, as well as in the advancements of its initiatives. " 

Finally, one on EDI in usability testing, including colleagues Dr Sophie Rutter & Dr Jo McKenna-Aspell:
Rutter, S., Zamani, E., McKenna-Aspell, J. & Wang, Y. (2024). Embedding equality, diversity and inclusion in usability testing: Recommendations and a research agenda. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 188, Article 103278. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2024.103278

NORDIS: AI Guide for teachers

NORDIS is the the Nordic Observatory for Digital Media and Information Disorder "an independent non-partisan multidisciplinary hub" and part of the European observatory EDMO. They have produced an AI Guide for Teachers which is available in English, Swedish and Finnish. Go to https://faktabaari.fi/edu/oppaat/
The website also includes a recording of the Digital Information Literacy Forum (Generative AI, media literacy and ethics – Navigating authenticity in learning), which they held in January 2025 - this is the page with programme and links

Articles: digital literacy training; UK libraries' research agenda

A couple of items from open access journal Evidence Based Library and Information Practice
- Detlor, B., Serenko, A., La Rose, T., & Julien, H. (2024). A Survey of Public Library-Led Digital Literacy Training in Canada: Perceptions of Administrators and Instructors. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 19(3), 23–41. https://doi.org/10.18438/eblip30553
- Tilley, E., & Marshall, D. (2024). Shaping the Future: A Research Agenda for U.K. Libraries . Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 19(4), 71–107. https://doi.org/10.18438/eblip30577 and Tilley's reflections on carrying out the research are here
Photo by Sheila Webber: squirrel, November 2024

Critical Digital Literacies

#DLFteach Toolkit Volume 4: Critical Digital Literacies "an open-access resource designed to support both information professionals and educators" was released a couple of months ago by the Digital Library Federation (DLF) Digital Library Pedagogy Working Group, "also known as #DLFteach a grassroots community of practice" They say that "With a thematic focus on critical digital literacies, Volume 4 of the Toolkit offers adaptable lesson plans and learning objects that help learners develop the skills necessary to consume and create information in a digital landscape, as well as the habits of mind necessary to understand and critique information systems and their underlying power structures. It encourages both skills-based outcomes and contextual thinking, making clear the inequities and structural biases of many digital tools."
Go to https://dlfteach.pubpub.org/dlfteach-toolkit-critical-digital-literacies
Previous toolkits include Lesson Plans for Literacy and Competency Driven Digital Scholarship Instruction and Lesson Plans on Immersive Pedagogy.
Photo by Sheila Webber: memories of summer, Bournemouth June 2024

Launch of revised framework: Internet universality

On 15 December 2024 UNESCO launched its revision of Internet universality: advancing inclusive digital transformation with ROAM-X Indicators https://doi.org/10.58338/CPTK8651  (126 pages)
ROAM-X stands for human Rights, Openness, Accessibility to all, and Multistakeholder participation, with X representing cross-cutting issues including gender equality, environment, sustainable development, trust, and security. There are 49 core questions and 88 core indicators.
Media and Information Literacy is included in A for Access in "Theme F -  Capabilities and Competencies"
"Effective use of the Internet and Internet-enabled services requires certain capabilities and competencies on the part of users. This is important for both individuals and for businesses and organizations that seek to use the Internet for commercial and other purposes. The importance of media and information literacy (covering digital as well as offline communications) to the achievement of this goal is widely recognised. This includes basic literacy (which is included in the contextual indicators earlier in this volume), capabilities required for effective use of online services and applications, and technical competence at various levels." (p77)
The document was launched at the Internet Governance 2024 which continues today (you can join it online) https://intgovforum.org/en/content/igf-2024-schedule
Image created by Sheila Webber using Midjourney AI: prompt was the title of the report: it possibly illustrates that environmental damage done by me asking a randomly pointless question of generative AI