Literature Review
Introduction
Current global issues in rapid emergency online instruction and 24/7 media consumption are compounded by ongoing changes in digital technologies. The need for an informed and technologically prepared teaching workforce are identified in policy and position papers nationally and globally:- Education 2030 (UNESCO, 2016) establishes teacher education as one of the priorities in the sustainable development goals;
- UNESCO continues to examine policies and practices for media and information literacies (Singh, Kerr, & Hamburger, 2016), digital citizenship (UNESCO, 2017), open educational government (Huss & Keudel, 2020), and open educational resources (UNESCO, 2019);
- the U.S. Department of Educational Technology (2016) released the document Advancing Educational Technology in Teacher Preparation: Policy Brief (Stokes-Beverley & Simoy, 2016);
- a position paper from the European Literacy Policy Network indicating that “many teachers lack competence, confidence and knowledge of effective strategies to harness the potential of diverse technologies to enhance digital literacy teaching and learning, and to foster young people’s resilience to the risks associated with digital technology” (Lemos & Nascimbeni, 2016, p. 3); and
- a Canadian government report, Democracy Under Threat (2018) outlining the need to address education of digital literacies (Zimmer, 2018).
While these identified needs have a sense of urgency, in the midst of the global health crises, these are not new issues. Along with a public outcry for media literacies in the face of fake news (Singh et al., 2016) and increasing demands for technologically and digitally literate populations, there is a push to change teacher education generally and the teaching practices of those who teach in teacher educator programs more specifically (Foulger et al. 2017). There is a thread that connects these issues to the revitalization of teacher education programs in order to “prepare teachers who will teach in transformative ways and leverage technology as a problem-solving tool” (Schmidt-Crawford, Lindstrom, & Thompson, 2018, p. 132). It is time to examine what is happening in the field of preservice teacher education programs, specifically in relation to media and digital literacy (MDL) instruction, open education, and teacher educators technological competencies.
This literature review presents the purpose and the research questions driving this investigation. Some terminology is shared to enhance understanding of the concepts explored in this literature review. A taxonomy of literacies, helping to position MDL within the plethora of definitional combinations available in the field of literacy education, is examined. An open education framework for this research is also presented. My positionality as a teacher and scholar in the field of teacher education is considered. Theoretical and conceptual frameworks grounding the teaching and research of MDL in teacher education from an open educational lens are examined in the Research Frameworks section of this literature review. An Alternative Dissertation (AltDiss) framework is the final section of the literature review. The literature review concludes with research implications, next steps and a brief summary.
References
Foulger, T. S., Graziano, K. J., Schmidt-Crawford, D., & Slykhuis, D. A. (2017). Teacher educator technology competencies. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 25(4), 413–448. Retrieved from https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/181966/.
Huss, O., & Keudel, O. (2020). Open government in education: clarifying concepts and mapping initiatives. UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000373142
Lemos, G., & Nascimbeni, F. (2016). ELINET position paper on digital literacy. Amsterdam: European Literacy Policy Network. Retrieved from http://www.eli-net.eu/fileadmin/ELINET/Redaktion/Amsterdam_conference/ELINET_Position_Paper_on_Digital_Literacy.pdf
Schmidt-Crawford, D., Lindstrom, D., & Thompson, A. (2018). Addressing the “Why” for integrating technology in teacher preparation. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 34(3), 132–133. https://doi.org/10.1080/21532974.2018.1465783
Singh, J., Kerr, P., & Hamburger, E. (2016). MILID Yearbook 2016, Media and information literacy: reinforcing human rights, countering radicalization and extremism. Paris, France: UNESCO document. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000246371
Stokes-Beverley, C., & Simoy, I. (2016). Advancing educational technology in teacher preparation: Policy brief (pp. 1–22). Washington, United States: Department of Educational Technology. https://tech.ed.gov/files/2016/12/Ed-Tech-in-Teacher-Preparation-Brief.pdf
UNESCO. (2016). Education 2030 Incheon declaration: Towards inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all. UNESCO publications. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000245656
UNESCO. (2017). Second world OER congress: Ljubljana OER action plan 2017. https://en.unesco.org/sites/default/files/ljubljana_oer_action_plan_2017.pdf
UNESCO. (2019a). UNESCO. (2019). The initiative | Unesco Futures of Education. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://en.unesco.org/futuresofeducation/initiative
UNESCO. (2019b, November). UNESCO Recommendation on open educational resources (OER). Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://en.unesco.org/news/unesco-recommendation-open-educational-resources-oer
Zimmer, B. (2018). Democracy under threat: Risks and solutions in the era of disinformation and data monopoly. Report of the standing committee on access to information, privacy and ethics (Proceedings of the Canadian House of Commons). Ottawa, Ontario: Government of Canada. http://www.ourcommons.ca/Content/Committee/421/ETHI/Reports/RP10242267/ethirp17/ethirp17-e.pdf