Digital Literacy, Cognitive Control and Student Use of Digital Devices

Abstract

There is an idea that modern young people who grew up surrounded by digital devices spontaneously master digital skills, and their formation does not require special attention from the school. Teachers’ observations and research results show that this is not the case. Most schoolchildren are not able to effectively solve problems in the digital environment, for example, correctly construct a search query, or ensure their information security. The purpose of the study presented in the article is to assess the relationship of digital literacy, including its individual components (for example, the ability to work with information in a digital environment), with some cognitive characteristics of students. In particular, the relationship of digital literacy with the features of cognitive control of students is considered, taking into account the frequency and specifics of the activity of using digital devices. The study is based on data from the assessment of the level of digital literacy by the developed measurement tool on a sample of 2860 students in grades 7 and 8 of schools in 4 regions of Russia in the fall of 2022.