Making in media education: An activity-oriented approach to digital literacy

Abstract

Why is maker education a suitable approach for giving learners the 21st century skills they need to cope with the digital transformation? This article provides an answer and represents a defense of maker education in the field of educational science. Taking a human-media-machine interaction model as the basis for discussion, this article highlights the growing importance of digital technology as well as technological principles for human communication and interaction. Communication technology and the influence of technology on culture and society require a broad understanding of media literacy in the sense of digital literacy. By broadening the theoretical basis of media literacy education, making, coding and tinkering qualify as approaches for achieving these goals. The discussion uses the four classic dimensions of media literacy and action theory to argue in favor of these approaches.