Resumen de Empowering digital and media literacy of primary school teachers in latvia
L. Valdmane, S. Zariņa, J. Badjanova, Dzintra Ilisco, M. Petrova
The beginning of the 21st century is marked by essential changes in the structure of society and a huge flow of information. These processes have conditioned a change of attitude towards knowledge, education, aim and the content of education, conditioned by a new education paradigm of a postmodern society that manifested itself in a change of opinions, values, and approaches. The postmodern educational paradigm is characterized by a shift from teacher-centred to learner-centred approach, from knowledge transfer and memorizing to acquisition and application of knowledge. The learner becomes an active participant in the process of education who learns how to find information, critically assess it and apply it responsibly and creatively in dealing with problem situations related to everyday life. The teacher, in turn, turns from being a knowledge holder into the one who cooperates with learners and supports them. The aim of the present paper is to present the analyses of the current processes in Latvia, namely the shift towards competency-based education. On September 1, 2019, the competency-based learning content (School2030) and approach was initiated in the primary education system in Latvia. The authors seek to find answers to the following questions: How can one describe teachers’ understanding, knowledge, and skills in regard to media literacy and digital literacy? Can a teacher, whose media literacy and digital literacy are insufficient, foster the development of media literacy of his or her learners? What are the most efficient forms of support needed for teachers in this respect? The methodology of the study involves the analysis of new educational standards and teachers’ questionnaire on their self-assessment of the use of media literacy. The results of the study provide the analyses of the place of media literacy and digital literacy in competency-based educational standards and practice, as well as analyses the preconditions for the improvement of media literacy in the process of learning. The authors conclude that teacher’s understanding, knowledge, and skills are essential factors that influence the process and outcomes of the competency-based teaching process.
