Developing a Toolkit for Contributing to Digital Competence: A Review of Existing Resources

Abstract

The variety and increased accessibility of digital technologies has accelerated and facilitated children and young people’s use of digital devices, but accelerated use can also lead to increased risk (Livingstone et al., 2017). Children and young people’s relationship with the digital world, their level of digital skills, and their opportunities to use devices and benefit from this use differ due to various issues and lead to inequalities related to access, literacy and engagement (Helsper, 2021). To reduce these inequalities and help support children and young people to navigate competently, safely, creatively and critically in the digital world, there is a need for strategies, policies, resources and guidelines to inform and support them. This chapter explores the results of a scoping review aimed at assessing guidelines and toolkits for supporting children and young people’s use of digital technology. The analysis reveals the existence of a large pool of resources available not only for children and young people but also for their parents and teachers. At the same time, the analysis shows a gap in toolkits supporting children and young people's communication with their parents and other adults.