Exploring digital literacy: How do undergraduate students evaluate digital video for inclusion in assignment work? - Paper study background

Oct 15, 2026

This paper investigates how undergraduate students evaluate digital video for inclusion in written assignment work as part of digital literacy in practice. Students select videos from an online repository and reflect on their choices. The study focuses on influences on evaluation and use, including digital literacy, learning value, and strategies for integrating video, emphasizing students’ reasons for selecting content and assessing its quality and relevance. Findings describe selection criteria grounded in relevance, argument development, and source and quality.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction and context

Digital literacy as an essential 21st-century skill

Frameworks for evaluating digital content

Value of video for learning

undergraduate evaluate digital video inclusion assignment work? Exploring digital literacy: How do undergraduate students evaluate digital video for inclusion in assignment work? Peter Tiernan peter.d.tiernan@dcu.ie Dublin City University, Ireland Abstract In an effort to explore digital literacy in practice, this paper investigates how students evaluate digital video for use in assignment work. Students sourced content for a written assignment from aselection of videos housed on an online repository and reflected on their choices. The study examines the key areas influencing the use and evaluation of digital video for assignments such as digital literacy, the learning value of video, and strategies for integrating video. This paper examines students' experiences using video for assignment work and pays particular attention to their evaluation of video content and their reasons for selecting videos. Findings show that students select video based on its relevance to their existing knowledge, ability to develop their arguments, and on the source and quality of content. Students display key elements of digital literacy when provided with an authentic task, and the appropriate strategies and content to accomplish this. The work also presents a series of recommendations and considerations for future work in the area. Keywords digital literacy; media in education; online video P.Tiernan Digital Education Review-Number 40, December 2021- 110 I. Introduction and context The prevalence of digital information and the level of interaction and engagement which take place online have increased interest at policy and academic levels in the ways in which students are able to process and interact with digital content. The popularity of online video in particular is well documented, with more than 82% of 18 – 29 year olds regularly visiting the online video sharing platform YouTube (Anderson 2015) . Students in this age range feel that access to streaming video is as important as internet connectivity and email (Riismandel 2016) . The purpose of this paper is to investigate how undergraduate students evaluate video for inclusion in a written assignment. In order to fully investigate this area, this study begins by examining a number of interrelated themes. We have entered an information era where the internet and web technologies are where ideas meet and collaboration happens (Pérez-Escoda et al. 2019), transforming the way we work, learn, and express ourselves (List et al. 2020) . In this context, digital literacy is recognised as an essential skill for living in the 21st century (Pérez-Escoda et al. 2019) and an essential capacity for lifelong learning (Rohatgi et al. 2016) . Universities (E.g., University of South Australia 2015; Leeds Beckett University 2014; Open University 2012) have begun defining digital literacy as a core skill to be developed among their student population. Terms such as ICT literacy and computer literacy have existed since the 1970s (Martin 2005), focusing on the operational aspects of using technology for everyday tasks (Oliver et al. 2000), such as managing files and using word processing software. The term digital literacy was originally brought to prominence by Gilster (1997) who viewed it as “the ability to understand and use information in multiple formats from a wide range of sources when it is presented via computers'' (p. 1), arguing that it is not simply about finding things online but more importantly, how to evaluate these things for use in your daily life. Since then, digital literacy has evolved as a concept, however there is relative congruence among authors around its core aspects. For example: Martin (2005) argued that digital literacy isabout using digital tools to identify, evaluate, analyse, and synthesise digital resources; Ng (2012a) suggests it is the ability to search for, evaluate, understand, and integrate information found online; Kim (2019) defined it as the abil

FAQs

What is the main purpose of the paper?

The paper investigates how undergraduate students evaluate digital video for inclusion in a written assignment, focusing on the themes that shape their choices.

How do students source and evaluate digital video for assignments?

Students source content from an online video repository, then reflect on their selections, including reasons related to content relevance, quality, and usefulness for the task.

What factors influence students’ selection of videos?

Students choose videos based on relevance to existing knowledge, the ability to develop arguments, and the source and quality of the content.

Oct 15, 2026

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