Abstract

Recent research has highlighted the importance of supporting student’s capacities to learn deeply in technology-rich domains and to prepare them for living, learning and working in a digital society. Whilst university initiatives are often in place to support the development of learners’ ICT skills, these initiatives are seldom followed through in the learning experience in any meaningful way, or integrated with the development of other capabilities critical to higher education learning. In 2014, JISC (Joint Information Systems Committee) published the ‘Developing Digital Literacies Programme’ to encourage UK institutions to embed the development of digital literacies within the curriculum. The study found that alongside support for ICT proficiency, educators must develop strategies for embedding the following 21st century skills and competencies: information, data and media literacies; career and identity management; digital learning and self-development; communication, collaboration and participation; co-creation, innovation and scholarship.

The current paper uses the ‘Developing Digital Literacies’ framework to analyse practice-based pedagogical research undertaken by co_LAB, the Collaboration Laboratory Research Network (University of Lincoln, UK). co_LAB was initiated to experiment with novel approaches to collaborative teaching and learning, which typically involves working with mixed disciplinary groups of students, utilising discovery-based learning methods to address issues pertinent to digital culture. The aim of this paper is to discuss the teaching and learning methods employed by co_LAB to support digital literacies, presenting an experimental ‘toolkit’ for other educators to embed or adapt within their own teaching practices.