Information literacy has been included in the Digital Competence Framework (DCF), as part of the Welsh Government’s new national curriculum for Wales. The DCF is the first element of the new curriculum for Wales to be made available and is to be implemented across all schools in Wales.
The DCF has four strands of equal importance – Citizenship; Interacting and collaborating; Producing; Data and computational thinking. Information literacy is included under the strand of Data and computational thinking. The DCF Guidance report states that:
“Through this strand, learners will gain an understanding of the importance of data and information literacy by exploring aspects of collection, representation and analysis. Learners will look at how data and information link into our digital world and will develop essential skills for the modern workplace.”
The report also emphasises how:
“Computational thinking is a combination of scientific enquiry, problem solving and thinking skills; it is not thinking like or about computers.”
The framework builds on recommendations made in the ICT Steering Group’s Report to the Welsh Government and Professor Graham Donaldson’s review of curriculum and assessment arrangements published in the report Successful Futures. Recommendations from these reports include that all learners in Wales experience digital skills within each subject equal to other key skills such as literacy and numeracy.
It would be great to hear from any school librarians about their thoughts in relation to the implementation of the DCF framework across Welsh schools.