Creating an Understanding of Data Literacy for a Data-driven Society

Authors

  • Annika Wolff The Open University
  • Daniel Gooch The Open University
  • Jose J. Cavero Montaner The Open University
  • Umar Rashid The Open University
  • Gerd Kortuem The Open University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15353/joci.v12i3.3275

Keywords:

Data Literacy, Learning, Competences, Definitions

Abstract

Society is become increasingly reliant on data, making it necessary to ensure that all citizens are equipped with the skills needed to be data literate. We argue that the foundations for a data literate society begin by acquiring key data literacy competences in school. However, as yet there is no clear definition of what these should be. This paper explores the different perspectives currently offered on both data and statistical literacy and then critically examines to what extent these address the data literacy needs of citizens in today’s society. We survey existing approaches to teaching data literacy in schools, to identify how data literacy is interpreted in practice. Based on these analyses, we propose a definition of data literacy that is focused on using data to understand real world phenomena. The contribution of this paper is the creation of a common foundation for teaching and learning data literacy skills.

 

Author Biographies

Annika Wolff, The Open University

Annika Wolff is a Research Fellow in the department of Computing and Communications at the Open University, Milton Keynes, UK Email: annika.wolff@open.ac.uk

Daniel Gooch, The Open University

Daniel Gooch is a Research Associate at the Department of Computing and Communications, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK. Email: Daniel.Gooch@open.ac.uk

Jose J. Cavero Montaner, The Open University

Jose J. Cavero Montaner is Research Assistant: Computing and Communication Department, Faculty of Mathematics, Computing and Technology, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK, Email: jose.cavero@open.ac.uk

Umar Rashid, The Open University

Umar Rashid is a Research Associate at The Open University, UK. His research interests lie in software engineering and human-computer interaction with mobile and ubiquitous computing systems. Email: umar.mir@open.ac.uk

Gerd Kortuem, The Open University

Gerd Kortuem is a Professor of Computer Science at the Computing and Communication Department, Faculty of Mathematics, Computing and Technology, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK, Email: gerd.kortuem@open.ac.uk

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Published

2016-08-09

Issue

Vol. 12 No. 3 (2016): Special Issue on Data Literacy

Section

Articles, Special Issue on Data Literacy