Developing Performance Tests to Measure Digital Skills: Lessons Learned From a Cross-National Perspective

Ester van Laar, Alexander J. A. M. van Deursen, Ellen J. Helsper and Luc S. Schneider
Additional contact information
Ester van Laar: Department of Communication Science, University of Twente, The Netherlands
Alexander J. A. M. van Deursen: Department of Communication Science, University of Twente, The Netherlands
Ellen J. Helsper: Department of Media and Communications, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
Luc S. Schneider: Department of Management, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK

Media and Communication, 2025, vol. 13

Abstract: This article discusses the development of task-based performance tests designed to measure digital skills among children aged between 12 and 17 years old. The tasks reflect authentic everyday situations to evaluate skill levels. The primary objective is to design performance tests that provide a comprehensive understanding of children’s digital skills. The tests cover three distinct skill dimensions: (a) information navigation and processing; (b) communication and interaction; and (c) content creation and production. These include several subdimensions, offering a detailed perspective on children’s digital skills. The development process itself revealed several methodological challenges that needed to be addressed, yielding valuable lessons for future applications. Key lessons from our cross-national experiences include the importance of involving children early in the design process, using a combination of open-ended and closed tasks, and allocating ample time to walk through the coding scheme.

Keywords: children; children’s digital skills; cross-nationally applicable tasks; digital skills; international performance tests; performance tests; performance test development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/8988 (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cog:meanco:v13:y:2025:a:8988

DOI: 10.17645/mac.8988

Access Statistics for this article

Media and Communication is currently edited by Raquel Silva

More articles in Media and Communication from Cogitatio Press
Bibliographic data for series maintained by António Vieira () and IT Department ().