Exploring the Disparity in Digital Media Literacy Between Urban and Rural Primary School Students: Insights from an Empirical Study in China

Abstract

With the advent of the digital age, cultivating students’ digital media literacy has become an important educational mission. A standardized digital media literacy scale was developed to study the digital media literacy of primary school students in urban and rural areas. Through stratified random sampling, a total of 2,848 urban and rural primary school students participated in this research. Primary school students exhibited moderate proficiency in digital media literacy, with a notable deficiency in their ability to create and disseminate information effectively. Subsequent investigations revealed disparities in the level of digital media literacy between urban and rural students, which appeared in their proficiency to access and use digital tools, as well as their ability to understand and evaluate media messages. Parental education, parental mediation, and time spent using digital devices all have a substantial positive influence on students’ digital media literacy, with parental mediation having the greatest impact. Consequently, it is imperative to prioritize the development of higher-order digital media literacy skills in students. Efforts should also be directed toward enhancing the basic digital media literacy of rural primary school students while fostering parental engagement in students’ digital education. In this regard, the Chinese government, enterprises, and schools have launched measures to promote rural students’ digital media literacy and parents’ involvement in students’ digital education. Future research should prioritize investigations of the efficacy of these measures to ascertain their impact on the holistic development of digital media literacy among all students.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

digital media literacy / urban–rural disparity / primary school student / parental mediation

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Acknowledgment

This study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 72204089).

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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