Description (short summary):  
The study provides a comparative analysis of different Digital Literacy initiatives within the E-U25, Norway, and Iceland, and in selected countries such as India, Canada and the USA. The study has focused on initiatives and policies targeted at disadvantaged groups not being able to take full advantage of the information society for different reasons such as geographical location and the socio-economic background.

Topic Report 1 and its Annexes present 464 different initiatives, which range from large-scale public programmes rolled out nationally and targeting the entire population to very small-scale third sector actions with very specific target groups.

Topic Report 2 investigates indicators and measurement tools employed in the EU-25 and beyond with a particular focus on the special module on digital literacy from the 2007 edition of the Eurostat Community Survey on ICT usage in Households and by Individuals. This analysis provides information on the current level of digital skills, on barriers to more intensive use and on the actual learning processes behind the acquisition of these skills.

Topic Report 3 and and its Annexes describe and analyses in more detail 30 selected good practice cases and contains a comprehensive presentation of main enablers of digital literacy.

Building on the evidence base from the other topic reports and literature analysed, Topic Report 4 situates digital literacy in a broader context as a central measure in forward-looking inclusion policies and concludes by drawing up a list of recommendations to improve digital literacy among disadvantaged groups.

Number of pages:
Topic Report 1 - Final Report: 58
Annexes to Topic Report 1: 75
Topic Report 2 - Final Report: 198
Topic Report 3 - Final Report: 73
Annexes to Topic Report 3: 283
Topic Report 4 - Conclusions and recommendations based on reviews and findings: 56

Description of license: © European Commission, 2009.

Nature of documentation: Official reports and studies