PrEval Studie 1/2025

Entwicklung eines integrierten Modells und Selbst­einschätzungs­instruments für Digital Citizenship Literacy (in German)

Marcus Kindlinger, Lucy Huschle & Hermann Josef Abs (Universität Duisburg-Essen)

How young people deal with digital spaces is increasingly becoming the focus of civic education. In order to be able to move confidently and reflectively in the digital space, young people need a wide range of skills, which are discussed in international education debates under the term “Digital Citizenship Education” (DCE). However, educational science perspectives criticize the fact that DCE has so far focused primarily on aspects of online safety and technical skills, largely ignoring opportunities for social participation and transformation in and through the digital space.

This report documents the development of an evaluation tool that aims to make the diverse competence objectives of civic education in the context of digitality tangible. Based on a survey of 129 students using a questionnaire, the three central key factors were identified: online political activism, the use of common digital technologies and the critical use of AI technologies.

Marcus Kindlinger, Dr., is a Researcher at the Educational Research and Schooling chair at the University of Duisburg-Essen and at the department Fachdidaktik der Sozialwissenschaft at the University of Münster. At both locations, he is involved in various projects in civic education and project evaluation. Since February 2025, he has been part of the evaluation team for innovation projects in the digital space as part of the federal program Live Democracy!

Lucy Patricia Huschle is a Researcher at the Educational Research and Schooling chair at the University of Duisburg-Essen. She is doing her doctorate on skills in digital civic education. Until the end of 2024, she worked primarily on the project Feasibility Study for a Civic Education Monitor. Since January 2025, she has been part of the evaluation team for projects in the digital space as part of the federal program Live Democracy!

Hermann Josef Abs, Prof. Dr., Educational Research and Schooling chair at the University of Duisburg-Essen. Through projects on the evaluation and monitoring of civic education, he supports the overcoming of challenges of democratic political socialization in educational contexts. In this context, he has been working together with the two aforementioned authors on the evaluation of projects in the digital space of the federal program Live Democracy!