Italian Journal of Health Education, Sports and Inclusive Didactics
Digital Affective Literacy and Digital Well Being Awareness in Teacher Training Contexts
Abstract
Awareness of digital environments shapes how students and teachers engage with algorithm-driven social media platforms and experience their emotional impact, highlighting the importance of digital literacy in education. In line with digital well-being perspectives, effects depend not only on usage but also on awareness of algorithmic influence and its implications for critical thinking and emotional awareness. However, users often underestimate associated risks and their impact on well-being. This study investigates students’ and teachers’ awareness of social media use in educational contexts, focusing on digital literacy and digital well-being. A questionnaire-based study is proposed, based on validated and adapted scales on social media use, digital literacy, and digital well-being, assessing usage patterns, perceived algorithmic awareness, risk perception, and emotional impact. The study aims to identify gaps between perceived experiences and research-based evidence.
Keywords
References
Agrusti, F. (2019). L’individualizzazione didattica in rete. In interdisciplinarità e individualizzazione dell’apprendimento. I risultati del progetto LIBE. Milano: FrancoAngeli.
Banzato, M. (2011). Analisi critica degli approcci di ricerca della literacy pedagogy. Formazione & insegnamento, 3(La ricerca educativa e formativa. Frontiere e orientamenti), 123-138.
Boler, M., & Zembylas, M. (2003). Discomforting truths: The emotional terrain of understanding difference. In Pedagogies of difference (pp. 107-130). Routledge.
Boler, M. (1999). Feeling Power: Emotions and Education. New York/London: Routledge.
Bonafede, P., Soriani, A., & Pacetti, E. (2025). Rappresentazioni, pratiche e criticità del benessere digitale a scuola. Uno studio sulle pratiche digitali di studenti di scuola secondaria di secondo grado. Annali online della Didattica e della Formazione Docente, 17(30), 30-53.
Büchi, M. (2024). Digital well-being theory and research. New Media & Society, 26(1), 172–189. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448211056851
Buckingham, D. (2007). Digital Media Literacies: rethinking media education in the age of the Internet. Research in comparative and international education, 2(1), 43-55.
Calvani, A., Fini, A., & Ranieri, M. (2009). Valutare la competenza digitale. Modelli teorici e strumenti applicativi. Italian Journal of Educational Technology, 17(3), 39-39.
Eshet-Alkalai, Y., & Soffer, O. (2012). Guest editorial--Navigating in the digital era: Digital literacy: Socio-cultural and educational aspects. Educational Technology & Society, 15(2), 1-2.
Eshet, Y. (2004). Digital literacy: A conceptual framework for survival skills in the digital era. Journal of educational multimedia and hypermedia, 13(1), 93-106.
Ferrari, S., & Pasta, S. (2023). Information Literacy: l’istanza educativa centrale per la declinazione delle competenze digitali. Annali online della Didattica e della Formazione Docente, 15(26), 170-192.
Frison, D., & Funari, C. (2025). Student Well-Being: accompagnare lo sviluppo di well-being skills per il benessere nei contesti di apprendimento e professionali. Form@ re, 25(1).
Gottschalk, F., & Weise, C. (2023). Digital equity and inclusion in education: An overview of practice and policy in OECD countries. OECD Education Working Papers, No. 299. OECD Publishing, Paris. https://doi.org/10.1787/7cb15030-en
Heyder, A., Brailovskaia, J., Liebherr, M., & Antons, S. (2026). Functional and dysfunctional digital media use: Comparing adolescents', parents', and teachers' perspectives. Current Psychology, 45, 812. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-026-09217-z
Jiang, L. (2024). “Emotions are what will draw people in”: A study of critical affective literacy through digital storytelling. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. https://doi.org/10.1002/jaal.1322
Liberacka-Dwojak, M., Cruz, G. V., Wiłkość-Dębczyńska, M., Terzioğlu, M. A., Légaré, A.-A., Orsolini, L., Farchione, T., Lecomte, T., Ingram, S., Khan, R., Khazaal, Psychometric validation of the English version of the digital wellbeing questionnaire for young adults. PLOS One, 21(4), e0346670. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0346670.
Martin, J. R. (2005). 5 Mentoring semogenesis:'genre-based'literacy. Pedagogy and the shaping of consciousness: Linguistic and social processes, 123.
Montenegro-Rueda, M., & Fernández-Batanero, J. M. (2022). Digital competence of special education teachers: Impact, challenges and opportunities. Australasian Journal of Special and Inclusive Education, 46(2), 178–192. https://doi.org/10.1017/jsi.2022.8
OECD. (2020). Digital strategies in education across OECD countries. OECD Publishing.
OECD. (2015). Students, Computers and Learning: Making the Connection. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264239555-en
Pangrazio, L., Godhe, A.-L., & Ledesma, A. G. L. (2020). What is digital literacy? A comparative review of publications across three language contexts. E-Learning and Digital Media, 17(6), 442-459.
Pérez-Escoda, A., Ortega-Fernández, E., & Martínez-Otón, L. (2026). Enhancing teachers' digital competence for combating disinformation and fake news through the use of social media in classroom. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 15(4).
Redecker, C. (2017). European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators: DigCompEdu. Publications Office of the European Union.
Richardson, J., & Milovidov, E. (2023). Digital Citizenship Education Handbook: Being Online, Well-Being Online, Rights Online (2022 ed.). Council of Europe.
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68-78.
Rivoltella, P. C., & Rossi, P. G. (Eds.). (2024). Tecnologie per l'educazione (2nd ed.). Pearson.
Sharma, E., & Nigam, N. (2025). Exploring digital age influences on undergraduate students' mental health through social media, academic pressure and digital literacy. Discover Social Science and Health, 5, 174.
Tiso, M., & Ferrantino, C. (2022). Lo sviluppo della professionalità docente: fondamento dell’alfabetizzazione digitale. Lifelong Lifewide Learning, 18(40), 43-51.
Tornero, J. M. P. (2004). Promoting digital literacy. Understanding Digital Literacy [OL].
UNESCO. (2011). ICT Competency Standards for Teachers. UNESCO.
Unione Europea. (2006). Raccomandazione del Parlamento europeo e del Consiglio, del 18 dicembre 2006, relativa a competenze chiave per l'apprendimento permanente (2006/962/CE). GUUE L 394 del 30.12.2006. Consulta il testo ufficiale su EUR-Lex.
Uslu, O. (2025). Understanding digital wellbeing: impacts, strategies, and the path to healthier technology practices. Discover Social Science and Health, 5, art. 145. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44155-025-00259-5
Vanden Abeele, M. M. P. (2021). Digital wellbeing as a dynamic construct. Communication Theory, 31(3), 392–415
Viac, C., & Fraser, P. (2020). Teachers' well-being: A framework for data collection and analysis. OECD Education Working Papers, (213), 0_1-81.
Villar, L., Herrero, L., & López, G. (2022). UNESCO strategy and digital policies for teacher training: The deconstruction of innovation in Spain. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 11(1), 15-30.
Vuorikari, R., Kluzer, S., & Punie, Y. (2022). DigComp 2.2: The Digital Competence Framework for Citizens – With New Examples of Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes. Publications Office of the European Union. https://doi.org/10.2760/115376
Xu, Y., Li, F., Yin, Z., Sun, M., Guo, Z., & Liu, B. (2023). Development and validation of the social media perception scale for preservice physical education teachers. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, Article 1179814.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.32043/gsd.v10i4.1863
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
Copyright (c) 2026 ITALIAN JOURNAL OF HEALTH EDUCATION, SPORT AND INCLUSIVE DIDACTICS
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Italian Journal of Health Education, Sports and Inclusive Didactics
Publisher: Cares srl – REN Press (since 2026). Previously published by Gaia srl – Edizioni Universitarie Romane (2017–2025).
ISSN: 2532-3296 E-ISSN: 3103-5744