Dependencies of Digital Literacy Domains for Improved College Readiness in Higher Education: A Systematic Literature Review

Students’ success in college requires fluency among digital literacies and knowledge engagement, synthesis, and creation across diverse technology networks. The focus of existing research is on K-12 youth and adult populations and does not address digital literacy as a critical competency for higher education institutions to understand the interrelationships of the identified literacy components and how these aspects are best combined to meet learners’ current and future digital literacy needs to improve college readiness. This study provides a systematic review to discover relational components of digital literacy through examining methods of defining digital literacy in higher education environments to better understand the potential positive impact from developments in digital literacy on student success in higher education. The results showed a rapid research increase (23%) in average annual publications and a growing complexity of components and perspectives. Keyword analysis from 69 publications across five academic databases showed the relationship of five discovered domains and the close relation of pedagogical teaching practices to programmatic assessment frameworks which closely relate to the dependency of educational praxis on societal change. However, the results also show the growing complexity of digital literacy through the proliferation of technology concepts, literacies, and terminology represented in models as well as a research gap within single demographics and our understanding of digital literacy in college readiness and success. This systematic review explores the foundational components of digital literacy for higher education which may aid in developing future critical digital literacy models for higher education as core success measures for college students.