ICILS 2013
ICILS 2013 studied the computer and information skills of eighth-grade pupils, aiming to understand some of the contexts in which these skills are developed. The ICILS is the first international research study to focus on the acquisition of computer and information competences by school pupils.
ICILS 2013 was carried out by the Danish School of Education, Aarhus University. The Ministry of Education financed half of the survey in Denmark.
What are computer and information skills?
The ICILS defines computer and information skills in terms of the ability of individuals to use computers to investigate, create and communicate with a view to participating effectively at home, at school, in the workplace and in society.
ICILS 2013: data material
The ICILS researchers collected data from almost 60,000 pupils in more than 3,300 schools and 21 countries, or from education systems within certain countries. Most of the pupils were 14 years old. This data was supplemented by data from almost 35,000 teachers at the respective schools and by context-related data from school IT coordinators, headteachers and national research institutions.
1,767 students, 728 teachers, 92 headteachers and 92 IT coordinators from 110 schools participated in Denmark
The Danish School of Education, Aarhus University, is behind the Danish part of the study with associate professor Jeppe Bundsgaard as project manager.
Countries taking part in ICILS 2013
Denmark, Australia, the city of Buenos Aires (Argentina), Chile, the Netherlands, Hong Kong (SAR), Croatia, Lithuania, Newfoundland & Labrador (Canada), Norway, Ontario (Canada), Poland, Russia, Switzerland, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Thailand, the Czech Republic, Turkey and Germany.
ICILS 2013: Danish results
On 20 November 2014 the results of the first major international study of the computer and information competences of school pupils (ICILS 2013) were published.
Read the complete report here.
Among other things, the study had the following conclusions about the computer and information skills of Danish pupils:
- With a score of 542 on the marking scale that was used, Danish pupils were in the top one-third of the countries taking part in ICILS 2013. Statistically, they were on the same level as students from Australia, Poland, Norway, South Korea and the Netherlands, as well as students from the Canadian province of Ontario. Only the pupils from the Czech Republic scored higher. On average, the Danish pupils scored higher than pupils from a range of other European countries such as Germany, Slovakia, Slovenia, Lithuania and Switzerland.
- The spreading of the scores by Danish pupils was among the lowest. This means that the internal difference between Danish pupils was smaller than in most of the other countries.
- On average, girls scored 551 and boys 535. This does not mean that all the girls were better than the boys, but that there were slightly more girls who performed well and slightly fewer girls who performed poorly.
- Almost all the pupils had access to the internet at home. On average, Danish pupils had more than five computers (mobiles and laptops, including tablets) at home. There was a difference of about two computers between the 25% of pupils with the lowest socio-economic status and the 25% of pupils with the highest socio-economic status.
- 95% of Danish pupils used computers at home at least once a week. 76% of pupils said that they used a computer at least once a week at school.
- Danish teachers were among the most positive regarding the use of IT in teaching, and were among the teachers who used IT most in their daily teaching.
- Danish teachers use computers for relatively traditional activities, for example to support presentations, for tests, for the students’ individual exercises, and, to a lesser extent, for activities with a more investigative approach such as the analysis of data or communication outside the school.
What do pupils use computers for?
- 46% of the Danish pupils are on competence level 2. At this level, pupils are able to use the computer as a source of information, to locate and select information, and to use it in their own products. They have a certain degree of control over layout and the formating of text and images, and are aware of the importance of protecting electronic information.
- 30% of the Danish pupils are on competence level 3. At this level, pupils can independently search for, locate and select relevant information, as well as editing and creating digital products on the basis of the information they select. They can also consider the bias, accuracy and reliability of the information they find.
- 17% of the Danish pupils are on competence level 1. At this level, and provided that they have some support, pupils can access files and routinely edit texts and layout, bearing in mind that other people may gain unauthorised access to information and that they may abuse it.
- 2% of the Danish pupils are on competence level 4. At this level, pupils can check and evaluate the sources they come across and are aware of the recipients and the purpose when they search for information. They select the information they need on the basis of its context, and adapt the layout and formating accordingly. They are aware of commercial contexts, copyright and intellectual property.
