Why Digital Literacy Is More Than a Tech Skill - it's a Thinking Skill

With news out of the USA that a new executive order has been signed by the President to infuse artificial intelligence throughout K-12 education – we thought it was worth looking at what sits behind the digital literacy skills that are undoubtedly going to be so crucial for today’s learners to thrive in the ‘new world’.  This necessitates employing strong thinking skills, particularly critical thinking to evaluate the implications of AI in education, analytical thinking to understand the specific digital competencies required, and foresight to anticipate future learning needs. By applying these cognitive skills, we can move beyond a surface-level understanding of digital literacy and truly grasp the depth of preparation needed to empower students to navigate and thrive in an AI-driven future

With the current pace of technological advancement and AI integration, it’s absolutely right that “digital literacy” should be moving up school focus lists. But too often, it’s interpreted as competently using hardware or software and/or being good at navigating the internet. 

At Thinking Matters, we believe that being digitally literate isn’t just about knowing which button to click or which app to download. It’s about the thinking skills that underpin those actions, the mental habits and cognitive processes that allow learners to make smart, ethical, and informed decisions in a digital world.

Digital Literacy is Not Just a Tech Skill

Let’s be clear: the technical skills are important. Students need to know how to use a search engine, create digital presentations and engage with AI tools. But these technical skills are just the surface layer. Underneath them lies a deeper, more important foundation: thinking skills.

These include:

• Knowledge: Does the student know enough about their subject to ask the right questions and challenge and evaluate the information that is produced by their LLM? 
• Critical thinking: Can the student evaluate the credibility of a source?
• Problem-solving: Can they figure out how to get past a technical issue or use a new platform intuitively?
• Metacognition: Are they aware of their own understanding and willing to change strategy if they’re not getting the results they need?
• Digital ethics and responsibility: Do they know how to navigate online spaces respectfully and safely?

These are not just nice-to-haves, they are essential for thriving in a digital environment.

Teaching Prompt Engineering: A Perfect Example

Take prompt writing, for instance, a core skill in using generative AI tools effectively. At first glance, it seems like a technical task. But to write a strong prompt, students must:

• Plan their request clearly (a metacognitive skill)
• Evaluate what information is relevant (critical thinking)
• Adapt their wording if the result isn’t what they expect (cognitive flexibility)
• Reflect on the quality of the response (self-evaluation)

Without these cognitive processes, the best AI tool in the world won’t make a learner more effective.

Digital Literacy is a Thinking Superpower

The future of education isn’t about replacing humans with AI. It’s about amplifying human thinking. And digital literacy, when taught as a thinking skill, becomes a superpower — not just a skill set.

If your school is ready to build a generation of digitally fluent, cognitively agile learners, then drop us a line and explore how Thinking Matters can support you in developing your learners cognitive processes and intelligent learning behaviours in order for them to thrive in an AI world by engaging critically, ethically, and creatively with technology.