Analysis of the content of middle school social studies textbooks according to the dimensions of digital citizenship

Abstract

The current study aims to analyze the content of middle school social studies textbooks in light of the dimensions of digital citizenship. The research population and sample consist of the social studies textbooks approved for use at this level. The researcher adopted a descriptive-analytical approach to conduct the study, To achieve the research objective, the researcher developed a content analysis tool after reviewing the educational literature and relevant previous studies. The tool was then presented to a group of experts and specialists in teaching methods to solicit their opinions and feedback. Based on this, the necessary modifications including additions, deletions, and revisions to the paragraphs were made. The final tool consisted of three main themes: (Respect, Education, Protection). Each axis comprised three dimensions, and each dimension included four indicators, bringing the total to 9 dimensions and 36 indicators. To ensure the reliability of the analysis results, the researcher enlisted the help of another analyst and applied the Holsti formula, yielding a reliability coefficient of 84%. The researcher also conducted another self-analysis 21 days later, yielding an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 93%. Both “idea” and “topic” were adopted as units of analysis, with frequencies and percentages used in data processing. The results showed that the total number of occurrences of the final dimensions of digital citizenship across the three books reached 62, and that the most frequently occurring dimension was “digital communication and interaction” with 17 occurrences (27.41%), followed by “digital access” with 12 occurrences (19.35%), then “digital culture” (11) occurrences, accounting for (17.74%); “digital ethics” appeared (6) times, accounting for (9.69%); followed by “digital security” (5) occurrences, accounting for (8.06%); and finally “digital rights and responsibilities” (4) occurrences, accounting for (6.45%). As for digital laws and digital commerce, they were mentioned.