Digital Literacy and Neurodiverse Learners: What Recent Research Tells Us

A significant new piece of research published in Frontiers in Education (June 2025) titled “Digital literacy and academic performance: The mediating role of self-efficacy and metacognitive strategies” offers compelling insights into how digital literacy skills influence student achievement. Though not specific to neurodivergent learners, its findings have strong implications for how specialist literacy educators can better tailor digital tools and strategies to meet diverse learning needs.

Summary of the Research

The study examined over 1,200 secondary students and explored how different aspects of digital literacy—information gathering, critical evaluation, creation, and ethical use—correlate with academic performance. A central finding was that academic success was more strongly linked to students’ self-efficacy and metacognitive regulation (their ability to plan, monitor, and adjust their learning) than to basic digital skills themselves (Frontiers in Education, 2025).

In other words, students who believed in their ability to use digital tools effectively—and who reflected consciously on their strategies—performed better across subjects. Simply having access to technology or superficial digital competence did not produce measurable academic gains.

The study also found large variability among students’ self-efficacy. Socio-economic disadvantage, learning differences, and inconsistent teaching quality were associated with lower confidence and reduced capacity to self-regulate in digital learning contexts. This suggests that while digital technologies hold transformative potential, they can also exacerbate inequities if not supported by explicit strategy instruction and emotional scaffolding.

Critical Analysis

The research highlights a crucial shift in literacy education: digital literacy is not just about “using devices” but about thinking critically, managing learning, and self-regulating within digital environments. However, the study stops short of investigating how these dynamics differ for neurodiverse learners—those with ADHD, dyslexia, or autism—who often exhibit distinct patterns of attention, anxiety, and executive functioning.

Current evidence suggests that many neurodivergent students struggle to maintain focus, navigate distractions, or organise complex online tasks, even when they possess strong intellectual ability. Where this study emphasised metacognitive self-regulation, neurodiverse learners often require explicit modelling, structured prompts, and feedback loops to internalise these skills.

Another critique is the study’s generalisation of “digital literacy” without distinguishing between surface-level competencies (e.g., searching the web) and deep cognitive literacy practices (e.g., synthesising sources, evaluating reliability, creating digital meaning). For neurodivergent learners, the difference is pivotal: they benefit from gradual cognitive scaffolding, multisensory prompts, and explicit chunking of steps in digital tasks.

Reflection: Digital Literacy in Specialist Practice

From my perspective as a specialist literacy tutor and founder of Literacy Steps, this research reinforces the need for intentional, scaffolded digital literacy instruction. Many of my neurodivergent students—particularly those with dyslexia and ADHD—express frustration using online resources because digital spaces amplify executive functioning challenges. Yet, when digital tasks are carefully structured around self-efficacy building and incremental mastery, the gains are remarkable.

We teach digital tools explicitly, not implicitly.

At Literacy Steps, we integrate metacognitive language into every session, helping students think about their own thinking and learning progress. As part of our Parenting for Success programme, we extend this support to families, providing guidance on how to navigate common learning and technology challenges at home. We encourage parents to teach digital tools explicitly rather than implicitly—by modelling planning processes, limiting onscreen clutter, and using assistive technology strategically rather than excessively. This collaborative, intentional approach ensures that both students and caregivers can foster focus, independence, and confidence in digital learning environments.

For education more broadly, the study highlights a need to embed metacognitive strategy training into all digital learning. Technology itself is not the equalising force—it is the pedagogy surrounding its use. For neurodivergent learners, success depends on structure, encouragement, and repeated coaching in how to think about thinking. This combination transforms digital literacy from a technical skill into an empowering bridge toward independence.

Reference

Frontiers in Education. (2025, June 6). Digital literacy and academic performance: The mediating role of self-efficacy and metacognitive strategies. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/education/articles/10.3389/feduc.2025.1590274/full