As information and communication technology (ICT) spreads rapidly around the world, digital media and digital technology have influenced the way of our life. New media technologies have changed the way that knowledge is produced and shared, with the Internet and computers becoming the dominant tools for learning (Gialamas, Nikolopoulou, & Koutromanos, 2013).  

Over the past decades, researchers and scholars have attempted to define digital media literacy from different perspectives. Digital media literacy is considered with not only the simple technical ICT skills, but also various cognitive and problem solving abilities (Aesaert et al., 2014; Luu & Freeman, 2011). In this study, digital media literacy is considered as a set of competence or skills from an operational perspective. The conceptual framework of digital media literacy was developed by integrating the above mentioned dimensions, which include four key components: 1) technical knowledge and skills, 2) critical understanding, 3) creation and communication, 4) citizenship participation. (David Buckingham, 2009; Chirst, 2004; European Association for Viewers Interests, 2010).

In order to implement digital media literacy education effectively, understanding student’s digital media literacy is considered as a prerequisite to digital media literacy education (Arke & Primack, 2009; Hobbs & Frost, 2003). It can provide educators information about what students already know, which make education more effective. Moreover, it is necessary to identify factors related to student’s digital media literacy (Claro et al., 2012; Kim, Kil, & Shin, 2014). However, the measurement of digital media literacy remains the critical challenge and insufficient (Arke & Primack, 2009; European Association for Viewers Interests, 2010).   Therefore, this study not only aims to develop an instrument to examine primary student’s digital media literacy, but also to examine school level and family level factors associated to primary students’ digital media literacy. For this purpose, this study addresses the following research questions: RQ1: Can we validate the instrument for measuring primary students’ digital media literacy? What’s the validity and reliability of the measurement instrument? RQ2:  What are the levels of digital media literacy (regarding technical knowledge and skills, critical understanding, creation and communication, citizenship participation) of 5^th -6^th grade primary students? RQ3: To what extent are student level factors (gender, age, basic use of digital technologies) and family level factors (parents’ education background, parental mediation) related to primary students’ digital media literacy?

Based on previous studies, we built an integrated model of the impact of external and internal variables on digital media literacy. Technical knowledge and skills, critical understanding, creation and communication, and citizenship participation are essential parts of measurement of digital media literacy. It is also important to take internal and external factors into account, such as gender, age, students’ use of digital technology, parents’ education background and parental mediation. It integrates gender, age, students’ use of digital technology, parental mediation and digital media literacy into one research model. This conceptual model is also the base for guiding the research questions of the present study.

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