On July 27, 2026, the Global Google Educator Group (GEG) hosted a virtual panel titled "Foundations of the Future: Mastering Digital Literacy and Student Agency". This webinar featured actionable insights from Tara Poolson, Technology Integration Specialist for the Pearl River County School District, and Ashton Treadaway, an English Language Arts teacher at Pearl River Central High School. The central takeaway of the discussion was that as digital tools rapidly evolve, instruction must shift away from rote technical memorization toward building durable, human-centered abilities. The recording of the event is below if members would like to watch; if not, no worries—this recap contains the full post overview.
Rather than treating technology as a simple replacement for pen-and-paper tasks, the panelists emphasized positioning Google Workspace as an engine for transparent thinking, critical inquiry, and proactive problem-solving. By redesigning everyday lessons around metacognition and digital resilience, educators can transform classrooms into collaborative environments where student agency and authentic literacy thrive.
Redefining Digital Literacy as Transparent Metacognition
Poolson opened the discussion by challenging educators to shift their focus from evaluating final products to capturing the visible learning process. In traditional assignments like slides or reports, teachers often miss how students make decisions, evaluate sources, or navigate roadblocks. By leveraging Google Workspace—such as Docs for planning, Forms for real-time misconceptions, and Slides for iteration—technology becomes a window into student thought.
"To me that shift isn't about ‘let's just add more tech’. It is literally about ‘let's redesign the lesson so that students have to explain their thinking’," Poolson said. "I think that we should use AI as a catalyst to make our students more deeply human, giving them the space to question, create, and adapt in a way that no machine ever could."
Treadaway illustrated this shift through a high school creative writing unit. Instead of assigning a single poem form, he tasked students with researching diverse poetic structures, creating collaborative Google Slides, and teaching their peers. This model culminated in students independently designing a collaborative senryu poetry assignment passed asynchronously through Google Docs.
Scaffolded Problem-Solving with "Notice, Name, Next Step"
When students encounter technical glitches or digital roadblocks, a common instinct is to wait passively for teacher intervention. To cultivate independent problem-solving, Poolson highlighted a three-step routine: Notice, Name, Next Step.
When faced with an error, students must systematically identify what appears on their screen, clearly define the underlying issue (e.g., share permissions versus formatting), and select a productive next action.
"An AI ready learner is not someone who never gets stuck but instead there's someone who can work through the problem," Poolson noted. "They notice what's happening and then they can choose a productive next step."
Treadaway echoed the necessity of fostering this proactive mindset, sharing how passive habits can lead students to sit idle for entire class periods over minor issues like an uncharged laptop. By embedding agency into the daily classroom culture and providing alternative entry points through the Google ecosystem, teachers encourage learners to take ownership of their work.
Integrating Digital Literacy Without Curriculum Complexity
A major friction point for educators is the assumption that teaching digital literacy requires adding separate units to an already packed pacing guide. Treadaway and Poolson emphasized that digital literacy should be baked directly into existing subject-area standards.
In an English Language Arts classroom, for instance, peer review transitions seamlessly into Google Docs comments, while source evaluation happens naturally during research projects.
"It is a baked in theme to what we are teaching... pulling stuff from that to kind of work into the curriculum I think is helpful," Treadaway explained. "I think every subject and every class should pull it in as opposed to leaving it up to like oh yeah let ELA teach that because it's literacy."
Practical Takeaways for Primary and Secondary Educators
- Embed Digital Literacy Into Existing Lessons: Avoid adding standalone units for technology. Instead, incorporate source credibility discussions, version history reviews, and collaborative commenting directly into daily content assignments.
- Implement the "Notice, Name, Next Step" Protocol: Coach students through digital roadblocks by asking them what they see on their screen, prompting them to name the specific problem, and guiding them to select a productive next step before offering assistance.
- Prioritize Process over Final Artifacts: Utilize Google Docs and Slides as working spaces for planning, drafting, and reflection rather than just digital dropboxes for final grades.
- Validate Student Voice to Build Confidence: Create a supportive classroom culture where students are encouraged to articulate their own opinions and revise their work rather than searching online for predetermined answers.
What's Next?
- Join the Community Discussion: Share your own classroom strategies for teaching cognitive flexibility in the Global Google Educator Group.
- Attend Upcoming Global GEG and Other Events: Stay connected with local and international educators for future live professional development opportunities.
Shared Event Resources
- Digital Citizenship and Safety Course: Access the Digital Citizenship and Safety Course to find professional development modules on source evaluation, safety, and responsible online communication.
- Applied Digital Skills Curriculum: Explore the Applied Digital Skills Repository for free, video-based, project-driven lessons that promote adaptive problem-solving.
- Evaluate Credibility of Online Sources Curriculum: Utilize the Evaluating Online Sources Curriculum to teach secondary learners how to verify sources, detect bias, and fact-check internet findings.
- Be Internet Awesome Guide: Download the Be Internet Awesome Curriculum Guide to cultivate critical digital literacy and constructive online interactions.
Related Google AI Educator Series Content
To build upon the strategies shared during this session, explore these self-paced courses from the free Google AI Educator Series, developed in partnership with ISTE+ASCD:
- Build Student Inquiry Skills: Discover how to scaffold student interactions with AI and digital search platforms. This module directly expands on Ashton Treadaway's emphasis on information literacy, providing frameworks to help high schoolers critically evaluate digital sources and formulate independent conclusions.
- Design Assessments That Capture Student Thinking: This module directly aligns with Tara Poolson's core message regarding visible learning. It guides educators on leveraging Gemini to build assessment structures and reflection prompts that showcase a student's underlying reasoning, planning, and revisions rather than just grading a final, static product.
- Evaluate Resources and Claims: Access this lesson to discover practical frameworks for teaching information literacy. This lesson anchors Ashton Treadaway's emphasis on critical thinking in the digital age, showing teachers how to guide students in cross-examining online content, identifying source bias, and fact-checking generated outputs before using them in research.
This content was created by a human and refined by Gemini.
Event Recording
