Construction of a digital literacy education support model and development and validation of a scale for physical...

Physical education majors have a dual identity as current learners and future educators. Their digital literacy is not only related to their adaptation to digital learning environments but also directly influences the development of their future competence in physical education teaching, training organization, and management practice. Therefore, it is necessary to systematically identify and strengthen educational support for their digital literacy development. However, existing studies have mainly focused on digital literacy levels or single influencing factors, with insufficient attention paid to the educational support structure underlying the formation of digital literacy. In particular, standardized measurement tools tailored to the context of physical education remain limited. This study aimed to construct a Digital Literacy Education Support model for physical education majors in China and to develop and validate a corresponding scale.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 physical education majors and 12 university teachers and counselors. The interview data were analyzed using grounded theory through three-stage coding, which identified five main categories: personal traits, symbiotic environment, school environment, social environment, and policy and institutional system. Based on these categories, an educational support model was constructed. Subsequently, an initial item pool was developed through literature analysis and expert review, and item analysis, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and reliability and validity testing were conducted using pilot and formal survey data.

The results showed that exploratory factor analysis supported a five-factor structure, explaining 58.119% of the total variance. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated good model fit (χ ²/df = 2.725, RMSEA = 0.037, CFI = 0.968, TLI = 0.965, IFI = 0.968). Cronbach's alpha coefficients, split-half reliability, and test-retest reliability for all dimensions met recommended psychometric standards, and the scale demonstrated good convergent and discriminant validity.

The findings suggest that the development of digital literacy among physical education majors is shaped by the joint effects of multilevel support involving individual, relational, school, social, and institutional conditions. The developed 30-item scale shows good reliability and validity and can provide a theoretical basis and practical tool for universities to diagnose and improve educational support for digital literacy among physical education majors.