Articles listed on this page are authored or co-written by members of Centre for Digital Methods and Media.
Some articles are published directly by CDMM Publications and offered in free PDF editions.
Other articles may be from external publishers, with varying formats and conditions for access.
CDMM White Paper: Teaching Digital Methods. Experiences on the BA Level in Media Studies at Aarhus University, by Christoph Raetzsch & Niels Brügger, 2026.
Abstract: Teaching digital methods in the humanities is increasingly in demand across departments and educational programmes. As digital methods become more sophisticated across research and teaching, students are expected to develop both specific and general digital competences. In this white paper, we draw on five years of experience designing and teaching an introductory digital methods course for the BA programme in Media Studies. The paper contributes to ongoing debates about how technical skills can be taught in the humanities without compromising the core principles of humanities research. We describe the course's structure, content, aims, and overall didactic approach. Our main contribution is a list of key insights into managing the learning experience, aligning teaching with students' interests, fostering a collaborative learning culture, and developing both practical and transferable skills for data-based research and analysis. Finally, we discuss the infrastructural and institutional conditions that support successful course design and implementation. The paper is intended for postgraduate students and university educators seeking to balance disciplinary traditions in the humanities with the integration of digital skills in research and teaching.
Get the article here.
Get Appendix 1 - Course Syllabus 2026 (in Danish) here.
Get Appendix 2 - Data Processing and Risk Assessment (in Danish) here.
Get Appendix 3 - Template Orange Workspace (.ows workflow file) here.
Get Creative Commons license file for the entire publication here.
The .ows data file with the workflow (Appendix 3) was created and can be read in Orange Data Mining (version 3.40). More information on Orange Data Mining may be found here: Orange Data Mining
CDMM White Paper: A Matrix for Testing IT Proficiency - History and General Design, by Asger Harlung, 2026.
Abstract:
This article provides the history of, and the background for the underlying design for an IT proficiency test which was originally designed for researchers concerned with a specific research area (web history) in 2019, and redesigned and updated for students and researchers in the digital humanities in 2025-6.
As in the original version, the redesigned test takes it offset in large-scale research conducted by the OECD, and addresses IT skills as a matter of performance rather than experience with specific programs or expertise in specific technical areas. The test thus seeks to show users their proficiency in employing IT skills on an abstract level, rather than assessing their specific know-how. Based on the user’s input, the results of the test are conveyed in a way where users can assess their own skill level and what they can do to improve it.
The article discusses the implications and advantages of performance-based measuring of skills over the traditional operational approach. The performance-based approach has been rare, and the test in its original form seems to have been the first public IT skill test with this approach. The redesigned version from CDMM may still be the only one in this category.
The article is published alongside the public release in 2026 of the updated version of the test, which is available for public use on the CDMM website: CDMM’s IT Proficiency Test.
Get the article here.
