Competencias digitales de los estudiantes de educaciónestudio descriptivo sobre bases formativas y eficacia en el empleo de las tic

Résumé

ABSTRACT In today’s Information and Knowledge Society, training in technological competence to communicate culturally, access the labor market, and the sustainability up-to-date and lifelong training is of great relevance. In this sense, digital competence is one of the critical competencies of the modern citizen (Silva, Usart, and Lázaro, 2019) and is key to achieving digital citizenship (Aristizabal and Cruz, 2018). The aim of this research is to describe the digital core competencies of university students of the bachelor’s degree in Social Education and the bachelor’s degree in Social Work and Social Education at Pablo de Olavide University, corresponding to the academic years 2016-17; 2017-18 and 2018- 2019. For this purpose, a non-experimental, exploratory research design was used based on a questionnaire as an information-gathering tool. The data were collected through a questionnaire called “Basic Digital Competencies 2. 0 of University Students” COBADI® (Registered trademark at the Patent and Trademark Office (Spain): 2 970 648). This was created and tested by researchers of the EDUINNOVAGOGÍA® research group (HUM-971). The group was recognized by the Andalusian Plan for Research, Development, and Innovation and the Office for Transfer of Research Results of the Pablo de Olavide University. Vice-rectorate of Teaching and European Convergence of the University. The results revealed it was possible to determine the level of competence in using ICTs for the information processing of students at this institution. Also, it was possible to analyze which interpersonal skills in using ICTs students possess in the university context and which virtual and social communication tools are used more frequently by university students. In addition, it can be inferred from the results got that the first-year students of both degrees at Universidad Pablo Olavide have several essential and initial digital skills such as searching for information, taking part in social networks, or using forums where they can make small forays, but are unaware of more specific digital resources and applications both for searching and processing information and for social communication and collaborative learning. They make greater use of digital competence, mainly confined to the area of information management and informational literacy, i.e. searching and processing information online, web browsing, and selecting digital educational content in digital ecosystems. On the other hand, the level of training decreases (from moderate to low) in more complex competencies such as the creation of digital teaching resources (webquest, e-portfolio, blog, wiki, etc.), spreadsheet management, database management, and multimedia presentation design; this also coincides with the findings of other research projects (Coronado, Cantú and Rodríguez, 2014). Finally, regarding the use of the digital services offered by the University, it should be noted that most university students expressed complete mastery of the use of the University’s digital platform but rarely used other services, such as the University’s social networks or the University’s news journal. UNESCO (2015), in the 2030 Framework of Action for Education, highlights the potential of digital technologies and the relevance of training in technological skills for access to the labor market. Similarly, although it is undeniable, that technology is constantly present in our lives today, in times of health crisis, today more than ever, they have become a crucial and indispensable element for the social, educational, and economic fabric of countries around the world. We want to close this section by highlighting that in these times of social and health crisis; it is a historical fact that this Technological Society also allows generating synergies and collaborative experiences (Burgos-Videla, Vázquez-Cano, López-Meneses & Adaos-Orrego, 2021; Gómez Galán, 2021), offering us an opportunity to execute joint efforts based on rationality solidarity and humanism, which will help to mitigate the consequences of COVID-19 and prepare a better post-pandemic scenario (Jiménez-Sánchez, 2020). Consequently, we believe educational institutions cannot remain outside this technological context and must play a new role as drivers of competencies that future graduates will have to manage in their academic, personal, and professional development throughout their life (Bhuasiri et al., 2012; Gozálvez et al., 2014; Amellini & De Stefani, 2015; Cabero et al. 2018; Gómez Galán, 2020; López-Meneses et al., 2020). In this sense, the Pablo de Olavide University, always at the service of society, has been committed to the critical use and digitalization of university education.