Evaluation of digital competence level among educators in UAE Higher Education Institutions using Digital Competence of Educators (DigComEdu) framework

Educ Inf Technol (Dordr). 2023;28(3):2485-2508. doi: 10.1007/s10639-022-11296-x. Epub 2022 Aug 20.

Abstract

Digital competence has become an important issue in academia owing to the advent of various communication tools. This study used a standardized questionnaire based on the Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu) framework, which is a validated comprehensive framework, and its associated assessment tool. This tool was designed to assess professional skills of faculties in higher education institutes in United Arab Emirates (UAE) in terms of their abilities to use information and communication technology (ICT) and current digital competences in their teaching and educational practices. We conducted an online survey to help participants reflect on their strengths and weaknesses while using digital technologies in education to find correlation between them, thus helping teachers determine their relative strengths and identify areas that need more attention.

Keywords: DigComEdu Framework; Digital competences; Digital technologies; E-learning; Higher education.