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Digital teaching competence regarding foreign languages and learning modes at Official Language Schools in Andalusia (Spain)

Abstract

Despite the limited academic focus on the context of Official Language Schools (OLSs), these institutions play a crucial role in the formal education system, which are exclusively dedicated to foreign language teaching across various modalities in Andalu- sia, where ten different languages are taught. The main aim of this study is to perform an analysis the following two specific aspects: first, a descriptive analysis of the digital competence of 105 OLS teachers, and, second, a contrastive analysis examining potential differences in digital competence based on the language and teaching modalities (e.g., face- to-face vs. blended learning). This study uses the DigCompEdu framework to evaluate the digital skills of the teachers, revealing that, while they receive some training in digital competence, the overall level is only moderate, indicating a significant need for further professional development. Notably, the study highlights that the teachers’ ability to convey the importance of digital tools for educational purposes is a crucial area, particularly in an environment where digital natives and immigrants coexist, presenting an intergenera- tional digital divide. The contrastive analysis shows no significant differences in digital competence based on language or modality, pointing to the lack of specialized training for blended learning teachers, who must rely heavily on technology in their work. This study suggests future research should focus on the digital competence of students, considering age as a potential influential factor in language learning, and recommends designing a tailored digital competence training plan for OLS teachers based on the DigCompEdu framework, which could benefit foreign language educators broadly

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Digital teaching competence regarding foreign languages and learning modes at Official Language Schools in Andalusia (Spain)

Author: Rubio Gragera, María; Palacios Rodríguez, Antonio de Padua; Cabero Almenara, Julio; Fernández Scagliusi, Victoria
Publisher: MDPI
Year: 2025
DOI: 10.3390/soc15040099
Source: https://idus.us.es/bitstreams/25426d16-399e-4eef-8583-3ea4d233857c/download
Academic Edi o s: Flo in Lobon and
Vasile Ha
,egan
Recei ed: 9 Oc obe 2024
Re ised: 7 Ap il 2025
Accep ed: 8 Ap il 2025
Published: 11 Ap il 2025
Ci a ion: Rubio-G age a, M.;
Palacios-Rod íguez, A.;
Cabe o-Almena a, J.; Fe nández
Scagliusi, M.V. Digi al Teaching
Compe ence Rega ding Fo eign
Languages and Lea ning Modes a
O icial Language Schools in
Andalusia (Spain). Socie ies 2025,15,
99. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/
soc15040099
Copy igh : © 2025 by he au ho s.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land.
This a icle is an open access a icle
dis ibu ed unde he e ms and
condi ions o he C ea i e Commons
A ibu ion (CC BY) license
(h ps://c ea i ecommons.o g/
licenses/by/4.0/).
A icle
Digi al Teaching Compe ence Rega ding Fo eign Languages and
Lea ning Modes a O icial Language Schools in
Andalusia (Spain)
Ma ía Rubio-G age a 1, An onio Palacios-Rod íguez 2,* , Julio Cabe o-Almena a 2
and Mª Vic o ia Fe nández Scagliusi 2
1Depa men o Didac ics and Schola O ganiza ion, Uni e si y o Malaga, 29010 Malaga, Spain;
[email p o ec ed]
2Depa men o Didac ics and Educa ional O ganiza ion, Uni e si y o Se ille, 41007 Se ille, Spain;
[email p o ec ed] (J.C.-A.); [email p o ec ed] (M.V.F.S.)
*Co espondence: ap [email p o ec ed]
Abs ac : Despi e he limi ed academic ocus on he con ex o O icial Language Schools
(OLSs), hese ins i u ions play a c ucial ole in he o mal educa ion sys em, which a e
exclusi ely dedica ed o o eign language eaching ac oss a ious modali ies in Andalu-
sia, whe e en di e en languages a e augh . The main aim o his s udy is o pe o m
an analysis he ollowing wo speci ic aspec s: i s , a desc ip i e analysis o he digi al
compe ence o 105 OLS eache s, and, second, a con as i e analysis examining po en ial
di e ences in digi al compe ence based on he language and eaching modali ies (e.g., ace-
o- ace s. blended lea ning). This s udy uses he DigCompEdu amewo k o e alua e
he digi al skills o he eache s, e ealing ha , while hey ecei e some aining in digi al
compe ence, he o e all le el is only mode a e, indica ing a signi ican need o u he
p o essional de elopmen . No ably, he s udy highligh s ha he eache s’ abili y o con ey
he impo ance o digi al ools o educa ional pu poses is a c ucial a ea, pa icula ly in
an en i onmen whe e digi al na i es and immig an s coexis , p esen ing an in e gene a-
ional digi al di ide. The con as i e analysis shows no signi ican di e ences in digi al
compe ence based on language o modali y, poin ing o he lack o specialized aining o
blended lea ning eache s, who mus ely hea ily on echnology in hei wo k. This s udy
sugges s u u e esea ch should ocus on he digi al compe ence o s uden s, conside ing
age as a po en ial in luen ial ac o in language lea ning, and ecommends designing a
ailo ed digi al compe ence aining plan o OLS eache s based on he DigCompEdu
amewo k, which could bene i o eign language educa o s b oadly.
Keywo ds: ICT; digi al compe ence in eaching; DigCompEdu; language eaching; o icial
language school
1. In oduc ion
The ela ionship be ween echnology and he eaching–lea ning p ocess o o eign
languages is a con inuous and impo an sou ce o inno a ion, and a undamen al objec o
s udy o language lea ning esea ch [
1
]. Howe e , he scien i ic li e a u e in he ield o
o eign language didac ics ha ocuses speci ically on he class ooms o O icial Language
Schools is sca ce, pa icula ly when compa ed o he nume ous s udies conduc ed on
o mal educa ion a he ea ly childhood, p ima y, and seconda y le els. Consequen ly,
his emains a ela i ely unde explo ed a ea o esea ch o da e. Ne e heless, language
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/soc15040099
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 2 o 12
eaching s ands ou o i s impo ance in any educa ional sys em. P oo o his is A icle 26
o he Uni e sal Decla a ion o Human Righ s [2], which eads as ollows:
“Educa ion shall be di ec ed o he ull de elopmen o he human pe sonali y
and o he s eng hening o espec o human igh s and undamen al eedoms;
i shall p omo e unde s anding, ole ance and iendship among all na ions, acial
o eligious g oups, and shall u he he ac i i ies o he Uni ed Na ions o he
main enance o peace.”
On he o he hand, a he na ional le el, he e a e also legisla i e ex s ha egula e
he eaching o languages, which is u he p oo ha his subjec has, in i sel , su icien
weigh o be included in he aining o e wi hin he egula ed aining in Spain.
The O ganic Law 2/2006, o 3 May, on Educa ion [
3
] also egula es language eaching,
es ablishing ha i shall be o ganized by O icial Language Schools and adap ed o he
p o iciency le els ecommended by he Council o Eu ope.
Speci ically, O ganic Law 3/2020, o 29 Decembe [
4
], con empla es he egula ion o
he eaching o o eign languages in Chap e VII o Ti le I, The Teaching and i s O ganiza ion.
Be ween A icles 59 and 62, his law includes aspec s ela ed o language eaching in
e ms o i s o ganiza ion, he unc ion o he O icial Language Schools, including hei
educa ional o e ings and hei eaching modali ies, as well as hei ce i ica ions and he
co espondence o hese deg ees wi h o he s o he Spanish educa ional sys em.
Simila ly, Andalusian egional legisla ion mus be conside ed and men ioned, pa icu-
la ly Law 17/2007, o 10 Decembe 2007, on Educa ion in Andalusia [
5
], whose Chap e
VII is also dedica ed speci ically o o eign language lea ning (A icles 101–103).
2. Theo e ical F amewo k
This sec ion p o ides an o e iew o he key concep s and con ex s ele an o he
s udy. I aims o es ablish he heo e ical basis o unde s anding he ole o O icial
Language Schools (OLSs) in he b oade educa ional landscape.
2.1. O icial Language Schools (OLSs) as an Educa ional Con ex
The OLSs a e publicly owned cen e s dedica ed exclusi ely o he eaching o lan-
guages and dependen on he educa ional adminis a ions. A aujo [
6
] p o ided a b ie
e iew o he o igin o hese academic ins i u ions, which ha e hei beginning in 1911, in
wha he Escuela de Idiomas Jesús Maes o de Mad id is cu en ly. A p esen , he OLS
o Villaca illo (Jaén) [
7
] de ines hem as “a as ne wo k o non-uni e si y le el cen e s
dedica ed o he specialized eaching o mode n languages”. They a e cen e s dependen
on he Minis ies o Educa ion o he di e en Au onomous Communi ies and a e amed
wi hin he Special Regime Educa ion (E.R.E.).
In Andalusia, he Escuela O icial de Idiomas o Málaga [
8
] was he i s o be es ab-
lished in he au onomous communi y in 1970, becoming a e e ence o he es o he
Andalusian OLSs, and he la ges in e ms o acili ies, academic o e ings, and eaching
s a . In addi ion, depending on i s capaci y, he ollowing languages a e also augh : Ge -
man, A abic, Chinese, Spanish o o eigne s, Mode n G eek, I alian, Japanese, Po uguese,
and Russian.
Wi hin he aining o e ings in he class oom modes, he e a e cou ses exclusi ely
o he eaching s a o he public schools o he Jun a de Andalucía (Regional Go e n-
men o Andalusia, Sou h Spain), especially hose belonging o bilingual cen e s. These
cou ses a e called CAL (Language Upda e Cou ses by i s ac onym in Spanish) and a e
pa o he P omo ion o Plu ilingualism Plan app o ed in 2005 by he Jun a de Andalucía
(Regional Go e nmen ).
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 3 o 12
In addi ion o he gene al eaching o e ings, some OLSs o e so-called cou ses o
upda ing, imp o emen , and specializa ion in language skills.
The lea ning le els a e di ided in o he ollowing h ee le els, acco ding o he Com-
mon Eu opean F amewo k o Re e ence o Languages (CEFR) o he Council o Eu ope:
basic (A1 and A2), in e media e (B1 and B2), and ad anced (C1 and C2). In mos Andalu-
sian OLSs, each le el is augh in wo academic yea s, so ha , in hose schools ha o e all
le els o he same language, such as English in he OLS o Malaga, s uden s, i hey s a
om he lowes le el, mus ake up o a o al o eigh academic yea s o comple e he en i e
aining o e up o he ad anced C2 le el.
Rega ding he eaching modali ies, he Depa men o Educa ion and Spo s o he
Regional Go e nmen o Andalusia makes a ailable o he needs o he ci izenship he
ace- o- ace, blended, and dis ance lea ning modali ies in he educa ional o e ings o he
O icial Language Schools. In he ace- o- ace modali y, a endance is compulso y, and he
s uden s ha e wo calls, bo h o p omo ion and o passing he ce i ica ion es o he
co esponding le el. In o al, ace- o- ace eaching is ou and a hal hou s a week, excep
o he non-Romance languages, which, due o he cha ac e is ics in ol ed in hei s udy,
in he lowe le els, he ime able con empla es a o al o six hou s a week.
On he o he hand, he semi-a endance and dis ance modali ies a e egula ed in
Dec ee 359/2001, o 7 Decembe , on Ini ial Voca ional T aining, Adul Pe manen Educa ion,
specialized languages and spo s [
9
]. Wha di e en ia es his modali y om he ace- o- ace
one is ha he e is a pa ha is ca ied ou elema ically h ough a i ual pla o m, in
which he online con en s and he o a wi h he eaching s a a e combined wi h a smalle
ace- o- ace pa , al hough i is also compulso y.
Finally, he e a e also many s uden s who may choose exam-only en ollmen as an
ex e nal candida e ins ead o egula en ollmen o cou ses and ce i ica ion exams.
Rega ding he s uden p o ile in his educa ional con ex , i is essen ial o highligh
how in e gene a ional he class oom o an O icial Language School is. The admission
p ocess begins a 16 yea s o age, meaning ha , while mos s uden s a e adul s, he e
is a coexis ence o digi al na i es and immig an s (including eache s). In his con ex ,
Palacios-Rod íguez e al. [
10
] desc ibe a scena io whe e digi al na i es coexis wi h eache s,
who expe ience a ange o eac ions o digi al media, om bewilde men and admi a ion
o ejec ion. In he speci ic educa ional con ex add essed he e, his si ua ion is u he
complica ed by he in e gene a ional coexis ence among s uden s, which unde sco es
he impo ance o eache s’ abili y o manage his di e si y. E ec i ely add essing his
di e si y is, he e o e, a c ucial ac o in he eaching and lea ning p ocess. Fu he mo e,
a mo e p ecise unde s anding o he immig an s uden p o ile, pa icula ly in e ms o
hei digi al compe ences and challenges, is essen ial o ensu ing inclusi e and e ec i e
language educa ion.
2.2. ICT Implemen a ion, Digi al Teaching Compe ence, and Di e ences Be ween Face- o-Face and
Vi uali y in he Language Class oom: The S a e o he A
Educa ional esea ch in he 21s cen u y ad oca es o he ela ionship be ween ech-
nology and language eaching and lea ning, as e idenced by nume ous s udies o e ime,
such as ha o Mu ay [
11
] and Ma ínez-So o [
12
], in which ICTs a e conside ed as a acili-
a ing ac o in language lea ning, bo h na i e and o eign, while p omo ing a e lec ion
on hei use, so ha hei implemen a ion can be p oduc i e o s uden s. Looking u he
back in ime, i becomes e iden ha echnology has played a ole in o eign language
eaching since much ea lie , wi h he eme gence o he i s language labo a o ies in he
1950s aimed a implemen ing he audio-lingual me hod in language ins uc ion.
Digi al media can se e o suppo bo h indi idual and coope a i e wo k in he lan-
guage class oom [
13
]. In ac , o eign languages s and ou wi h ega d o he inco po a ion
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 4 o 12
o echnological esou ces in he academic ield, as hey boos in e ac i i y, mo i a ion,
e iciency, and knowledge op imiza ion in a lexible en i onmen [
14
,
15
]. In his ega d,
Be nedo-So o and Mu illo-Ticona [
16
] also conside digi al ools as a se o use ul esou ces
in he meaning ul in e ac ion be ween eache s and s uden s, as hey p omo e an e ec i e
and mo i a ing en i onmen in he p ocesses o he lea ning and acquisi ion o a o eign
language. Technology can be used o wo k on bo h he comp ehension and p oduc ion
ac i i ies o he a ge language, c ea e lea ning condi ions beyond he con en ional, and
a o s uden s’ in e es s [17].
Bu he ela ionship be ween ICT and second language eaching means going beyond
eaching wi h echnologies. Implemen ing digi al ools equi es cons an inno a ion, since
hese ools a e inc easingly sophis ica ed, and only a didac ic use o hem can eally
s eng hen he language eaching–lea ning p ocess [15,17].
Today, no using digi al echnologies in he class oom is un hinkable o a language
eache . The e is an in ima e ela ionship be ween echnology and language eaching and
lea ning ha anscends he ins umen al; he e o e, showing, p o iding, and managing
lea ning oppo uni ies is a undamen al ask o he 21s cen u y eache [1].
In iew o his, digi al eaching compe ence becomes indispensable. Tha is, i is a
compe ence ela ed o all o he skills, a i udes, and knowledge equi ed by eache s in
a digi alized wo ld, i.e., a digi al compe ence ela ed o he use o ICT om a didac ic–
pedagogical pe spec i e in a p o essional educa ional con ex , and, he e o e, di e en in
many aspec s o hose digi al compe ences used in he domes ic en i onmen [18].
In his ega d, aining in digi al compe ences o language eache s in gene al, and
o eache s o O icial Language Schools in Andalusia in pa icula , is conside ed essen ial.
As no ed by Cabe o e al. [
19
], using he model o e ed by he DigCompEdu amewo k
ep esen s a pa adigma ic example o digi al eaching compe ence (DTC), ou lining he com-
pe ency a eas ha eache s should de elop. A Eu opean Digi al Compe ence F amewo k,
published a he end o 2017 by he Join Resea ch Cen e o he Eu opean Commission,
be e known as JRC o i s ac onym in English (Join Resea ch Cen e), was c ea ed wi h
scien i ic igo in o de o guide policies in his a ea, and o be able o be adap ed o e-
gional and na ional ools and aining p og ams. The Eu opean F amewo k o Digi al
Compe ence o Teache s, DigCompEdu, is aimed a eache s a all le els o educa ion,
including hose wo king in non- o mal lea ning con ex s. I s main objec i e is o be a
gene al e e ence amewo k o de elope s o digi al compe ence models in all membe
s a es. This amewo k is s uc u ed a ound 22 compe ences o ganized in 6 a eas ha will
be u he de eloped [20].
Wi h ega d o ace- o- ace class ooms, ICTs ha e also p o ided a la ge numbe o ools
ha ha e made his jus one mo e educa ional al e na i e, since hey enable he di e si ica-
ion o eaching s a egies [
21
]. S udies, such as ha o González-Medina e al. [
22
], show
ha hyb id, blended, o b-lea ning me hodologies a e an al e na i e o imp o e English
language lea ning o complemen and enhance lea ning, o example, o bo h ecep i e and
p oduc i e o al skills.
Howe e , he use o echnologies in he dis ance lea ning o o eign languages can
also p esen p oblems, as became e iden wi h he compulso y use o hese echnologies
du ing he lockdowns caused by he COVID-19 pandemic. P oo o his is he esea ch
ca ied ou by Ál a ez-Ramos e al. [
23
], which highligh s he challenge in e alua ion gi en
he exis ing gaps due o connec ion e o s o digi al de ices, and he in luence o his o
he wo k, o example, he o al skills men ioned abo e, which can e en lead o a lack o
in e es and mo i a ion on he pa o s uden s.
Howe e , he e is no doub ha aining in digi al compe ences, bo h on he pa
o eache s and s uden s, allows o a be e use o echnologies in he eaching–lea ning
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 5 o 12
p ocess, especially wi h ega d o o eign language eaching, whe e a lea ning en i onmen
ou side o he adi ional class oom limi s he ace- o- ace in e ac ion o s uden s wi h
he eache [16].
3. Objec i es and Resea ch Ques ions
This s udy is s uc u ed a ound he ollowing wo speci ic objec i es: on he one hand,
o assess, h ough a desc ip i e s udy, he le el o digi al compe ences o OLS eache s
in Andalusia based on he model o e ed by he DigCompEdu amewo k; on he o he
hand, h ough a con as i e s udy, o examine whe he he e a e signi ican di e ences in
digi al compe ence depending on he language and eaching modali ies ( ace- o- ace o
blended). These objec i es a e in ended o suppo he o mula ion o p oposals o imp o e
eaching p ocesses in he a o emen ioned educa ional con ex , wi h special a en ion o
hei digi iza ion p ocesses.
F om he objec i es men ioned abo e, he ollowing esea ch ques ions (RQ) a ise:
RQ1. Is he e a signi ican di e ence in he le el o digi al compe ence based on he
language augh by he eache s, conside ing ha mos s udies on digi al compe ence in
o eign language eache s ha e adi ionally been ocused on English eache s?
RQ2. Does he le el o his digi al compe ence a y acco ding o he eaching modali y
employed ( ace- o- ace o blended lea ning) in he O icial Language Schools o Andalusia?
4. Me hodology
In acco dance wi h he c i e ia es ablished by He nández e al. [
24
], i can be consid-
e ed ha his s udy has been ca ied ou acco ding o a quan i a i e me hodology, wi h a
desc ip i e and co ela ional app oach. A quan i a i e me hodology e e s o a esea ch
s a egy ha ocuses on nume ical da a collec ion and s a is ical analysis o es hypo heses
and iden i y pa e ns. A desc ip i e app oach aims o sys ema ically cha ac e ize a phe-
nomenon by de ailing i s componen s, equencies, and dis ibu ions wi hou es ablishing
causal ela ionships. Meanwhile, a co ela ional app oach examines he ela ionships be-
ween wo o mo e a iables o de e mine he deg ee and di ec ion o associa ion wi hou
manipula ing hem.
4.1. Pa icipan s
The con enience sample used o he da a analysis consis s o 105 ac i e eache s
om he 52 Andalusian O icial Language Schools. This ep esen s 13.41% o he o al o
language eache s in Andalusian OLSs, since, acco ding o he da a collec ed on i s o icial
websi e, he numbe o ac i e eache s o he 2021/2022 academic yea , when he da a
collec ion ook place, was 783.
A con enience sampling app oach was chosen due o he olun a y na u e o he
pa icipa ion and he challenges associa ed wi h eaching he en i e popula ion o eache s.
Despi e his limi a ion, e o s we e made o ensu e he ep esen a i eness o he sample by
including eache s om all 52 schools ac oss he di e en geog aphical a eas o Andalusia.
Fu he mo e, he sample size (13.41% o he o al popula ion) p o ides a su icien ly la ge
da ase o meaning ul s a is ical analysis. While con enience sampling may in oduce
some deg ee o selec ion bias, he esul s emain eliable gi en he di e se ep esen a ion
o eache s and ins i u ions. Addi ionally, his sampling me hod is commonly used in
educa ional esea ch when comple e andomiza ion is no easible.
To conduc he con as i e s udy on he le el o digi al compe ence acco ding o he
language and modali y augh , a con enience sample was used consis ing o 54 English
eache s, 30 F ench eache s, 13 Ge man eache s, 2 A abic eache s, 2 Spanish as a o eign
language eache s, 1 Mode n G eek eache , 1 I alian eache , 1 Japanese eache , and

Socie ies 2025,15, 99 6 o 12
1 Po uguese eache . Due o he na u e o he sampling me hod, Russian eache s we e no
included in he s udy.
In e ms o he modali y used, 61 o he pa icipan s wo ked exclusi ely in he ace- o-
ace modali y, while 44 also wo ked in he blended o dis ance lea ning modali ies.
4.2. Ins umen
The ins umen used o da a collec ion was he DigCompEdu Check-In ques ionnai e,
o iginally de eloped by he JRC, and ansla ed, adap ed, and alida ed o he Spanish
con ex by Cabe o-Almena a and Palacios-Rod íguez [
18
]. The main objec i e o his
ques ionnai e is o iden i y he le el o digi al compe ence and o allow eache s o be e
unde s and he DigCompEdu amewo k, while p o iding hem wi h a ool o sel -assess
hei s eng hs and needs o a eas o imp o emen in digi al lea ning.
The ins umen collec ed da a om pa icipan s anonymously and was composed o a
o al o 67 ques ions, 22 o which belonged o he DigCompEdu compe ency a eas, namely
-
P o essional engagemen (D_A): unde s ood as he abili y o eache s o use digi al
compe ences o hei p o essional in e ac ion, and no only he imp o emen o
eaching i sel .
-
Digi al esou ces (D_B): e e s o he compe ence o implemen , loca e, make good use
o , and op imize digi al esou ces and con en .
-
Digi al pedagogy (D_C): ela es o he compe ence o apply echnology o
eaching me hodologies.
-
E alua ion and eedback (D_D): e e s o he use o digi al ools o e alua e s uden s
and imp o e he exis ing p ocesses o his pu pose.
-
Empowe ing s uden s (D_E): e e s o he p omo ion o s uden pa icipa ion and
lea ning h ough digi al media, paying special a en ion o he indi iduali ies, in e es s,
and needs o each s uden .
-
Facili a ion o digi al compe ence o s uden s (D_F): e e s o ans e ing he manage-
men o digi al compe ence o use as a ci izen o he s uden .
The es o he ques ions, 45 in o al, we e ocused on unde s anding ce ain sociode-
mog aphic a iables o he esponden s in o de o s udy, among o he s, he esea ch
objec i es se ou in his s udy.
Fo a co ec in e p e a ion o he da a analyzed, i is necessa y o ake in o accoun
ha he esponse in e al anged om 0 o 4 poin s. The e o e, as o he gene al s a is ical
alues, he mean alue eached by he pa icipa ing eache s in he whole ins umen can
be conside ed a e age (a ound he in e media e le el B1), since i was 2.37, wi h a s anda d
de ia ion o 0.56.
4.3. P ocedu e and Da a Analysis
4.3.1. Reliabili y
The eliabili y o he ques ionnai e was calcula ed using C onbach’s Alpha and Mc-
Donald’s Omega coe icien s, bo h o e all and o each o i s dimensions, and he esul s
ob ained a e p esen ed below (Table 1).
Acco ding o O’Dwye and Be naue [
25
], alues g ea e han 0.7 indica e high le els
o eliabili y o he ques ionnai e, bo h in e ms o he ins umen as a whole and in ela ion
o he di e en subsec ions ha comp ise i .
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 7 o 12
Table 1. Reliabili y s a is ics.
C onbach’s Alpha McDonald’s Omega
P o essional engagemen (D_A) 0.801 0.820
Digi al esou ces (D_B) 0.876 0.818
Digi al pedagogy (D_C) 0.898 0.816
E alua ion and eedback (D_D) 0.829 0.823
S uden empowe men (D_E) 0.839 0.839
Facili a ion o digi al compe ence o s uden s (D_F)
0.901 0.912
To al 0.979 0.987
4.3.2. Validi y
Table 2shows he ob ained and e e ence alues o he model i acco ding o Lé y
Mangin e al. [
26
], including he Chi-squa e (CMIN), goodness-o - i index (GFI), pa si-
monic goodness-o - i index (PGFI), no malized i index (NFI), and no malized pa simonic
i index (PNFI).
Table 2. Adjus men indices.
Index Resul FIT
CMIN 382.128 CMIN < 500
GFI 0.979 GFI > 0.7
PGFI 0.786 PGFI > 0.7
NFI 0.926 NFI > 0.7
PNFI 0.806 PNFI > 0.7
Toge he , he Composi e Reliabili y (CR), A e age Va iance Ex ac ed (AVE), and
Maximum Sha ed Va iance (MSV) coe icien s we e calcula ed. Table 3shows he esul s,
as well as he e e ence alues aken o he model i ing.
Table 3. Con e gen and disc iminan alidi y o he model.
Dimension CR FIT AVE FIT MSV FIT
P o essional engagemen (D_A) 0.789
CR > 0.7
0.642
CR > 0.5
0.552
MSV < AVE
Digi al esou ces (D_B) 0.746 0.673 0.523
Digi al pedagogy (D_C) 0.864 0.69 0.562
E alua ion and eedback (D_D) 0.858 0.684 0.418
S uden empowe men (D_E) 0.775 0.643 0.564
Facili a ion o digi al compe ence
o s uden s (D_F) 0.859 0.679 0.405
All o he igu es ob ained a e in ag eemen wi h he e e ence alues. The e o e, he
eliabili y o he model (CR) as well as i s con e gen (AVE) and disc iminan alidi y
(MSV) a e demons a ed.
5. Resul s
In his sec ion, he indings o his esea ch a e p esen ed in wo main subsec ions.
Fi s , he desc ip i e esul s ou line he dimensions in which he eache s demons a e
g ea e digi al compe ence, using s a is ical indica o s such as he mean (M) and s anda d
de ia ion (SD). Second, he con as analysis examines he di e ences in Teaching Digi al
Compe ence le els based on he language augh by he pa icipan eache s and he
eaching modali y hey use.
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 8 o 12
5.1. Desc ip i e Analysis
When o de ing he esul s by dimensions om highes o lowes , i can be obse ed
ha he su eyed eache s exhibi he highes le el o digi al compe ence in Dimension A
(P o essional Commi men ), wi h an a e age sco e o 2.66, and he lowes in Dimension
F (Facili a ing S uden s’ Digi al Compe ence), wi h an a e age o 1.87 poin s. Among
he in e media e dimensions, o de ed om highes o lowes le el o digi al compe ence,
Dimension E (Empowe ing Lea ne s) s ands ou wi h an a e age o 2.52 poin s, ollowed
by Dimensions B, C, and D (Digi al Resou ces, Digi al Pedagogy, and Assessmen and
Feedback), wi h a e age sco es o 2.45, 2.43, and 2.32 poin s, espec i ely.
A de ailed analysis o he indi idual i ems wi hin each dimension, as p esen ed in
Table 4, e eals ha he highes le els o digi al compe ence a e ound in he ou h i em o
Dimension A (“I pa icipa e in online aining cou ses, such as uni e si y online cou ses,
MOOCs, webina s
. . .
”), wi h an a e age o 3.13 poin s, he i s i em o Dimension E
(“When p oposing digi al asks, I conside and add ess po en ial challenges, such as equal
access o digi al de ices and esou ces, compa ibili y issues, o s uden s’ low le el o
digi al compe ence”), wi h an a e age o 2.97 poin s, and he second i em o Dimension
C (“I moni o he ac i i ies and in e ac ions o my s uden s in he online collabo a i e
en i onmen s we use”), wi h an a e age o 2.77 poin s.
Table 4. Gene al s a is ics.
M SD
D_A P o essional Commi men 2.66
0.680
A1—I sys ema ically use di e en digi al channels o imp o e communica ion wi h s uden s and pee s. 2.60
0.688
A2—I use digi al echnologies o wo k wi h my pee s inside and ou side my educa ional o ganiza ion. 2.22
0.930
A3—I ac i ely de elop my digi al eaching compe ence. 2.68
0.956
A4—I pa icipa e in online aining cou ses, such as uni e si y online cou ses, MOOCs, webina s. . . 3.13
0.991
D_B Digi al Resou ces 2.45
0.689
B1—I use di e en websi es and sea ch s a egies o ind and selec a wide ange o digi al esou ces. 2.59
0.805
B2—I c ea e my own digi al esou ces and modi y exis ing ones o adap hem o my needs as a eache . 2.55
1.083
B3—I p o ec sensi i e con en secu ely. 2.21
0.978
D_C Digi al Pedagogy 2.43
0.709
C1—I ca e ully conside how, when, and why o use digi al echnologies so o ensu e ha hei added alue is
exploi ed. 2.52
1.039
C2—I moni o he ac i i ies and in e ac ions o my s uden s in he online collabo a i e en i onmen s we use. 2.77
1.002
C3—When my s uden s wo k in g oups, hey use digi al echnologies o acqui e and documen knowledge. 2.17
0.965
C4—I use digi al echnologies o enable s uden s o plan, documen , and assess hei lea ning on hei own. 2.26
0.910
D_D E alua ion and Feedback 2.32
0.700
D1—I use digi al assessmen s a egies o moni o s uden p og ess. 2.25
0.875
D2—I analyze all a ailable da a o iden i y s uden s who need addi ional suppo . 2.30
0.856
D3—Use o digi al echnologies o p o ide e ec i e eedback. 2.40
0.894
D_E Empowe ing S uden s 2.52
0.755
E1—When p oposing digi al asks, I conside and add ess po en ial challenges, such as equal access o digi al
de ices and esou ces, compa ibili y issues, o s uden s’ low le el o digi al compe ence. 2.97
1.105
E2—Use o digi al echnologies o p o ide pe sonalized lea ning oppo uni ies o s uden s. 2.10
1.097
E3—Use o digi al echnologies o s uden s o ac i ely pa icipa e in class. 2.49
0.709
D_F Facili a ing S uden s’ Digi al Compe ence 1.87
0.702
F1—I each s uden s how o assess he eliabili y o in o ma ion ob ained online and o iden i y e oneous and/o
biased con en . 1.58
0.978
F2—I p opose asks ha equi e s uden s o use digi al media o communica e and collabo a e wi h each o he o
wi h an ex e nal audience. 1.84
0.867
F3—I p opose assignmen s ha equi e s uden s o c ea e digi al con en . 2.25
0.757
F4—I each s uden s how o beha e sa ely and esponsibly online. 1.49
1.030
F5—I encou age s uden s o use digi al echnologies c ea i ely o sol e conc e e p oblems. 2.18
0.864
Teaching Digi al Compe ence_To al 2.37
0.559
Socie ies 2025,15, 99 9 o 12
Con e sely, he i ems wi h he lowes le els o digi al compe ence a e all loca ed wi hin
Dimension F, which is consis en wi h he o e all esul s o he dimension. Speci ically,
i ems F4 (“I each s uden s how o beha e sa ely and esponsibly online”), F1 (“I each
s uden s how o assess he eliabili y o in o ma ion ob ained online and iden i y e oneous
and/o biased con en ”), and F2 (“I p opose asks ha equi e s uden s o use digi al media
o communica e and collabo a e wi h each o he o wi h an ex e nal audience”) p esen
he lowes le els o Teaching Digi al Compe ence, wi h a e age sco es o 1.49, 1.58, and
1.84 poin s, espec i ely.
5.2. Con as Analysis
In his sec ion, he aim is o ind s a is ically signi ican di e ences wi h espec o
he le el o Teaching Digi al Compe ence as a unc ion o language and he modali y
augh . The non-pa ame ic con as s a is ics o H K uskal–Wallis (language) and Mann–
Whi ney U a e applied. P e iously, i has been e i ied ha he sample main ains a
non-no mal dis ibu ion by pe o ming ku osis analysis and he Kolmogo o –Smi no
es (Sig. = 0.000).
The esul s o he con as analysis wi h he “language” a iable can be ound in Table 5.
Table 5. Teaching Digi al Compe ence con as wi h he a iable “language”.
D_A D_B D_C D_D D_E D_F Teaching Digi al
Compe ence_To al
K uskal–Wallis H 14.414 4.543 8.205 13.324 6.353 12.767 9.290
d 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
Sig. 0.072 0.805 0.414 0.101 0.608 0.120 0.318
As can be seen, no alue is signi ican (Sig. > 0.05), so i can be a i med ha he e
a e no s a is ically signi ican di e ences wi h espec o he le el o Teaching Digi al
Compe ence ( o al and by dimensions) depending on he language augh .
Finally, Table 6p esen s he esul s o he con as analysis wi h he “modali y” a iable.
Table 6. Teaching Digi al Compe ence con as wi h he a iable “modali y”.
D_A D_B D_C D_D D_E D_F Teaching Digi al
Compe ence_To al
Mann–Whi ney U 1186.000 1194.000 1329.500 1293.500 1218.500 1163.500 1255.000
W o Wilcoxon 3077.000 2184.000 2319.500 3184.500 2208.500 2153.500 2245.000
Z−1.021 −0.976 −0.082 −0.319 −0.811 −1.167 −0.565
Sig. 0.307 0.329 0.935 0.749 0.417 0.243 0.572
Again, no alue is signi ican (Sig. > 0.05). I is a i med ha he e a e no s a is ically
signi ican di e ences wi h espec o he le el o Teaching Digi al Compe ence ( o al and
by dimensions) as a unc ion o he modali y augh .
6. Conclusions
The main aim o his s udy was o analyze he Teaching Digi al Compe ence (TDC)
o O icial Language School eache s in Andalusia (Sou he n Spain). Fo his pu pose, he
DigCompEdu amewo k was used in o de o e alua e hei skills and po en ial di e ences
among hem based on hei eaching language as well as hei eaching modali y.
As a s a ing poin , he ques ionnai e’s eliabili y and alidi y we e ound o be high,
con i ming he obus ness o he esul s. This allows he indings o be compa ed wi h