Digital Competence Measure

Abstract

The Digital Competence Measure (Runge et al., 2023) is an inventory/questionnaire designed to assess teachers’ digital competence-related beliefs, specifically focusing on their beliefs in empowering learners through differentiation and active engagement. This 12-item instrument was developed based on the European Digital Competence Framework for Educators (DigCompEdu; Redecker & Punie, 2017) and evaluated using an online sample of German teachers. The instrument’s reliability and factor structure have been reported.

Keywords

Measurement Model; Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling; Digital Competence-Related Beliefs Regarding Actively Engaging Learners; Digital Competence-Related Beliefs Regarding Differentiation; Teacher Attitudes; Empowering Learners

Authors

Runge, Isabell; Lazarides, Rebecca; Rubach, Charlott; Richter, Dirk; Scheiter, Katharina

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Purpose

The primary purpose of this questionnaire is to quantify teachers’ digital competence-related beliefs concerning their capacity to empower learners, particularly through differentiation and active engagement strategies.

Validity

No data is Available.

Reliability

Internal Consistency: McDonald’s Omega values for the subscales and total scale ranged from .93 to .96, indicating high internal consistency.

Factor Analysis

Multiple factor structures were investigated, including confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), bi-factor CFA, exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM), and bi-factor ESEM. The authors determined that the bifactor CFA model was the most comprehensive representation of teachers’ competence-related beliefs, given that the subdimensions of differentiation and actively engaging learners were defined as the most distinct.

Instrument: Digital Competence Measure

• Test Type: Original Inventory/Questionnaire

• Format: Items are rated on a five-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

• Language Available: German. The provided information is in English.

• Population Group: Human; Male; Female

• Age Group: Adulthood (18 years & older)

• Population Details: The respondents were teachers located in Germany.

• Test Methodology: The methodology involved Test Reliability, Internal Consistency assessment, Factor Analysis (including Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Exploratory Factor Analysis), Measurement Model analysis, and Structural Equation Modeling.

Keywords

Teacher Digital Competence; Digital Competence-Related Beliefs; Differentiation; Actively Engaging Learners; Teacher Attitudes; Empowering Learners.

Authors

• Runge, Isabell

  • Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4335-7451

  • Affiliation: University of Potsdam, Department of Educational Sciences

  • Email Address: [email protected]

• Lazarides, Rebecca

  • Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0392-4981

  • Affiliation: University of Potsdam, Department of Educational Sciences

• Rubach, Charlott

  • Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0451-6429

  • Affiliation: University of Rostock, Institute for School Pedagogy and Educational Research

• Richter, Dirk

  • Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2384-1588

  • Affiliation: University of Potsdam, Department of Educational Sciences

• Scheiter, Katharina

  • Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9397-7544

  • Affiliation: University of Potsdam, Department of Educational Sciences

• Correspondence Address: Runge, Isabell: University of Potsdam, Department of Educational Sciences, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 24-25, Potsdam, Germany, 14476, [email protected]

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

• Permissions: The instrument may be used for research and teaching purposes.

• Commercial Use: No

• Fee: No

• Test Year: 2023

References

Runge, I., Lazarides, R., Rubach, C., Richter, D., & Scheiter, K. (2023). Teacher-reported instructional quality in the context of technology-enhanced teaching: The role of teachers’ digital competence-related beliefs in empowering learners. Computers & Education, 198, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2023.104761

Items of the Digital Competence Measure

The Digital Competence Measure consists of 12 items. These items are designed to assess two subscales: Digital competence-related beliefs regarding differentiation and Digital competence-related beliefs regarding actively engaging learners. The specific wording of the items is available in the source reference: Runge et al., 2023, Table 1, Page 5.

Digital competence-related beliefs regarding differentiation

Diff01 I do not know how digital tools are supposed to help me implement personalized learning opportunities in the classroom.
Diff02 I can use digital tools to promote differentiation and personalization in the classroom.
Diff03 I can select and use learning activities with digital tools that allow students to progress at different paces and levels of difficulty.
Diff04 I can use a variety of digital tools when planning learning processes and learning assessments in class, which I adapt to the needs, levels, paces and preferences of the students.
Diff05 I can reflect on the effectiveness of digital tools to promote differentiation and personalization in the classroom and adapt my teaching strategies accordingly.
Diff06 I can revise and further develop digital tools for personalizing learning activities in my classroom.

Digital competence-related beliefs regarding actively engaging learners

Activ01 I find it difficult to use digital tools to motivate students in the classroom.
Activ02 I can use digital learning activities in class that are activating and engaging for my students (e.g., games, quizzes).
Activ03 I can select appropriate digital tools to promote active engagement of my students in the classroom.
Activ04 I can use a variety of digital tools to purposefully create diverse and effective lessons (e.g., to take into account different performance levels).
Activ05 I can reflect on the appropriateness of digital tools to enhance students’ active learning and adapt my teaching strategies accordingly.
Activ06 I can revise, innovate and further develop digital tools for strategies to actively engage students (e.g., self-regulated project work with digital technologies and tools).

Note. Items are rated from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree.