Digital competence profiles of first year, pre-service teachers. Analysis in the Catalan university system

Abstract

Like many other countries around the world, Catalonia is currently facing an urgent need for digitally competent teachers. Understanding the profile of first-year, pre-service teachers in relation to their teacher digital competence (TDC) can help design effective training programmes for future educators. The present study aims to measure the TDC profile of first-year, pre-service teachers along with the demographic variables related. A quantitative approach with a not experimental design was conducted in the 2018–19 academic year, to perform a cluster analysis. Three TDC groups emerge from a sample of 947 participants: Confident (n = 525), Average (n = 311), and Realistic (n = 111). Two variables show significant differences among groups: age and access to university. Both younger students and those coming from vocational training should be guided intensively during their initial training. On the other hand, gender and type of studies are distributed similarly across the three profiles. These findings have implications for developing pre-service teachers’ digital competence. In particular, the findings of this study highlight the need for all Catalan universities to develop a critical and common perspective, considering personal and professional factors of TDC as a key aspect for designing and implementing training in the curriculum.