Information and digital literacy in education via the digital path

Digital Competence has become a hot topic, especially for school education. While schools are still struggling with the digital infrastructure, students are already using digital technologies widely, for life and leisure, but also to support their learning - whether or not this is foreseen in curricula. Students' life is a digital life.

Schools, teachers and education ministries are aware of this and are increasingly focusing on developing curricula, guidelines or materials to ensure that students use technology creatively and critically, effectively, meaningfully and responsibly.

As programmes focusing on students' digital competence are taking off, the call for equipping teachers – or more generally: educators at all levels – with digital skills is getting louder. But what are the digital competences educators need to have? Are we talking about dealing with digital devices or compiling digital learning resources? Are we talking about technical skills or pedagogical competences? What is it that makes an educator – as educator – digitally competent?

The European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu) intends to answer these questions. And its answer is easy: Yes, educators do need to have a good level of overall digital competence (as captured for example in the 'DigComp' general Digital Competence Framework for Citizens), because they are citizens in a digital age and role models for the next generation. However, to be digitally competent educators, they need a specific set of competences that focuses on their professional activities.