Competencias digitales docentes en estudiantes de Pedagogía de la Universidad de Tarapacá. Un estudio de caso en el norte chileno

A teaching staff with Digital Teaching Competencies (DTC) is essential to facilitate the teaching-learning process and the development of students’ digital competencies. This study aims to assess the level of DTC of the students who are about to graduate from the Faculty of Education and Humanities at the University of Tarapacá. A mixed-methods research methodology was used, surveying 136 students who completed their professional practice in 2021 and have completed their pedagogical and disciplinary training. For the quantitative study, the DigCompEdu CheckIn questionnaire (Redecker, 2020) was applied, complemented by information gathering from a focus group of practice supervisors and analysis of the TIC subject syllabi for the qualitative study. The assessment obtained places students at a medium-high level, with only one area showing significant differences in favor of women. This assessment is reaffirmed by the opinion of practice supervisors and syllabus analysis. The high level of DTC assessment achieved can be justified by the virtual format during the pandemic period. Therefore, it is deemed necessary to carry out new investigations and not be complacent with the results obtained.