Digital Competence Measure

Abstract

The Digital Competence Measure (DCM), developed by Runge and colleagues in 2023, is a specialized 12-item psychometric inventory designed to quantify teachers’ beliefs concerning their professional Digital Competence. The instrument specifically focuses on the perceived capacity of educators to utilize technology effectively to achieve critical pedagogical goals: differentiation and the active engagement of learners.

The development of the DCM was theoretically anchored in the European Digital Competence Framework for Educators (DigCompEdu; Redecker & Punie, 2017). The instrument was validated using an online sample of German teachers, and subsequent reporting confirmed the satisfactory reliability and factor structure necessary for academic research.

Keywords

Teacher Digital Competence, Digital Competence-Related Beliefs, Differentiation, Actively Engaging Learners, Teacher Attitudes, Structural Equation Modeling, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, McDonald’s Omega.

Authors

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

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the Digital Competence Measure is to provide a standardized, quantitative assessment of teachers’ self-efficacy and beliefs regarding their instructional quality when integrating digital tools. It aims to measure the extent to which teachers believe they possess the necessary competence to empower learners through technology-enhanced teaching practices.

The scale focuses on quantifying perceived competence in two key areas: utilizing digital tools for differentiation (tailoring instruction to diverse student needs) and implementing strategies for active engagement, thereby providing insight into the practical pedagogical application of a teacher’s digital skills.

Construct

The DCM measures Digital Competence-Related Beliefs, which represents a teacher’s perceived capacity and confidence to utilize digital technologies to improve instructional outcomes. These beliefs are structured across two distinct sub-dimensions, based on the framework domains related to empowering learners.

The two primary dimensions assessed are: 1) Digital competence-related beliefs regarding differentiation, which includes personalized learning and adapting pace/difficulty using technology; and 2) Digital competence-related beliefs regarding actively engaging learners, focusing on the use of motivating digital activities such as games or quizzes to promote student participation.

Validity

Specific empirical data regarding detailed validity indices (e.g., criterion-related or convergent validity beyond the established factor structure) are not explicitly available in the summarized source documentation. However, the instrument’s foundation in the rigorous European Digital Competence Framework for Educators (DigCompEdu) provides strong theoretical backing for its content validity.

Reliability

The Digital Competence Measure exhibits high internal consistency, suggesting that the items within the scale reliably measure the intended constructs. Reliability analysis was conducted using McDonald’s Omega, a robust measure of reliability often preferred over Cronbach’s Alpha in structural equation modeling contexts.

The reported McDonald’s Omega values for both the subscales and the total scale ranged from .93 to .96. These values indicate excellent internal consistency, confirming the scale’s stability and coherence for measuring teachers’ competence-related beliefs.

Factor Analysis

The psychometric evaluation of the DCM involved sophisticated testing of multiple factor structures to determine the most accurate measurement model. The investigated models included standard Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), bi-factor CFA, Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling (ESEM), and bi-factor ESEM.

The researchers determined that the bifactor CFA model provided the most comprehensive and justifiable representation of the data. This model suggests that while there is a strong overarching general factor of digital competence-related beliefs, the two sub-dimensions—differentiation and actively engaging learners—are sufficiently distinct to be retained as separate, meaningful factors within the overall construct.

Instrument

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 measurement information is provided in English.

Population Group: Human; Male; Female

Age Group: Adulthood (18 years & older)

Population Details: The respondents consisted of teachers located in Germany who participated in an online evaluation study.

Test Methodology: The rigorous methodology involved comprehensive psychometric assessment, including Test Reliability, Internal Consistency assessment, various forms of Factor Analysis (CFA and ESEM), Measurement Model analysis, and Structural Equation Modeling.

Keywords

Measurement Model, Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling (ESEM), Digital Competence-Related Beliefs, Teacher Attitudes, McDonald’s Omega, Bifactor Modeling, Likert Scale.

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Runge, Isabell: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4335-7451; Lazarides, Rebecca: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0392-4981; Rubach, Charlott: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0451-6429; Richter, Dirk: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2384-1588; Scheiter, Katharina: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9397-7544

Affiliation Email addresses: Runge, Isabell: [email protected]

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 utilized for research and teaching purposes, provided such use remains non-commercial.

Commercial Use: No

Fee: No

Test Year: 2023

Reference’s

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

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Items of the Digital Competence Measure

The Digital Competence Measure consists of 12 items designed to assess two core subscales. The specific wording of the items is preserved below. For detailed scoring information and scale construction, consult the original 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.