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The implementation of digital technologies in teaching has demonstrated the importance of teacher digital competence (TDC) as a key element in educating 21st-century citizens. The complex nature of TDC makes it challenging to find a definition that encompasses the full meaning of the term. This paper offers a systematic literature review based on the PRISMA Statement, analyzing the definitions of TDC in 31 publications with the aim of identifying their similarities and differences and reviewing their relationship with the dimensions that make up TDC. The results show an imbalance in the dimensions present, and notably, an almost universal absence of the relational, ethical and security dimension. The paper concludes by offering an integrative definition of TDC that enables teachers and educational institutions to understand the scope of this professional competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problematic Internet Use (PIU) is becoming common among university students. This research set out to identify the psychological and physical variables associated with PIU and examine the influence of PIU on these variables. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted in the Web of Science and Scopus databases. The review found 51 studies with a total sample size of 136,760 subjects, while 12 studies were identified for the meta-analysis. The results showed that the main psychological and physical variables associated with PIU are a lack of self-control, anxiety, low self-esteem, low levels of physical activity, and low academic self-efficacy. However, the meta-analysis found that only PIU -- for which statistically significant differences were observed -- was a predictor of anxiety and low self-esteem. Lastly, this paper discusses the practical implications of this research and the need for preventive action and education on the proper use of technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes and analyzes the level of digital competence in high school teachers in the autonomous community of Aragon (Spain). It takes the standards set by international organizations and the Spanish Ministry of Education as a basis to define the dimensions of digital competence and the two aspects studied: technical knowledge and educational application. Data was collected through a purpose-built questionnaire. The results show that teachers recognize the contribution that ITC can make to the teaching-learning process, but that, despite an average level of performance for personal use (searching for information, using the most common tools), teachers’ application of ITC to education is poor. The results highlight the need to strengthen teachers’ initial training and promote continuing education programs to develop competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows the results of a comparative study with a quantitative approach, which aimed to analyze how introducing videos as open educational resources (OERs) in mathematics in a blended learning modality affects junior high school students' academic performance, motivation and level of satisfaction. The study was conducted in a private institution south of the city of Monterrey (Nuevo León, Mexico) where, through a post-test assessment and observation of various activities, a considerable improvement was observed in the experimental group's academic performance with respect to the control group. In addition, the questionnaire administered to the experimental group showed a high level of motivation and satisfaction toward the distance modality supported by videos as OERs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers the results of a quantitative study carried out with the aim of defining the technological skills profile of 301 students entering the BA in elementary education. A 29-question digital survey was used; results reflect a prevalence of female students over 30 years of age, who have access to a computer with an Internet connection, prefer to interact using phones, use e-mail, surf the Internet every day, are able to use technology at a basic level, particularly office suites, and are unfamiliar with the use of modern tools such as blogs and social bookmarking. It is concluded that these students do not display the characteristics expected of digital natives: the production, dissemination and consumption of culture online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper gives the results of a study that sought to identify the level of training and knowledge of technology in students of teaching degrees, with regard to applying ICTs to benefit disabled people. The study was based on an ex post facto descriptive design, with a sample made up of 533 students from 11 universities in Spain (Basque Country, Cantabria, Córdoba, Huelva, Alicante, Murcia, Málaga, Balearic Islands, Santiago, Jaén and Seville). An ad hoc questionnaire was used to collect data. This was validated with the coefficient of expert competence or k coefficient. The level of reliability of the instrument was analyzed using Cronbach's alpha. One notable aspect of the results was the low level of training in students of teaching degrees with regard to applying ICTs to benefit disabled people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to characterize the interdisciplinary nature of Computer Science Education as an epistemic category that emerges strongly both in academia and as a social practice in diverse educational contexts. We begin by establishing the components of the category and then present arguments supporting their interactions and their location in a theoretical space delimited by the supracategories "knowledge society" and "lifelong learning". In addition, possible research approaches for generating and developing theory in this field are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although increasingly, with ever more emphasis and frequency, the benefits of incorporating Information Technology and Communications (ICT) in teaching are touted, the reality is far from what is stated. In this paper the aim has been to investigate teachers' conceptions of ICT and how they apply them in the classroom. To this end, discourse analysis (DA) was performed on the opinions of three Natural Science teachers about the importance they assign to ICT, and the new challenges of education in today's society. The analysis results show that, although the discourse emphasizes the need for ICT in school, the reality is that teachers find it hard to implement them in the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning objects (LOs) repositories are important in building educational content and should allow search, retrieval and composition processes to be successfully developed to reach educational goals. However, such processes require so much time-consuming and not always provide the desired results. Thus, the aim of this paper is to propose a model for the semiautomatic composition of LOs, which are automatically recovered from open repositories. For the development of model, various text similarity measures are discussed, while for calibration and validation some comparison experiments were performed using the results obtained by teachers. Experimental results show that when using a value of k (number of LOs selected) of at least 3, the percentage of similarities between the model and such made by experts exceeds 75%. To conclude, it can be established that the model proposed allows teachers to save time and effort for LOs selection by performing a pre-filter process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a study on appropriation and educational uses of cell phones in a random sample of 954 students and 246 teachers, representing 12% and 24% respectively of the total population of the two campuses of the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC) in Ensenada, Mexico. A survey was developed and applied to this university population in 2011. The results show that students had used cell phones for an average of seven years, while teachers had an average of ten years of use. Students were able to operate their mobile devices with more ease. Cell phone ownership was 97% among the teachers and students. However, we observed that there was not much use of the cell phone for educational purposes, the principal ones being communication, information management and organization. The main disadvantages found were the potential for distraction and the high cost of Wi-Fi connection. The cell phone has great educational potential; nevertheless, further research is needed for its proper integration in the university educational process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides an overview of some of the gains and constraints in the process of construction of a knowledge society in the state of Morelos, Mexico, focusing mainly on the development and use of ICT and on the role of institutions of higher education (IES- acronym in Spanish). To this end, documentary and field research methods were applied; interviews were conducted with experts and a case study from the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos [Autonomous University of the State of Morelos] is reported. The following conclusions were highlighted: a) while Morelos has made significant progress in scientific and technological matters, challenges remain in order to be able to even speak of a knowledge society; b) the fact that institutions of higher education have ICT does not necessarily mean that they have adequately appropriated them and employ them to improve their processes; and c) institutions of higher education need to generate outreach programs that engage with the region so that technological developments are translated into benefits for the people of Morelos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents the results of a study on the competencies possessed by the faculty of elementary-school and junior-high-school teachers (of compulsory and post-compulsory education) in Valencia (Spain), as concerning the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). We worked with a stratified random sample of 868 teachers, and analyzed their competencies in two areas: personal-professional use, and the use they make of ICT in the classroom. Although the study is based on various analyses, its contribution to Categorical Principal Components Analysis (CATPCA) should be emphasized for the dimensional analysis and determination of the relationship of these dimensions with other variables of interest. The paper contributes results of interest as regards planning the integration of ICT into schools, as well as pertaining to teacher training for the pedagogical integration of ICT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scarce attention to assessment and evaluation in science education research has been especially harmful for Science-Technology-Society (STS) education, due to the dialectic, tentative, value-laden, and controversial nature of most STS topics. To overcome the methodological pitfalls of the STS assessment instruments used in the past, an empirically developed instrument (vosts, Views on Science-Technology-Society) have been suggested. Some methodological proposals, namely the multiple response models and the computing of a global attitudinal index, were suggested to improve the item implementation. The final step of these methodological proposals requires the categorization of STS statements. This paper describes the process of categorization through a scaling procedure ruled by a panel of experts, acting as judges, according to the body of knowledge from history, epistemology, and sociology of science. The statement categorization allows for the sound foundation of STS items, which is useful in educational assessment and science education research, and may also increase teachers' self-confidence in the development of the STS curriculum for science classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]