Evaluating Digital Competence: An Examination of Secondary School Teachers in China

Abstract

In recent years, the Chinese government has actively promoted the digital transformation of education, with a strong emphasis on integrating digital technologies into teaching practices. As a result, teachers' digital competence has become a key focus of academic research. This study surveyed secondary school teachers in mainland China using the Teacher Digital Competence Self-perception Instrument (TDCSI), descriptive statistical analysis and inferential statistical analysis were conducted on the data. The findings indicate that teachers generally have a positive self-perception of their digital competence. However, they demonstrate weaker skills in digital teaching and learning management, while excelling in digital engagement. Significant differences in digital competence were observed based on teaching experience, educational background, and regional disparities. To address these challenges, China should offer more professional development opportunities for teachers and enhance policy support for improving digital competence. These findings and recommendations may provide useful insights for other countries and regions pursuing similar initiatives.

Received: 2 November 2024 | Revised: 21 February 2025 | Accepted: 28 March 2025

Conflicts of Interest 

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest to this work.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support this work are available upon reasonable request to the corresponding author.

Author Contribution Statement

Lei Jiang: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Writing - original draft, Writing - review & editing. Na Yu: Resources, Data curation, Visualization, Supervision, Project administration, Funding acquisition.