Teachers didactic choices: Digital text competences
Submitted by:
Kristian B Kjellström
Abstract:
Teachers face new challenges in keeping their language classrooms updated with emerging digital texts and new digital text tools. This creates new possibilities for teacher differentiation within learner groups, which in turn require new teacher competences. In my ongoing study, teachers' digital text competences are explored in relation to their in-class differentiation to accommodate students varying needs. The purpose of the study is contributing to the development of local theory in relation to the research question: What do teachers' digital text competences mean for their didactic choices of adaptations in relation to students' needs? The question is answered using a literature review of previous research and a Delphi-inspired study. The results will inform later classroom interventions and teacher collaboration in the overarching design-based approach of my PhD-project.
The two research methods combine investigation of previous research and the perception of experienced teachers in year 4-6. Preliminary findings indicate a limited number of articles that have examined teachers use of digital tools to differentiate or scaffolding while working with texts. The second method was inspired by the Delphi technique (Green, 2014) but replaced participating experts with teachers with self-reported experience and success in using digital text tools for differentiation. The teachers were given iterative surveys examining their perception of the competences in play and teaching strategies used.
Tomlinsons (2014) framework for differentiated instruction was used to understand the teachers in-classroom differentiation. This was combined with the seven aspects of teachers’ professional digital competence identified by Skantz-Åberg et al. (2022) to understand the digital competences of teachers. The very preliminary results indicate that teachers’ didactic choices of adaptions and differentiation are affected by the different aspects of their digital text competences while their perceived success in differentiation is still dependent on digital infrastructure and the technological skills.
Green, R. A. (2014). The Delphi Technique in Educational Research. SAGE Open, 4(2).
Skantz-Åberg, E., Lantz-Andersson, A., Lundin, M., & Williams, P. (2022). Teachers’ professional digital competence: an overview of conceptualisations in the literature. Cogent Education, 9(1).
Tomlinson, C. A. (2014). The differentiated classroom responding to the needs of all learners (2 ed.). ASCD.