Teacher-reported instructional quality in the context of technology-enhanced teaching: The role of teachers’ digital competence-related beliefs in empowering learners

Abstract

Teachers' competence-related beliefs are crucial in determining teachers' professional competence and instructional quality. However, in the context of technology-enhanced teaching, studies regarding competence-related beliefs, specifically competence dimensions and their relations to instructional quality, are limited. Against this backdrop, the purpose of the present study is twofold: The first is to test the factorial structure of a measure that assesses teachers' competence-related beliefs in the dimension of empowering learners with its subdimensions of differentiation and actively engaging learners based on the European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu). The second is to examine the relations between competence-related beliefs and teachers' reported use of digital technologies to enhance classroom management, cognitive activation, and supportive climate. Based on data from 145 teachers (73.1% female), both the factorial structure and the relations were analyzed using various approaches of structural equation modeling. The results supported the bifactor confirmatory factor analysis model with a general factor defined as empowering learners as well as two subdimensions representing differentiation and actively engaging learners. Teachers' competence-related beliefs regarding differentiation and empowering learners are positively related to the teacher-reported use of technologies to enhance instructional quality. Understanding the structure of teachers' competence-related beliefs about empowering learners and their relations to instructional quality in technology-enhanced teaching is relevant for teacher education to address learners’ diverse learning needs, as well as to promote active and creative engagement.