What is the Digital Competency Framework?

The Digital Competency Framework is part of the Digital Action Plan (DAP) for Education and Higher Education developed by Québec’s Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur (2019). The plan promotes a vision of effective integration and optimal use of digital technologies in order to foster the success of all Quebecers and promote lifelong skills development and maintenance. The first measure of the DAP is structural: the establishment and implementation of a reference framework. The objective was to design an inter-level digital competency framework that spans preschool through higher education, including general education and vocational training. The result is the Digital Competency Framework. It sets out the key dimensions of learning and personal development for 21st-century learners, teachers, and non-teaching professionals. Elements specific to teaching will be addressed in more detail in an upcoming competency framework for the teaching profession. The framework is meant to provide the foundation for the development of digital competency. Digital competency is defined as a set of skills necessary to the confident, critical, and creative use of digital technologies to achieve objectives in the areas of learning, work, leisure, and inclusion or participation in society. Structurally, the framework is designed as a continuum of 12 dimensions (see Figure 1 below) that set out the scope of the development of digital competency. The elements of the dimensions are situated on a progress matrix. As they advance through the competency levels, individuals become increasingly autonomous in their use of digital technologies in educational, professional, and everyday life contexts. For example, they are able to select the best digital tools to perform particular tasks. Digital competency also means that individuals can adapt to technological innovations in years to come (including advances in artificial intelligence), assess these new technologies critically, and adopt and implement those that are useful. Finally, digital competency is closely tied to professional development for all 21st-century workers. Everyone will have to use digital resources in order to keep their professional skills up to date. This will affect communities of practice as well as those taking online training and tutorial programs. In short, the aim of this framework is to foster the development of digital competency throughout the educational community so that current and future citizens will be autonomous and able to exercise critical judgment in their use of digital technologies. Digital competency is essential in today’s world, where technological innovations are transforming the labor market and the skills that employers are looking for. It is therefore vital that teaching practices and programs be adapted to include digital competency in order to prepare future workers for the challenges of tomorrow. The Digital Competency Framework accounts for the latest research and innovative practices in education (e.g., Karsenti, 2019). Without denying the risks inherent in the so-called digital divide, the framework demonstrates how digital technology can serve as a tool for inclusion. Its Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principle envisages the use of digital technology by all people, without the need for adaptation or special design, and regardless of gender, age, situation, or disability. The framework adopts a competency-based approach. The term “competency” refers to “complex know-how developed through the effective mobilization of a range of internal and external resources in a variety of related situations” (Tardif, 2007, p. 22). In this sense, competency characteristics are explored as the constituent elements of complex know-how (ibid). It would be unrealistic, however, to attempt to foresee all possible applications, given the relentless advances in technological developments. All individual competencies draw on numerous and varied resources (ibid), particularly because competencies may evolve over time. Given that we cannot predict the future, …