Digital competences can be defined as the set of techno-pedagogical and communicational skills that allow teachers to function effectively within the educational contexts that new technologies generate. This research work was aimed to establish the relationship between the level of university professors' digital competences concerning their gender and generation. The study was based on a sample of 613 professionals with an undergraduate degree, who came from different areas of Ecuador; they were the attendees to the "Training Program for Leveling Tutors using Virtual Modality" at Técnica del Norte University (Ibarra-Ecuador). This research applied a quantitative and explanatory approach where the non-parametric statistical test of Chi-square was used to corroborate the validity of the data; it was obtained from a survey applied to the participants in this training course. The results show that the level of digital competences is gender independent but generation dependent. Generation Z is the one with the best digital capabilities, with an average of 61.14%. Regarding the gender, a dependence is observed only with two out of five groups of competencies analyzed in this study; the cloud storage and the interaction of social network. The research line of digital competences is extensive, the results should not be generalized or extrapolated without considering the characteristics of the educators and the context, it is suggested to assess the teaching staff digital competencies, considering other types of demographic variables, so that higher education institutions can carry out a comprehensive training planning in digital skills.

In a society marked by continuous technological changes in favor of education, digital competence is an unavoidable feature in the professional profile of the university teaching staff. This systematic literature review aims at answering the following questions: what basic standards are established by the literature for teacher training in digital competence to strengthen their work inside and outside the classroom? What models or frameworks do they use as references? What are university professors’ training needs? What contributions have been made in this line of study and what technologies are recommended for teacher training in digital competence? Based on the four phases of the PRISMA flowchart: identification, selection, eligibility, and inclusion, the articles indexed in the Web of Science, Scopus, and Scielo databases, both in English and Spanish, and published in 2015 until the end of May 2022, were analyzed. The initial search resulted in a total of 187 potentially useful articles, 26 of which met the inclusion and quality criteria. The authors of the selected papers concur in identifying the dimensions of competence and, subsequently, in establishing the standards, direction, and focus of training.

En este artículo se presenta un estudio de caso que identifica y ratifica la importancia de las competencias digitales en la formación de los docentes relacionados con la educación virtual. Se describe el diseño e implementación de un curso online, basado en la metodología PACIE, el cual estuvo orientado a identificar y desarrollar las competencias digitales de 208 futuros tutores virtuales. La investigación se realizó bajo un enfoque mixto (cuali-cuantitativo) que evidenció el valor de dichas competencias para que los tutores puedan apoyar y fortalecer los procesos pedagógicos y formativos de los estudiantes dentro del aula virtual. El 87% de los encuestados afirman haber mejorado dichas competencias durante el desarrollo del curso en línea. En conclusión, la formación de tutores virtuales en competencias digitales es esencial para desarrollar el pensamiento crítico, habilidades, conocimientos, actitudes y estrategias de uso eficiente y seguro de las tecnologías de información y comunicación en la educación en línea.

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La competencia digital es ineludible en el perfil profesional del docente universitario en una sociedad marcada por los continuos cambios tecnológicos; esta se configura como un conjunto de conocimientos, habilidades, actitudes y estrategias que permiten el uso eficiente, crítico y seguro de las Tecnologías de Información y Comunicación (TIC) en la praxis laboral. Fortalece el desempeño docente en los cuatro ejes sustantivos de la Educación Superior: docencia, investigación, gestión y vinculación (transferencia).El ámbito en que se enfoca esta investigación es la formación docente a través de nuevas ecologías de aprendizaje que permitan solventar de forma eficaz y eficiente los requerimientos tecno-pedagógicos para transformar e innovar el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje en sinergia a los requerimientos de una generación de estudiantes que nacen y crecen en la era digital.El objetivo principal es el de mejorar la competencia digital docente del profesor universitario