Exploring the effect of pre-service teachers’ digital competence on paperless behavior

Abstract

<p>Pre-service teachers must implement paperless behavior in line with institutional policies, technological developments, and environmentally friendly issues. Pre-service teacher candidates are expected to have digital competence in skills, abilities, and knowledge to successfully use computers, their related applications, and software in teaching and educational practice. It is predicted to affect their paperless behavior because digital activities reduce paper use. This study aimed to analyze the influence of prospective teachers’ digital competencies on their paperless behavior. The research is based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) using a quantitative approach involving 372 pre-service teachers at the Faculty of Economics, Universitas Negeri Semarang (UNNES). Sampling was done by purposive sampling with specific criteria. The results of the study show that digital competence has an influence on paperless behavior by 43.1%. These findings add insight into the role of digital competence in an environmentally friendly learning process. This research suggests increasing students’ digital competence so that students’ paperless behavior rises in line with environmental issues.<strong></strong></p>

Untitled

“…Furthermore, paperless behavior is progressively gaining popularity due to the quick advancement of scientific technology, which is beneficial to the environment. Pre-service teachers need to adopt paperless behavior in accordance with institutional rules, technology advancements, and ecological concerns, according to Tusyanah et al [3]. They examined how the digital competencies of aspiring teachers affected their paperless behavior and recommended raising students' digital competency to align students' paperless conduct with environmental concerns.…”