Investigating digital skills among Russian higher education students

Abstract

Learning in the digital age is a pervasive idea that encompasses all aspects of a person's life, including work and leisure. As a result of the development of new teaching and learning tools, an increasing number of students are acquiring knowledge on the Internet- connected to the Internet. Therefore, all citizens must develop digital literacy as a lifelong learning skill. Studies have been conducted on students' digital skills in higher education institutions. In this context, this study aimed to investigate the skills of college students. The participants were students from a university in the Kazan region of Russia who volunteered to participate. Three hundred and eighty students completed the questionnaire online. The scale consists of a total of 25 questions and six dimensions. Since our independent variables are binary values, we applied the Bayesian t-test. We obtained the values of the Bayes factor (BF10) for each dimension and the total scale. In general, students' digital skills are well-developed. However, it was found that creating and using digital information requires fewer skills than in other areas. The hypothesis that there is no difference based on student gender was supported to a higher degree but not to a very high degree. The hypothesis that there is no difference based on students' fields of study was supported to a greater extent, but only to a moderate extent.

Exploring pre-service teachers’ ICT competence beliefs

“…Furthermore, the results are not similar to those of Kwaah et al (2022), who also found that female teachers had less knowledge of internet skills compared to their male counterparts. On the other hand, the results regarding gender differences are similar to those of Urakova et al (2023).…”

“…Fuchs et al (2022) found that pre-service teachers were well-prepared for digital learning, while Quast et al (2023) reported that pre-service teachers exhibited strong digital competence. Similarly, Urakova et al (2023) observed that students had advanced digital skills, and overall, their proficiency was well-developed. The results of this study align with those of Karakoyun and Lindberg (2020), who discovered that Sweden and Turkey's pre-service instructors have the 21 st century skills, particularly in technology, digital citizenship, communication, and information literacy.…”

“…The study revealed that preservice teachers possessed the highest level of digital competence. Urakova et al (2023) conducted a study to assess the digital skills of university students. The results indicate that students possess high levels of digital skills, and overall, their skills are well-developed.…”

“…However, when the studies above are analyzed, it is clear that no previous empirical study in Russia or other countries investigated pre-service teachers' ICT competency beliefs. In addition, the existing studies in the literature have examined pre-service teachers' digital competencies (Cebi & Reisoglu, 2020;Tomczyk et Contemporary Educational Technology, 2024 Contemporary Educational Technology, 16(2), ep500 3 / 10 al., 2023), digital skills (Kwaah et al, 2022;Urakova et a., 2023), and the 21 st century skills as digital skills (Karakoyun & Lindberg, 2020). Because of this reason, there is a gap in examining pre-service teachers' ICT competency beliefs.…”

Examining Digital Literacy towards ICT Among Students Based on Demographic Profile: A Descriptive Analysis Approach

“…Therefore, it is essential for all citizens to acquire digital literacy as a skill that may be used throughout their lives. Studies have been carried out on the students at higher education institutions to investigate their digital skill sets (Urakova et al, 2023). Computer skills and digital literacy attitude determine an individual's capacity to use digital media and technology.…”