Basic Education Students’ Digital Competence in the Area of Communication: The Influence of Online Communication and the Use of Social Networks

Marcos Cabezas-González, Sonia Casillas-Martín and Ana García-Valcárcel Muñoz-Repiso
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Marcos Cabezas-González: Department of Didactics, Organization and Research Methods, University of Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain
Sonia Casillas-Martín: Department of Didactics, Organization and Research Methods, University of Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain
Ana García-Valcárcel Muñoz-Repiso: Department of Didactics, Organization and Research Methods, University of Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 8, 1-16

Abstract: The global public health crisis unleashed by the COVID-19 pandemic has made it clear that digital competence in education is no longer an option, but a necessity. Online communication with friends using social networks is an activity in which young people very frequently and at increasingly early ages engage. This article presents the results of a study analyses digital-competence levels in the area of communication of Spanish basic-education students (aged 12–16) and establishes whether online communication with friends and the use of social media impact it. A quantitative methodology with a descriptive and cross-sectional design was used. The sample comprised 807 students, and data collection was based on a problem-solving test. Findings show that students who use online communication with their friends very often and that those who use social networks a lot have lower levels of digital competence. Education centres should reflect on this in order to implement curricular programs that may strengthen this type of competence.

Keywords: digital competence; ICT; basic education; digital communication; online communication; social networks (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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