Digital Competence of Lecturers at the Universities of Education: In the Context of Education Digital Transformation Vietnam

 Abstract —This study aims to assess the digital proficiency of lecturers as well as the experiences and practices of digital technology in the teaching process in Vietnam Universities of Education. In this study, qualitative and quantitative survey methods were used. The study was conducted with 320 lecturers, 150 managers, training experts, and leaders at the top three Universities of Education in Vietnam. In the study, the digital competency questionnaire was used as a data collection tool. It is built based on the digital competence framework (DigComp 2.1 model), The European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu), DigComp SAT. After the analysis and evaluation processes of the results, it is stated that the digital competence of lecturers at pedagogical schools in Vietnam is about the average and it varies by genders, academic degrees and awareness levels of digital capabilities. The results will help the leaders understand the needs, information about digital capabilities and things to focus on training so that lecturers at Vietnam pedagogical schools can meet these requirements.


I. INTRODUCTION
Nowadays, the world is increasingly being digitized strongly and deeply, especially in the explosive context of the industrial revolution 4.0 [1], [2]. Like other countries in the region and the world, Vietnam has been determined not to miss the opportunity that the digital revolution brings with the principle of -leaving no one behind‖ [3], [4]. With this trend and determination, whether like it or not, fast or slow, every citizen has to live and work in a digital environment and the Internet-connected world [5]. Since 2021, Vietnam has made significant progress; however, further efforts should be made to address the digital capacity gaps [6], [7]. This is to ensure that no one is left behind in the pursuit of the nation's digital economic achievements. In the development of digital competence, there is no one-size-fits-all approach [5], [8]. The skills and capabilities of the workforce require continuous development as the country enters the digital Manuscript received on March 18, 2022; revised May 7, 2022. Tuong Sy Hoang is with the Academy of Cryptography Techniques, Vietnam (e-mail: hoangsytuong@actvn.edu.vn).
My Loc Thi Nguyen is with the University of Education, Vietnam National University, Ha noi, Vietnam (e-mail: locntm@vnu.edu.vn).
Long Ngoc Pham and Loan Thi Nguyen are with the National of Institute Educational Management, Vietnam (e-mail: longpn@niem.edu.vn, loanhvq89@gmail.com).
The study aims to find out which level of digital competence of lecturers at the Universities of Education is and especially to find out their shortcomings in applying digital technologies. The research serves as the purpose to assess the readiness of digital use and the practice of digital education as a tool to develop the proficiency in using digital media. The study mainly focused on the level of digital competence of lecturers, as well as the factors affecting it.

II. BACKGROUND
In our research, the criteria are based on the European Digital Competence Framework, specifically DigComp 2.1 model, the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp 2.1) includes 5 dimensions [1], [12]: Dimensions 1: Competency areas identified as part of digital proficiency. They are: 1) information and data literacy; 2) communication and collaboration; 3) digital content creation; 4) safety; 5) problem solving.
Dimensions 2: Descriptions of competencies and titles relevant to each area. There are 21 competencies.
Dimensions 3: Proficiency levels for each competence. There are 4 main levels (foundation, intermediate, advanced, and highly specialized) and their decompositions. Each level represents an advanced step in lecturers' attainment of competence in terms of their perceived ability, the complexity of the task they can handle, and their autonomy in completing the task [13], [14].

A. Population and Sample
A total of 500 academics, administrators, and training experts from Vietnam's top three universities of education, including Thai Nguyen University of Education, Hanoi National University of Education, and Ho Chi Minh National University of Education, took part in the survey. However, 30 questionnaires were incorrectly completed and were excluded from the study. Table II presents an overview of the study's participants' information:

B. Methods and Data Collection Tool
The survey tools include a digital competency questionnaire developed by the research team based on the Digital Competence Framework for the European (DigComp 2.1) as the research data collection tool. The survey forms cover five aspects of the DigComp 2.1 model (information and data literacy; communication and collaboration; digital content creation; safety and problem solving.) [1].  The actual research process consists of 3 stages: toolkit design, practical survey (including questionnaires, in-depth interviews, group discussion guide) and data processing. Each phase has different purposes, methods, objects, time, and research content.
In our questionnaire, we determine variables, scales of evaluation, and time intervals, which are shown in Table IV below.

C. Data Analysis
In our analysis, all descriptive statistics were computed using a combination of methodologies and models in our analysis [17]. The choice of certain indicators was influenced by the data type, the evaluation scale, and the limitations of the method application. To calculate, the data obtained after the actual survey was processed by the program SPSS 24.0 [17], which was used in the Windows environment to process the quantitative survey data. Most of the features selected for digital capacity assessment during the survey were estimated on the ordinal 4 scale. In addition, Cramer's V, the redundancy factor, and the Pi factor, which were referred to as the associated ordinal scales, were also calculated. These coefficients varied from 0 to 1 and allowed us to conclude about the strength of the relationship between the functions.
After completing the survey form based on the theoretical framework, the research team organized a seminar to get comments and propose revisions. The survey was tested on a random sample of 50 people, and the data was processed to determine the reliability of the scale. The results are shown in Table V: The data in the table above indicate that the Cronbach's Alpha coefficient of the 5 scales ranges from 0.832 to 0.874. The Corrected Item -Total Correlation coefficient is all greater than 0.3, showing that the observed variables addressed the right problem. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy (KMO) value of 0.909 proved that the data used for factor analysis is completely appropriate [17]. The result of Bartlett's test is 8849,837 with the Sig significance level. = 0.000, reflecting variables that are correlated with each other and satisfy the conditions for factor analysis. Performing factor analysis according to Principal components with Varimax rotation: The results showed that the original 27 observed variables are divided into 5 groups. The total extracted variance 69.331% reflects these 5 factors and explains 69.331% of the variation of the data. The Eigenvalues of the factors are all high (>1), the fifth factor has the lowest Eigenvalues of 1,079> 1.
Thus, we can see that the scale ensures the high reliability of the toolkit and is decided to be the official scale.

IV. RESULTS
The data in Table VI shows that the digital competence of lecturers ranges from -Foundation‖ to -Advanced‖ and mainly at the -Intermediate‖.
The skill group that the lecturers rated at the average level is (NLDC 3) -pay attention to copyright and license when developing digital content‖, the average score is 2.61. This is the lowest mark of the manifestations of digital competence. Skills at the end of the average mark range are (NLDC 4) -using programming languages in a digital environment‖ Among those skills, the only skill of -ability to build and practice codes of conduct in a digital environment‖ (NLCC) with an average score of 5,4.39, is at -advanced‖ level.
The remaining skills are at the -intermediate‖ with a fluctuating range from 3.41 to 4.2.
Gender and Digital Competence: During the survey, the factor of genders has been questioned if it has a great influence on the digital competence of lecturers. When comparing the two independent results, a slight difference between the digital competence of -Male‖ and -Female‖ has been noticed; Information and data literacy: Meaningful differentiated skills such as -  Problem Solving: The capacity of the "Male" lecturer tends to be higher than that of the "Female", the average score of 4/6 skills of the "Male" trainer is higher than that of "Female", this difference is significant (sig<0.05).
Digital Competency and Work Experience: This study has raised a question that is: -Does more work experience mean greater digital competence?‖ The data in Table VI above reflect that there is a difference in digital competence between groups of lecturers, the difference shown in the average score and the sig value of 23/27 items is less than 0.05 (difference is meaningful). However, the expertise in digital media does not reflect the experience in teaching but in the opposite way.

V. CONCLUSION
Digital competence is a highly complicated issue, it frequently depends on technological and institutional developments. With the participation of 320 lecturers, 150 administrators, training experts, and leaders at the Universities of Education in Vietnam in this study and the aims to identify the competency in digital media and the shortcomings in this area, the survey results allow us to conclude: 1) The group of skills such as -pay attention to copyright and licensing when developing digital content‖, -use programming languages in a digital environment‖, -protect personal data and privacy in a digital environment‖, -identify the cause of technical problems I experience when using digital media and devices‖ of lecturers is rated -Intermediate‖ when compared to other Digital Competence knowledge and skills. This happens probably due to the quick and frequent -as usual‖ infringement of intellectual property rights in Vietnam, as well as the fact that the authors and owners have no awareness of the copyright infringement. It is not widely acknowledged that they should protect their own "intellectual" property by the registration of protection of intellectual property rights. The Digital Competence training programs for lecturers are focused too much on theoretical knowledge; hence, they lack practice for content development and technical issues. The study has also figured out that lecturers are gradually confident in -developing and practicing rules of conduct in a digital environment,‖ which may happen during the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, they are required to regularly use digital technologies in their daily life and teaching process, so they become proficient in this field. Information and data literacy, communication and collaboration, and safety are attributed to their use of digital technologies in their daily lives in line with these areas.
2) The level of ICT use capacity of young lecturers is much higher than that of older lecturers. The capacity level of respondents with limited (or no access) access to resources is much lower than that of respondents with full access to resources. 3) In terms of genders, the research results show that there is little difference in digital competence between -Male‖ and -Female‖, however, -Male‖ figures are still recorded higher than -Female‖ ones in identifying and accessing information, data and digital content related to information and data capabilities. This shows that male lecturers have a better capacity to implement online privacy and safety measures to protect devices and digital content in the safety sector.
Since the analysis of the obtained data confirms the high reliability of the questionnaire developed by the authors, this helps us to form clear conceptions of further research in the future. It is also beneficial to academics, experts, and leaders at the Universities of Education regarding the creation and development of digital competence training modules according to Digital Competence Framework for the European (DigCom 2.1 Model).

VI. LIMITATION
The limitation of this study is the data collection process through surveys and discussions about figures analysis because they were primarily performed in basic categories, and results were evaluated through SPSS 24.0. Therefore, there is a paramount need to focus on measurement studies to develop all areas in DigComp 2.1 Model in further studies.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare no conflict of interest.

AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS
Tuong Sy Hoang is the main author of the paper, who wrote the main body of the paper. My Loc Thi Nguyen and Long Ngoc Pham revised and edited the manuscript. Loan Thi Nguyen and Thanh Huyen Thi Nguyen completed the manuscript. All of the authors provided important ideas in conceptualizing of the paper.
Tuong Sy Hoang is a university lecturer. He holds a Ph.D. in education administration and information security at the Academy of Cryptography Techniques, Vietnam, since 2001. He has published many research articles in various international journals. His main research interests are e-learning, digital competence, information security, and educational management.
My Loc Thi Nguyen was born in 1955. Currently, she is the Chairwoman of the Science and Training Council, University of Education, Hanoi National University. She obtained a doctorate in psychologyeducation from the USSR Academy of Educational Sciences in 1987; an advanced degree in higher education administration from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand. She is a leading expert in educational psychology and education management in Vietnam. In the last 5 years, she is the author of more than 50 scientific articles published in prestigious national and international scientific journals.
Long Ngoc Pham is a Ph.D. in educational management from Vietnam. His research interests include education data analysis, educational psychology, and higher education. He has published many research articles in various national and international scientific journals.
Thanh Huyen Thi Nguyen is a senior lecturer who is currently the Dean of the Department of Educational Psychology, University of Pedagogy -Thai Nguyen University. She obtained her Ph.D. in education in 2009 and was appointed as an associate professor in 2015. Her teaching and research areas focus on education and educational management. With a passion for research, she has chaired many scientific research projects at all levels and published many scientific works related to these fields in domestic and international journals.
Nguyen Thi Loan has more than 10 years of teaching and research experience in educational management. Areas of study mainly include pedagogy and educational psychology. She has led many scientific research projects in cooperation with universities and research institutes in the field of educational management and has published many scientific articles in international peer-reviewed scientific journals.