While Digital First project partners are filing the Computer Science, along with the Pedagogical and transversal competence, so as to make sure they are fully equipped to teach following the Functional approach in ICT learning, the consortium runs into unexpected aspects.

Across Europe, primary and lower secondary school teachers are facing the urgent task of preparing students for a digital future. The competences identified as essential—ranging from guiding algorithmic thinking to fostering safe online behaviour — form a solid roadmap for 21st-century classrooms. Yet, translating these competences into daily practice is far from simple. Teachers must navigate a landscape marked by unequal resources, diverse student backgrounds, and the fast pace of technological change.

One of the main challenges lies in balancing ICT skills with pedagogical innovation. Teachers are expected to introduce learners to programming constructs, data visualisation, or even artificial intelligence at an age where abstract thinking is still developing. This requires not only mastery of technical content but also creativity in designing age-appropriate activities. The DigCompEdu Framework recognizes this dual challenge by placing equal emphasis on teachers’ digital competences and their ability to embed them into meaningful pedagogy. However, many educators still lack opportunities for professional development aligned with these standards.

Another challenge is keeping up with technological advances while ensuring inclusivity. The EU’s Digital Education Action Plan (2021–2027) stresses the importance of equitable access to digital tools and high-quality learning opportunities. Yet, disparities persist: teachers in rural or under-resourced schools often lack updated devices, reliable connectivity, or adequate software. This makes it difficult to implement engaging projects like creative digital storytelling or data-driven simulations. Without targeted investment and support, the digital divide risks widening across European classrooms.

Teachers also struggle with embedding computational thinking across the curriculum. While practices such as pattern recognition, decomposition, or step-by-step reasoning can enrich subjects beyond informatics, educators often feel unsure how to integrate them into history, languages, or the arts. A teacher might see potential in using data visualisation to explore historical migration flows, but without curricular guidance or training, such opportunities remain underused. This is a key concern in achieving the broader vision of Education and Training 2030, which calls for transversal competences and interdisciplinary learning approaches.

The emotional and ethical dimensions of ICT education add further complexity. Teachers are increasingly expected to guide students in safe online practices, digital well-being, and awareness of biases in AI. These expectations align with the EU’s call for digital citizenship skills, yet many teachers report lacking confidence to address sensitive topics around privacy, data security, or ethics. Addressing this gap requires not only technical upskilling but also pedagogical support to foster reflective classroom discussions.

Lastly, the challenge of differentiation remains central. In diverse European classrooms, some students arrive with strong digital skills acquired at home, while others are encountering technology for the first time. Teachers must design activities that stretch advanced learners—perhaps by encouraging them to build animations or programme simulations—while supporting beginners with unplugged activities like sequencing daily routines. The flexibility needed to meet such varied needs is at the heart of DigCompEdu’s vision, yet teachers often lack the time, training, or resources to put it into practice.

The EU has made significant progress in highlighting these challenges through strategic frameworks, but implementation on the ground is uneven. To truly support teachers, large-scale professional development initiatives, cross-country sharing of best practices, and sustained investment in infrastructure are needed. Teachers must be empowered not only with ICT competences but also with the pedagogical confidence to make digital learning meaningful, inclusive, and inspiring for all students.

If Europe is to prepare its young citizens for a truly digital future, placing teachers at the centre of support efforts is essential. They are not merely conveyors of knowledge but the pivotal enablers who can transform digital competence into genuine digital empowerment. With the Digital First project, backed by the Erasmus programme, we believe we are contributing meaningfully to this shared European journey.

References:

1. European Commission (2018). DigCompEdu: European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators. Publications Office of the European Union.
2. European Commission (2020). Digital Education Action Plan (2021–2027): Resetting education and training for the digital age. Brussels: European Commission.
3. Council of the European Union (2021). Council Resolution on a Strategic Framework for European Cooperation in Education and Training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–2030).

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4. Tondeur, J., Aesaert, K., Pynoo, B., Braak, J. V., Fraeyman, N., & Erstad, O. (2017). Developing a validated instrument to measure preservice teachers’ ICT competences: Meeting the demands of the 21st century. British Journal of Educational Technology, 48(2), 462–472.
5. European Schoolnet (2022). Key Competences for Lifelong Learning in the Digital Era.