Integrating Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools to Develop Digital Competences in Secondary Schools

Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies can promote significant changes in various areas of society, and in particular, in the field of education. The purpose of this study is to examine the digital competences students need to develop in order to use generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools for learning purposes. We conducted 34 semi-structured interviews with 17 secondary school teachers in an interval of half a year, and triangulated these self-report data with an analysis of actual learning activities. During the interviews, the participants reported the digital competences their students develop using GenAI tools, and the skills they should practice. The digital competences were analyzed based on the Digital Competence Framework for Citizens 2.2 (DigComp 2.2) [8] that includes five main areas: Information and data literacy; Communication and collaboration; Digital content creation; Safety; and Problem solving. Despite DigComp 2.2's comprehensiveness, its pre-GenAI era foundation necessitates updates to fully address competences needed for GenAI use. The study findings indicate that the utilization of GenAI tools requires proficiency in all DigComp 2.2 domains. Importantly, employing GenAI tools calls for the expansion regarding the ability to analyze the pros and cons of AI tools, and the user's ability to choose GenAI tools that are appropriate for a given task. The findings suggest refining the framework's explanation regarding prompt-writing skills and adding the skill of managing ongoing dialogue with GenAI tools. Expanding the DigComp 2.2 framework would offer a better reflection on the current integration of GenAI tools in education.