Digital Skills and Competences in Contemporary Society

Abstract: Digitalization is an integral part of society. Every process, phenomenon, community and relationship is related to digitalization and information technology. The life of a modern person is a long series of active penetration of digital devices in our way of life, in our professional responsibilities and activities, in our free time and personal contacts. This strong digital saturation today is constantly recognized and modern man is clearly aware of his dependence on information technology, without which it would be difficult to do his job, to contact people and institutions that reflect different levels of social interaction, and to organize free your time and entertainment. From this point of view, it is necessary to show the different forms of symbiosis between society and digitalization, as well as to emphasize the possible manifestations of this symbiosis.The objectives of this paper are to show specific dimensions of the advent of digitization and the various technologies in the Bulgarian society and in particular:-What digital devices do individuals have and how do they use them;-How they get involved in the Internet and what is their participation in the various social networks;-What is the quality of online learning as one of the examples of digital activity in social terms;-What is the technological level of the online environment;-What are the challenges of online education?The main research questions are related to the performance of high-tech level of Bulgarian online environment and focus on the main features of online learning, which is a new educational activity for Bulgarian schools and universities and its basic actors who gradually become active users of its.The Methodology is based on results obtained from an online survey conducted in March 2021 with people of different ages, occupations and education. The survey questionnaire included topics that directly relate to the digitalization of society, the use of various digital devices and the Internet, participation in online education and attitudes towards it. The results obtained show that digitalization has undisputable a place in the Bulgarian educational system. It is assessed relatively positively, it is perceived as a good step and solution and gradually people perceive it as a main element of the educational space. One of the advantages of online learning is its flexibility. Instead of training taking place in a fixed place and time, with the help of high technology it can take place anywhere and at any time. An important conclusion of this article is that various improvements need to be made to make the online education activity more effective. The most important thing to think about is how to overcome the shortcomings of online learning and how to deal with them people of different ages and statuses.

Keywords: Digitalization, Digital Skills, Digital Literacy, Covid-19

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe100863

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