ICT (Information and Communication Technology) competency is crucial for teachers to create interactive and effective learning environments. However, there are still areas that face challenges such as limited resources, inadequate training, and poor infrastructure. This study, conducted among 1 ,275 public school teachers in Bukidnon, explored factors influencing ICT competency using the DigiCompEdu Questionnaire, a tool for measuring digital skills. The findings revealed that higher educational attainment is linked to increased ICT proficiency, while more years of teaching experience correlated negatively. Gender and time spent using technology showed minimal impact on overall digital literacy. These results highlight the need for targeted professional development programs and infrastructure improvements. Schools must provide teachers with the necessary support and training to effectively integrate ICT into education. Additionally, policymakers should focus on developing strategies to enhance ICT integration in similar contexts.

This paper explores students' perception and experience with an online Learning Management System (LMS) and its relationship to the areas that are crucial for a constructivist learning environment. We surveyed 526 college students from a public university in the Philippines to look at their extent, confidence, and satisfaction of using LMS. We also used the Constructivist On-Line Learning Environment Survey (COLLES) to measure the students' preferred and actual experience in terms of the LMS' role in professional relevance, reflective thinking, interactivity, cognitive demand, affective support, and interpretation of meaning. Majority of the students have experience with various LMS and have been using online learning platforms for more than two years. Results showed that students' satisfaction and confidence in using the LMS have a large significant positive relationship. However, a significant difference was found when their preferred experience and actual experience were compared for all the statements of the six COLLES dimensions. This indication that the students' expectations on these aspects were not met during their actual experience is a call to action to both administrators and teachers to ensure that the use of online learning platforms do not hinder the students to actively construct their own knowledge and understanding through experiences and interactions.

This paper investigates the digital divide among undergraduate students enrolled in STEM programs at a satellite campus of a public university. A survey was conducted to collect data on access to technology, internet connectivity, socioeconomic status, and the use of digital educational materials. The results show that more than half of the respondents are from households classified as 'poor,' reflecting disparities in technology ownership and access. While most students own a smartphone, less than half have their own tablet or computer, and the majority rely on mobile data for internet connection. Using k-means clustering, three distinct student groups were identified, primarily distinguished by device ownership, frequency of computer use outside school, and proficiency in using digital tools such as email, social media, and office productivity software. The study found a slight but significant difference in academic performance (measured by general weighted average) between two clusters, corresponding to differences in access and digital proficiency. The findings highlight the need for targeted support programs, improved internet accessibility, and enhanced digital literacy training to address the digital divide and promote equitable educational outcomes in a hybrid learning environment.

Incubation Effect (IE) refers to the phenomenon where one gets stuck in a problem-solving activity, decides to take a break, and afterwards revisits the unsolved problem and eventually solves it. While studies on IE were all limited to traditional classroom activities, this research aimed to continue the study of IE in the context of a computer-based learning environment and find features that would predict the incidence of revisiting an unsolved problem and its positive outcome. A prior IE model was developed using a logistic regression but the hand-crafted features used were from aggregated data and do not reflect specific characteristics of students’ actions. Further analysis was conducted in this study and used a deep learning technique which significantly improved the performance of the IE model. In order to interpret the learned features of the neural network, a combination of dimension reduction, visualization technique, and clustering were used. It was found that the coarse-grained features are consistent with the fine-grained features but action level features were also discovered which provided more evidence that there was an improvement on how students tried to solve the problem after incubation.

Functional Fixedness (FF) refers to a type of fixation which hinders an individual to use an object in an unfamiliar, atypical, and new ways aside from what had been previously learned about the object’s functionality. In a problem-solving activity, FF may delay or impede the process of finding a solution due to the inability to utilize the available materials and options presented. In this study, the incidence of FF in the context of computer programming was investigated. The students were given programming problems that require them to utilize a specific Java pre-defined method in a different manner from its basic and usual implementation. Results showed that all students exhibited at least 1 incidence of FF although no significant relationship was found between FF and their poor performance in solving the problems. The students explained that they got stuck in the known usage and it was difficult for them to think of other ways to use it in order to solve the problems.

This paper looked at the relationship between the student’s technology identity and how it affects their performance in a web-based tutoring system over a 12-week period. Technology identity covers one’s beliefs on four areas: opportunities and constraints to use technology (access), technology skills (abilities), role of technology on one’s life (importance), and one’s own motivation to learn more about technology (opportunities). Results showed that access factors such as frequency of access, owning a computer at home, and owning a personal computer/laptop do have an impact on their ability to use computer applications. A significant difference was found in the number of problems completed (higher) among students who were able to frequently access and use a computer and the Internet for free in school. This could be an indication of the importance of the role of educational institutions to provide computer and Internet access to students who can’t afford to have their own at home or rent. Also, 99% of the students, including those who did not solve as many problems, viewed technology as an essential part in education, business, personal development, and their future profession. All (100%) the participants expressed willingness to learn more about technology. However, when it comes to the fourth are (opportunities), almost half (47%) believe that they don’t have sufficient opportunities and access to technology to be used in education.

We investigate the Incubation Effect (IE), a phenomenon by which a momentary break facilitates the generation of a solution to a problem, and its relationship with both achievement and affect of middle school students playing Physics Playground. Statistical data reports no significant improvement in the overall performance when breaks are done. Also, the success rate of solving problems after taking a break has no significant difference with the success rate of attempts without breaks. This could be attributed to the fact that the activity done during breaks is very similar to the problem-solving task, but further investigation needs to be done for validation. The results may say IE has not improved the in-game achievement of students, however, majority of IE occurrences resulted to success. This is evidence to support the positive effect of incubation. Also, a significant positive correlation was found between IE incidence and frustration.