Fostering the professional capital of teachers in digital capabilities

The article focuses on teacher professionalism, taking into account the challenges related to the growing digitizing of teaching and learning processes and educational environments, especially in light of the great challenges posed by COVID-19 in the educational sector. First, the article proposes an evaluative framework based on the Capability Approach to investigate the complex links between education and technologies, and the impacts on teachers’ collaborative work. Second, the notion of teachers’ professional capital is contextualized in the digital era, and the impact of the diffusion of digital technologies on teachers’ collaborative practices is examined. Then, some policy recommendations are provided, focusing on teachers’ training programs and the implications of adopting the Capability Approach to tackle such issues. The questions arising refer to the types of capital that have to be developed in the teaching profession, which are linked to the diffusion of digital media in the educational sector, and the means for fostering teachers’ capability development.