COVID-19, COMPETENCIAS DIGITALES DOCENTES Y EDUCACIÓN ESPECIAL EN MÉXICO.

The challenges faced by teachers during the confinement caused by Covid-19 were more severe for those who look after students with special needs or learning barriers, particularly in a context marked by the scarcity of specialized technological tools and an incipient development of digital skills among both teachers and students. The paper analyzes the conditions in which teachers who work in basic and upper secondary education in Mexico carried out their jobs from April 2020 - December 2021. The analysis is based upon a structural attributive research of explanatory scope that retrieved information through a survey. 140 teachers participated in the process; their responses were statistically analyzed and mapped out using the Geographic Information System and the ArcGIS program, in order to highlight regional differences and shortcomings. The results presented focus on two axes of the Common Framework for Digital Teaching Competence (Content Creation and Security) and show the persistence of socio-educational gaps. Those who express that to have developed these competences are teachers from urban areas, particularly those who have less years of service, higher academic degrees, and are in the seek of job stability. This leads to the conclusion that there is a need to strengthen differentiated training processes that respond to the specific needs of educational contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]