Preservation of professional potential of older teachers in the context of their achievement of digital literacy

Introduction. The relevance of the problem of preserving the professional potential of older teachers (55 years and older) is due to the accelerated digital transformation of the education system against the backdrop of the demographic aging of the workforce of schools, colleges, and universities in Russia. Digital literacy is becoming a critical factor in professional effectiveness, while technostress and digital barriers create the risk of early exit of specialists from the profession.

Purpose setting. The aim of the study is to conduct a systematic analysis of the impact of the level of digital competence, including the mastery of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, on the preservation and realization of the professional potential of older teachers.

Methodology and methodology of the study. The main method used is content analysis and comparative analysis of 48 scientific publications from 2018–2026 from international (Scopus, Web of Science) and Russian (eLIBRARY.RU, CyberLeninka) databases.

Results. The study revealed a strong positive correlation between developed digital competencies and indicators of professional well-being: increased job satisfaction (r ≈ 0.36–0.42) and a 25–35 % reduction in technostress. The use of adaptive AI platforms and generative models has been shown to improve the digital literacy of this category of teachers by 28–45 % over 3–6 months. Key barriers include widespread technophobia (55–65 % of respondents), a shortage of adapted educational programs (age-specific programs were considered in only 12–18 % of cases), and a lack of systematic technical support.

Conclusion. The results substantiate the need to develop and implement targeted programs to enhance digital competence (based on the «Digital Teacher 55+» model), introduce digital tutoring, and establish regional methodological centers. The study confirms the strategic importance of the state policy of inclusive digitalization for preserving the human resources potential of the country's education system.

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