Impact of the Use of Digital Tools on Learning Processes in Multidisciplinary Educational Contexts

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyse, through a hybrid AnyLogic simulation, the potential impact of different levels of digital tool integration on learning processes in multidisciplinary contexts of Lower Secondary Education (Educación General Básica Media) in public urban schools in the Ecuadorian Amazon, using parameters drawn from open data and recent literature. A model combining system dynamics and agent‑based simulation was developed to represent students, teachers, and the institutional environment, incorporating variables such as digital competence, intensity and quality of use (SAMR), technological infrastructure, and digital divide. Through three scenarios (low, medium, and high use) and multiple replications, synthetic data were generated on academic performance, motivation, collaboration, and perceived usefulness of digital tools. Simulated results indicate a moderate positive association between digital use intensity/quality and academic performance, with larger gains under high pedagogical integration, as well as substantial improvements in motivation and collaboration when modification and redefinition tasks prevail. At the same time, the model reflects the persistence of inequities linked to infrastructural and access differences, which constrain the potential benefits for all students. It is concluded that planned digital tool integration, combined with strengthened teacher digital competence and policies to reduce the digital divide, holds strong potential to enhance performance and learning processes and provides a useful theoretical basis for designing future empirical studies in the Ecuadorian Amazon region.