Advancing Teachers' Digital Competence in Western China's Inclusive Kindergartens Through Human-Machine Collaboration: An Intelligent Diagnosis-Driven Pathway for Integrating Local Resources

Within the framework of human-machine collaboration, advancing teachers' digital competence and integrating local resources have emerged as critical solutions to the challenges of digital transformation in western inclusive kindergartens. This study involves large-scale field research conducted across 92 inclusive kindergartens in the western regions of China, including Shaanxi, Xinjiang, Sichuan, and Guizhou provinces. It uncovers the collaborative dynamics between the “stagnation in progression” of teachers' digital competence and the “intelligent adaptation” of local resources in these kindergartens. The findings reveal that the digital competence of teachers in western inclusive kindergartens exhibits a fragmented progression, characterized by a shift from “tool application” to “scene innovation” to “cultural creation,” with an overall average score (3.007) significantly lower than the national county-level benchmark. Moreover, there is a marked generational gap in technology integration, particularly among teachers aged 45 and above, who score notably lower (2.86) in this dimension. Furthermore, the unequal distribution of resources between urban and rural areas has led to 78.4% of rural kindergartens facing a “technological suspension” dilemma. In response, this study innovatively proposes a three-stage model of “intelligent diagnosis—dynamic adaptation—cultural generation,” which helps create personalized development profiles for teachers. The research also introduces tools such as an ecological research and learning intelligent simulation system, establishing a digital transformation matrix for local resources. Additionally, a low-code curriculum development platform is introduced to facilitate “human-machine collaboration” in cultural reproduction, offering a “diagnostic-driven—resource activation—institutional<sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">1</sup> innovation” paradigm for empowering the professional development of teachers in rural inclusive kindergartens in the western regions.