Digital integration in rural education: Foundations for a sustainable pedagogical model

Digital inequality in rural settings continues to restrict access to comprehensive and environmentally meaningful education. This study, conducted in rural educational institutions in Zapatoca (Santander, Colombia), examines how the contextualized integration of digital technologies can enhance ecological awareness and student participation under precarious infrastructure conditions. A projective research design was adopted, structured into five methodological phases and supported by interviews, non-participant observation, and expert validation through the Delphi technique. Findings indicate that 86 % of teachers expressed a strong willingness to engage in ICT training despite limited infrastructure, and 70 % of students reported participation in school activities related to environmental sustainability mediated by digital technologies. In addition, 53 % of teachers reported relying primarily on personal mobile devices as their main available resource for ICT-mediated pedagogical communication. These conditions delineate an unequal yet fertile ecosystem for educational innovation. Based on this situated evidence, the MIPST model articulates technology, territorial sustainability, and teacher agency as interconnected pillars for feasible pedagogical transformation in rural contexts. Although artificial intelligence was not implemented in the empirical phase of this study, it is framed within MIPST as a forward-looking design horizon that remains conditional on pedagogical grounding, ethical safeguards, and contextual feasibility. • Proposes MIPST, a sustainable pedagogical model for contextualized digital integration in rural education. • Mixed-methods: interviews, observations, surveys, and semantic mapping to triangulate evidence. • Teachers link ICT use to feasibility constraints, sustainability practices, and ethical considerations. • High willingness for ICT training persists despite limited connectivity, power, devices, and resources. • Discusses educational AI as a future design horizon, contingent on ethical safeguards and local feasibility.