Newsletter November 2022: Development of teachers’ digital competences

Why focus on the development of the teachers’ digital competences?

After focusing for several years on the practical procurement and implementation of learning technologies and platforms, many institutions within higher education are now digitally mature enough to take the next necessary steps and, to a higher extent, make use of the digital technologies to improve the teaching itself. 

Starting January, 2020 SDU got a new learning platform, itslearning, and together with the Office365 tools, Eduflow, Poll Everywhere and the video platform Kaltura, we are now beginning to have the basis for being more curious about active teaching and learning through the use of learning technologies and learning platforms. 

Therefore, it is obvious to work with strategies and local action plans, and to initiate initiatives, which will – in line with the national action plan Digitale kompetencer og digital læring (2019) (pdf) (Digital competences and digital learning) – improve even more the abilities of SDU teachers to use digital technologies in a way that will improve the quality of teaching, the students’ learning outcomes, as well as the flexibility and accessibility of the programmes. 

Development of the teachers’ digital competences at SDU

The development of the teachers’ digital competences is already a fixed component of the Lecturer Training Programme at SDU. In the development project, which is one part of the programme, the assistant professors are expected to plan, complete, and evaluate an e-learning activity. Teachers at SDU also have the possibility of expanding their didactic and collegial community by attending the courses offered by SDUUP. We offer, among others, flexible, self-paced courses in flipped learning, the online voting tool Poll Everywhere, and Collaborative learning.

In 2019, SDU entered into a 3-year cooperation with UCN and UCL Erhvervsakademi og Professionshøjskole (UCL) on the Project Digital Competences Through Learning Circles - Projekt Digital kompetenceudvikling gennem læringscirkler. The aspiration was to develop new methods to support the teacher’s development of digital competencies in a collegial and practice-oriented competency development format. The project has received funding from The Ministry of Higher Education and Science, in support of the national action plan on digital competencies and digital learning, mentioned above. In the sections below we will unfold some take-aways from the project, which will end by the end of this year. 

Learning circles – a collegial and practice-oriented competence development course

A learning circle involves a group of up to 5 teachers + a facilitator. These people all take part in an 8-week, action-based course, including self-study of a digital resource platform, synchronous meetings, and testing of the acquired skills in the participants’ own practice. The participants must set aside 16 hours for 8 synchronous sessions: 1 hour for preparation and 1 hour attendance in each of the 8 meetings. In the course of the project, 48 learning circles counting 179 teachers have been established locally or cross-institutionally, based on interests/subject areas.

What has been the focus in the follow-up research and the collection of experiences?

Apart from the specific deliveries for the project – the digital resource collection, the training of facilitators, guidance in the completion of learning circles as well as diverse documents/process - the follow-up research has contributed with input on the importance of:

• The facilitator’s task with raising the teachers’ technological/didactic competences, for instance by stimulating their technological imagination (Follow-up research, question 1),
• The interaction and cooperation between the partners/institutions in the project, for instance to what extent and in which ways, the cooperation has contributed to increasing the value for the institutions involved (Follow-up research, question 2),
• The span of the learning circle project, with a view to supporting the students’ development of their digital competences within their profession (Follow-up research, question 3)

The collection of experience has contributed with a continuous qualification of the learning circle method, with input to the value of the learning circle method in relation to the teachers’ learning outcome and has added to the value of the resource collection. 

The value of digital competence development through the learning circles

In the beginning of 2023, the result of the follow-up researchers’ work will be published in LOM #27, in the following 2 articles:

• Underviseres digitale kompetencer – definition, design og didaktisering med projektet læringscirkler som case (Teachers’ digital competences – definition, design and didacticization – the project Learning Circles as a case) by Jens Jørgen Hansen, SDU, Marianne Georgsen, UCN, and Christian Black Jørgensen, UCN
  • Starting from the project ”Learning circles”: How is ‘teachers’ digital competences’ understood; how are learning initiatives designed, with a view to the development of teachers’ digital competences; and what principles are the basis of the didacticisation of the dissemination of teachers’ digital competences?
• Aktualiserede kompetencer i projekt digitale læringscirkler (Competences developed in the project ’Learning circles’) by Hanne Fie Rasmussen, UCL, Jens Sand Østergaard, UCN, and Thomas Kjærgaard, UCN
  • What are the competences that the participants from the university colleges experience having developed through their participation in the learning circles about development of digital competences, and what are the new didactic or digital possibilities for development of their future teaching, that the process has revealed, in their opinion?

Statements from the teachers stress, among other things, that:

• “The unity, the collaboration and the sparring in the learning circle has been a surprisingly positive element, better that I expected. The learning circle helped me structure my pedagogical development project and work continuously.”
• “With the considerations and reflection, I have made during these 8 weeks, I have simply become a better teacher.”
• “I had a superb facilitator who was good at including tips for online teaching and also at giving us input for the small projects that each one of us had. Furthermore, it was useful to be able to talk to colleagues in the same situation and to have a safe space, where we could talk about good teaching experiences and about teaching challenges, as well as having new perspectives on these through the facilitator and the group.”
• “It has been extremely inspiring and rewarding.”

• The specific deliveries (the digital resource platform, the training of facilitators, guides with agendas and “playbook”) are all considered valuable and important for the completion of learning circles.
• It is very important for the operation of the learning circles to have an experienced facilitator with both process competences and knowledge on the content.
• The interaction and cooperation between the partners/institutions have given increased value in relation to
  • production of the digital resource collection 
  • a critical mass of participants
  • cross-institutional learning circles, which have contributed to valuable inspiration and insight in programmes across the institutions
• The organizational affiliation
  • Establishment and recruitment:
    • Participation must, as far as possible, be voluntary
    • Support and recognition from the management is crucial (time and space set aside for participation and experiments)
    • Other important factors are alignment of expectations and understanding of the prerequisites for and investment in the creation of the learning community.
  • The format:
    • The number of meeting sessions - must be flexible and adjustable – fewer or more sessions, as needed.
    • Timing is important in relation to testing in practice.

Getting started with learning circles

If you are curious about getting started with the learning circle method as a competence development format, read more on dkgl.dk where you will get access to the digital resource platform, as well as guides and agendas for the 8 synchronous sessions. Later you will find information about training of facilitators, including a playbook for the facilitators, based on the updated results from the follow-up research and the final collection of experience.  And you will find links to the research articles, once they have been published in LOM #27.  Most of the resources on dkgl.dk will soon be available in an English version. You are of course also welcome to contact SDUUP – we will be happy to help with the facilitation and/or establishment of learning circles locally at your department.