Empower Digi Teach: a project to boost digital competence among teaching staff

Although innovations like artificial intelligence (AI) are increasingly becoming a part of our lives, education systems are still lacking know-how when it comes to providing innovative digitaleducational resourcesfor students. According to various studies, teaching staff say that they lack the confidence they need to create learning resources, do not have sufficient skills for assessment in digital contexts, and do not know how to use emerging technologies like AI in education. 

Faced with this challenge, the international Empower Digi Teach project, in which the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) is a participant, is a platform that will empower European teachers and education experts to increase their digital competencies. The UOC team is led by Elena Barberà, full professor in the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, member of the Education and E-learning research unit, and researcher in the Indiv - B group of individual researchers in Education and e-Learning. It also includes Dr Muhammad Zaheer Asghar, Dr Silvia Alcaraz-Domínguez, Amir Narimani and Iria Balayo as research fellows. The initiative will enable teachers to receive training to be able to design and implement innovative and inclusive online learning materials using new digital tools.

"The UOC has a strong tradition, is an international leader in online and distance education and has extensive experience in developing state-of-the-art learning models, which is why it's adopted a leadership role in key areas of work in the project," explained Amir Narimani,a PhD student on the Doctoral Programme in Education and ICT (e-Learning)at the UOC. 

In addition to the UOC, four other universities are participating in Empower Digi Teach, a project funded by the European Union's Erasmus+ programme: in Turkey, Dokuz Eylül University, which is coordinating the project, and Kastamonu University;in Portugal, the University of Minho; and in Romania, the Centrul Pentru Promovarea Invatarii Permanente.

Thanks to the collaboration between these institutions, a learning management system (LMS) has been developed to improve digital skills in teaching. The UOC's role has focused on leading the development of online learning materials and pedagogical guidelines, and on conducting pilot projects in Spain to test the effectiveness of the materials designed and to provide scientific evidence for adapting the resources to teachers. 

The primary recipients of this platform are teachers in primary, secondary and higher education and vocational training, as well as teacher trainers and education policymakers.

Gamification and microcredentials

Maintaining motivation is always one of the major difficulties in any educational environment. In the case of Empower Digi Teach, gamification is a cornerstone which enables teachers to feel engaged and motivated throughout the process. "Gamification plays a key role in making teachers' professional development more engaging, interactive and motivating. Using points, badges and levels, the Empower Digi Teach virtual learning environment helps teachers track their progress, maintain their commitment and celebrate their achievements", said Narimani, a member of the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences. 

The platform uses a microcredentials system for recognition of the skills teachers acquire. After completing the various courses, they obtain digital certificates aligned with DigCompEdu, an evidence-based European scientific framework that establishes the skills that educators need for digital competence.

Each Empower Digi Teach module and workshop is linked to specific competencies, and teachers can accumulate microcredentials – certificates of competencies – to create a personalized portfolio that demonstrates the different skills and knowledge they have acquired. The courses already available include digital storytelling; searching for, modifying and creating digital resources; 3D modelling; evaluation, accessibility and inclusion strategies in learning, and pedagogical excellence. 

Flexibility in the acquisition of knowledge, recognition of progress and the need for these skills for teaching in today's world are some of the key factors that add value to the project. "These characteristics, and the fact that the project creates a space for collaboration between European teachers", explained Narimani, "help maintain teachers' commitment and foster a culture of lifelong learning. Giving teachers the opportunity to share and discuss practices with colleagues also helps them stay motivated."

One of the project's added values is the strong collaboration between institutions in different countries: "This cooperative model enriches the project with varied perspectives, and ensures that its results are inclusive and adaptable to different educational contexts," explained the UOC PhD candidate. The project also creates interactive communities of practice, and provides opportunities for ongoing collaboration between teachers and institutions after the project ends, which will lead to the creation of a European network of professionals. 

From the pilot to reality

Empower Digi Teach has conducted its pilot studies as well as multiplier events, both in Spain and in the other countries participating in the project, and the initial results were positive, with very encouraging feedback from teachers. You can access the Empower Digi Teach project website and the Empower Digi Teach learning management system via the links provided below and review the outputs of the project. Furthermore, all content available on both the project website and the learning management system can be found in English and the languages of the partner countries.

The project website: https://www.empowerdigiteach.eu/

The LMS: https://lms.empowerdigiteach.eu/education/

This project is aligned with the UOC's research missions: 'Lifelong education' and 'Ethical and human-centred technology'. It also supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals: SDG 4, Quality Education; and SDG 10, Reduced Inequalities.

Research at the UOC

Specializing in the digital realm, the UOC's research contributes to the construction of future society and the transformations required to tackle global challenges.

Over 500 researchers and more than 50 research groups make up five research units, each with a mission: Culture for a critical society, Lifelong education, Digital health and planetary well-being, Ethical and human-centred technology and Digital transition and sustainability.

The university's Hubbik platform fosters the development of UOC community knowledge transfer and entrepreneurship initiatives.

The goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and open knowledge are strategic pillars that underpin the UOC's teaching, research and knowledge transfer activities. For more information, visit research.uoc.edu.