European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators: DigCompEdu

"[I]it is part of educators' digital competence to enable learners to actively participate in life and work in a digital age. It is also part of their competence to reap the benefits of digital technologies for enhancing pedagogic practice and organisational strategies."

This resource by the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the European Commission (EC)'s science and knowledge service, presents a framework for the development of educators' digital competence in Europe. The framework is intended to support national, regional, and local efforts in fostering educators' digital competence by offering a common frame of reference, with a common language and logic that can facilitate the exchange of best practice amongst teachers across borders. It aims to help Member States in their efforts to promote the digital competence of their citizens and boost innovation in education.

Directed toward educators at all levels of education, from early childhood to higher and adult education, the DigCompEdu framework aims to capture and describe educator-specific digital competences by proposing 22 elementary competences organised in 6 areas:

• Area 1 is directed at the broader professional environment, i.e., educators' use of digital technologies in professional interactions with colleagues, learners, parents, and other interested parties, for their own individual professional development and for the collective good of the organisation.
• Area 2 looks at the competences needed to effectively and responsibly use, create, and share digital resources for learning.
• Area 3 is dedicated to managing and orchestrating the use of digital technologies in teaching and learning.
• Area 4 addresses the use of digital strategies to enhance assessment.
• Area 5 focuses on the potential of digital technologies for learner-centred teaching and learning strategies.
• Area 6 details the specific pedagogic competences required to facilitate students' digital competence.

To give an example, an educator proficient in Area 5 will select, create, and adapt digital resources to empower learners. In this respect, he or she will: make the resources accessible to all learners; foresee different, personalised learning pathways; and design the resources so as to actively involve and engage all learners. For each competence, a title and a short description are provided, which serve as the main point of reference.

The Framework also proposes a progression model to help educators assess and develop their digital competence. It outlines 6 different stages through which an educator's digital competence typically develops, so as to help educators identify and decide on the specific steps to take to boost their competence at the stage they are currently at. At the first two stages, Newcomer (A1) and Explorer (A2), educators assimilate new information and develop basic digital practices; at the following two stages, Integrator (B1) and Expert (B2), they apply, further expand, and structure their digital practices; at the highest stages, Leader (C1) and Pioneer (C2), they pass on their knowledge, critique existing practice, and develop new practices.

Following a foreword, executive summary, acknowledgements, and an introduction, contents include:

• DigCompEdu in a Nutshell
• DigCompEdu Explained
  • Professional Engagement
  • Digital Resources
  • Teaching and Learning
  • Assessment
  • Empowering Learners
  • Facilitating Learners' Digital Competence
  • Overview
• DigCompEdu in Detail
  • Professional Engagement
  • Digital Resources
  • Teaching and Learning
  • Assessment
  • Empowering Learners
  • Facilitating Learners' Digital Competence