A new TUS publication is showcasing practical approaches to embedding digital skills in teaching and learning.
The Compendium of Approaches to Integrating Digital Competencies into the Curriculum was launched by TUS President Professor Vincent Cunnane at an event on the Athlone Campus.
Developed by TUS’s Centre for Pedagogical Innovation and Development (CPID), the resource brings together case studies from across the university highlighting how digital tools and approaches are being incorporated into teaching, learning and assessment. It is designed as a practical guide for educators, students and other stakeholders, sharing approaches to embedding digital skills across higher education.
The new guide is the fifth in CPID’s Compendia series, which was established in 2021 to share teaching and learning practices within TUS and beyond.
The series is supported by funding from the Higher Education Authority (HEA) through the Strategic Alignment of Teaching and Learning Enhancement (SATLE) initiative.
The first four publications in the series have been accessed 4,094 times through the TUS Library Research Repository, including by users across Europe, Asia, South America, North America, Australia and Russia.
Speaking at the launch, Professor Cunnane said:
“Technology is fundamentally changing how our students learn, how our graduates enter the world of work and how we engage with the world around us. We want TUS to be at the forefront of that change, not simply responding to it but helping to shape it.
“This compendium demonstrates that ambition in practice, showcasing the innovative work already taking place across TUS and sharing that expertise with the wider higher education community. I am immensely proud of the colleagues whose work is featured in this publication and of the team who brought it together.”
Dr Nuala Harding, Head of the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation and Development (CPID) at TUS, said:
“We are delighted to launch the fifth edition of our Compendia series. The focus on digital competencies is extremely relevant to a contemporary technological university such as TUS.
“This series of publications allows us to share practices within and beyond the university. It is evident that since its introduction, the series has had a significant impact nationally and internationally.”
Four case studies featured in the new compendium, which was edited by Dr Trevor Prendergast, Dr Noëlle O’Connor and Dr Geraldine McDermott, were showcased at the launch:
- Towards a Better Engagement for Flexible Learning Students Using Augmented and Virtual Reality
- Improving Access to Higher Education through Digital Induction Strategies
- Using Accessible Virtual Reality for Interdisciplinary Teaching, Learning and Collaboration
- Measuring the Effectiveness of a Classroom Response System in Craft Apprenticeship Education
The event also featured a keynote address from higher education consultant Sheila MacNeill, entitled Digital Competencies: The ‘Dark Matter’ That Holds Our Curriculum Together.
Closing remarks were delivered by Frances O’Connell, Vice President, Student Education and Experience at TUS, who said:
“In TUS, our graduate attributes framework focuses on what we want our graduates to know, what we want them to be able to do, and what difference we want our graduates to make.
“Focusing on embedding digital competencies into the curriculum explicitly connects digital competence with learning and emphasises that competence involves more than simply knowing how to use technology.
“The case studies present in the compendium outline how digital capabilities are being developed across disciplines and throughout students’ learning, rather than treated as an isolated technology module.”
Previous publications in the series include the Compendium of Embedding Education for Sustainable Development in Teaching, Learning and Assessment; the Compendium of Approaches to Internationalisation of the Home Curriculum; the Compendium of Active Learning Strategies for Student Engagement; and the Compendium of Active Learning and Assessment for Student Engagement.
The Compendium of Approaches to Integrating Digital Competencies into the Curriculum is available through the TUS Library Research Repository at: https://research.thea.ie/handle/20.500.12065/5044 and the National Forum’s Resource Hub, at: https://hub.teachingandlearning.ie/resource/compendium-of-approaches-to-integrating-digital-competencies-into-the-curriculum/