Learning ecology theory as a tool to support student digital competences in higher education

Abstract

The need for digitally competent graduates is well established, and articulated in the New Skills Agenda for Europe (European Commission, 2016) and the European Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027 (European Commission, 2021). The Enhancing Digital Teaching and Learning (EDTL) project seeks to enhance graduate digital attributes by providing professional development to academics to embed digital technologies across the curriculum (Flynn et al., 2020). The lack of data on the competencies required in the workplace in Ireland, and the lack of clarity around how best to support students to develop digital competences were identified as two key challenges to this work. This paper considers these challenges by presenting data from a small-scale study exploring the digital competences most important to graduates and employers, followed by an examination of the contexts in which higher education institutions can support students developing digital competencies through the lens of learning ecology theory.