=Paper=
{{Paper
|id=Vol-2524/paper1
|storemode=property
|title=An international competence framework for digital creative teaching: the DoCENT model
|pdfUrl=https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2524/paper1.pdf
|volume=Vol-2524
|authors=Frédérique Frossard,Mario Barajas Frutos,Anna Trifonova
|dblpUrl=https://dblp.org/rec/conf/psychobit/FrossardFT19
}}
==An international competence framework for digital creative teaching: the DoCENT model==
https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2524/paper1.pdf
An international competence framework for digital
creative teaching: The DoCENT model
Frédérique Frossard1, Mario Barajas Frutos1 and AnnaTrifonova2
1 University of Barcelona, Facultat de Educacion, Passeig Vall Hebrón, 171, 08035 Barcelona
2 CreaTIC Academy S.L., c/ Rosés 58, 08028 Barcelona
frederique.frossard@ub.edu, mbarajas@ub.edu,
anna@creaticnens.com
Abstract. Worldwide educational policies call for the development of creative
and digital competences, as they are essential to reach social inclusion and em-
ployment in today society. Yet, educators are not adequately trained to apply
creative teaching strategies, nor to fully exploit the educational affordances of
technologies. In the context of the DoCENT project (Erasmus + programme),
this paper proposes an innovative framework mapping the key-competences
needed by teachers to effectively integrate digital creativity in their teaching
practices. We report the methodology used to build the framework, as well as
present its six areas and 19 competences. The DoCENT model provides teacher
educators, educational practitioners and researchers with a tangible tool for em-
bedding educational creativity in the digital society.
Keywords: Digital Creativity, Teaching Competences, Competence Frame-
work.
1 Introduction
Creativity is essential for individuals to face the social and economic changes which
characterize the XXI Century [1–2], as well as to reach social inclusion and employ-
ment [3]. Furthermore, today labour market is strongly linked to employees’ abilities
to work with digital technologies [4]. Hence, worldwide educational policies call for
the development of creative and digital competences in students from all levels [5].
Yet, education systems do not efficiently integrate creativity and technologies in
today classrooms [4, 6]. Indeed, educators are not adequately trained to apply creative
teaching strategies, nor to fully exploit the educational affordances of technologies.
To address this shortcoming, the DoCENT project1 intends to enhance digital crea-
tivity in teacher education settings. In the context of DoCENT, the present study aims
to define the key-competences needed by educators to effectively integrate digital
creativity in their teaching practices, as well as to provide and validate a European
reference framework for developing and evaluating those competences.
1 DoCENT – Digital Creativity Enhanced in Teacher education - Erasmus +, Strategic Partner-
ships for Higher Education, 2017-19, project number 2017-1-IT02-KA203-036807
Copyright © 2019 for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
2
Competence can be defined as “The proven ability to use knowledge, skills and
personal, social and/or methodological abilities, in work or study situations, and in
professional and personal development” ([7], p. 19). This article reports the method-
ology used to build the DoCENT competence framework, as well as presents the re-
sult of this design process in terms of areas and components.
2 Methodology
This section defines the methodological steps which we followed to design the
DoCENT competence framework for digital creative teaching.
First, we identified and reviewed a set of existing competence frameworks related
to the different dimensions of DoCENT, i.e. creativity [8, 9, 10, 11], digital technolo-
gies [12, 13] and teacher education [14, 15]. We also analysed frameworks related to
21st Century Skills [16,17] and lifelong learning [18]. In total, we considered 26
frameworks.
In a second step, we extracted possible competences from those models. Then, we
selected the most relevant ones for inclusion in the framework, following a series of
criteria, i.e., (a) corresponding to the three dimensions of DoCENT; (b) being concep-
tually clear; (c) being formulated at a general rather than at a specific level; and (d)
being conceptually distinct from other competences [19].
Afterwards, we synthesised and adapted the set of competences obtained into a
first prototype framework. To do so, we defined a set of areas, each of them com-
posed by a number of competences. Following an iterative process, the model was
analysed and refined by the members of the DoCENT consortium.
In a final step, we reviewed, refined and validated the prototype through an expert
evaluation conducted in the different project countries: in the context of face-to-face
focus groups, a panel of 24 educational experts and practitioners reviewed, discussed
and provided feedback on the different elements of the framework. We considered
their suggestions, by adapting the existing components and adding new ones. As a
result, we obtained a refined version of the framework.
3 Results
The DoCENT framework considers the professional competences of educators,
their pedagogical competences, as well as the development of students' digital crea-
tive competences. The framework is organized in such a way that it is compatible
with the European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (Digi-
CompEdu) [12], by presenting a similar structure, specifically adapted to the topic of
digital creativity. The DigiCompEdu provides a scientifically sound background and a
reference point for developers of competence models.
The DoCENT model targets teacher educators, educational policy makers, as well
as pre-service and in-service teachers. As shown in Figure 2, it is divided into six
areas and includes a total of 19 competences, which are described in the next subsec-
tions.
3
Fig. 1. DoCENT competence framework.
Area A: Professional engagement. This area refers to teachers’ use of digital technol-
ogies to collaborate with the different members of their professional community, i.e.,
to exchange practices and methodologies, as well as initiate or participate in collabo-
rative projects which contribute to educational change (Competence A1). Further-
more, it tackles educators’ reflective teaching practice and digital continuous profes-
sional development (Competence A2).
Area B: Digital creative resources. Here we focus on teachers’ abilities to identify,
critically evaluate and select digital resources with a creative educational potential,
e.g., manipulative technologies, educational robotics, RFID/NFC technologies, game
design and coding tools (Competence B1). The area also refers to teachers’ creation,
modification and sharing of digital resources (Competence B2).
Area C: Digital creative pedagogies. This area addresses the use of digital technolo-
gies to support creative teaching and learning. It implies, for teachers, building a crea-
tive learning environment supported by technologies: creating a positive social cli-
mate, accepting new ideas, using failure as a positive learning factor, and promoting
exploration through a flexible use of space and time (Competence C1). Competence
C2 tackles the planning and application of digital teaching strategies which potentially
enhance students’ creativity, e.g. inquiry-based, project-based, game-based learning.
Competence C3 addresses teachers’ ability to facilitate classroom interactions that
foster students’ creativity, by fostering rich collaboration processes, stimulating ex-
pression and dialogue, as well as encouraging democratic practices in the digital
4
classroom. Finally, Competence C4 relates to the creation of synergies, by linking
curricular concepts to real life situations, as well as bridging between subjects, themes
and concepts through cross-curricular learning opportunities.
Area D: Creative assessment. Here we concentrate on teachers’ ability to engage stu-
dents in assessment processes which foster metacognition and critical thinking (e.g.,
self- and peer-evaluation - Competence D1), as well as using digital evaluation strate-
gies which allow for evaluating students’ creativity (Competence D2).
Area E: Learners’ empowerment. This area refers to the use of digital technologies to
enhance learners’ engagement (Competence E1) and self-learning (Competence E2),
encouraging them to become active, responsible members of the digital society. It
also tackles the personalization of the learning process (Competence E3) and the in-
clusion of all learners without regard to gender, physical, intellectual, social, linguis-
tic, cultural, or religious characteristics (Competence E4).
Area F: Learners’ digital creativity. Finally, Area F focuses on teachers’ ability to
enhance students’ digital creative competences, i.e. the use of divergent and conver-
gent thinking to analyse and solve real-world problems (Competence F1); the adop-
tion of a “maker culture” which fosters the creative expression of ideas (Competence
F2); information literacy and digital citizenship, by encouraging students to partici-
pate safely, effectively, critically and responsibly in the digital world (Competence
F3); creative disposition (openness to experience, responsible risk taking, tolerance of
ambiguity, learning from failure – Competence F4); the use of computational thinking
and design thinking to solve problems and model systems (Competence F5).
4 Conclusions
This study proposed an innovative competence framework for applying creative
teaching practices mediated by digital technologies. It includes six areas, each of
those equally important for ensuring the emergence of creative teaching and learning.
The framework has recently been applied in a teacher training course conducted in
DoCENT countries. Further research will present the results of this implementation.
The study allowed for bridging two key-educational research constructs, namely
creativity and digital technologies. Furthermore, it provides teacher educators, educa-
tional practitioners and researchers with a tangible tool for embedding creativity in
the educational system and, beyond, in the digital society. The DoCENT competence
model allows for rethinking teacher education programmes, by designing innovative
learning solutions that combine creative practices with digital tools.
It is important to note that the identified competences will naturally evolve with the
emergence of new technologies (which will eventually provide new affordances) and
pedagogical models. In addition, competences might vary according to the sociocul-
tural context at stake, as the emphasis of professional development and pedagogical
patrimonies may differ accordingly.
5
Acknowledgements: This work was supported by the European Commission, Do-
CENT project [Erasmus +, Strategic Partnerships for Higher Education, 2017-1-IT02-
KA203-036807]. This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and the
Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the infor-
mation contained therein.
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