We had the pleasure to have the official launch of the joint report of the JRC -CRUE (Conference of Rectors of Spanish Universities) ‘The Digital Competence of Academics in Spain: a study based on the European Frameworks DigCompEdu and OpenEdu’, on the 13th of September 2022, at the University of Seville, Spain. The report has been published in both Spanish and English. It was the result of a 4-year collaboration between the JRC and CRUE, which evolved over time into this ambitious and highly relevant project to survey academics nationwide. The representative survey was carried out via the JRC’s Check-In self-reflection tool for higher education, involving 51 Spanish Universities, of which participated more than 5 thousand academics. The results show that the digital competence level of academics in Spain is mostly between B1 and B2 levels, with the median B2. It also shows that the competence levels vary from area to area of the frameworks and that further professional development needs to take place in all areas, with particular attention to the ones with lower scores, such as open education, digital assessment, and learners’ empowerment. The results have been discussed in focus groups, which enabled us to propose realistic policy recommendations at various levels: at the institutional level, at the level of the Ministry of Universities, CRUE, and the European Commission.
Andreia Inamorato dos Santos
From the JRC, the act counted on the opening of Mikel Landabaso Alvarez, director of the Joint Research Centre in Seville, Yves Punie, and myself co-presenting the report with Pedro M. Ruiz, executive secretary of CRUE-TIC. The act also counted on the participation of the rectors of the University of Seville and University of Jaén, as well as a representative of ANECA, adding to the political relevance of the results for higher education policymaking in Spain. Here you can find the CRUE press release, the agenda and the recording (also below for convenience).
I had the pleasure to coordinate this work from the JRC side of this collaboration, and to work very closely with a fantastic group of co-authors: Cristina Villalonga Gómez, Marçal Mora Cantallops, Juan Ramon Lacalle, Juan Ramon Velasco, Pedro M. Ruiz, Juan Camarillo Casado, José Manuel Sota Eguizábal.
I would like to congratulate all involved in the project for their commitment and successful policy impact!