IMPROVE TEACHERS' INNOVATIVE DIGITAL SKILLS ACROSS EUROPE

The Innovative Digital Education and Skills (IDEAS) ERASMUS+ project aimed to improve teachers' digital skills and competencies by directly responding to the EU's Digital Education Action-Plan (2021-27) Strategic-Priority 1. It involved the design of a 30-hour micro-credentialed teacher training course consisting of a digital toolkit with 14 bite-sized modules using adaptive learning models with the support of the IDEAS Mentors and implementing a pilot programme that was tested and evaluated. To carry out the course's instructional design, a needs analysis was conducted based on a literature review and a baseline survey to assess teachers' strengths, weaknesses, and needs in implementing digital pedagogy. After identifying teachers' needs, specific content was conceived, designed, and made available on a platform that allows access to the knowledge society. The study showed four areas of digital competencies needing training, and a learner persona was profiled following a gap analysis of the 99 responses. This data informed a pilot program with 80 Vocational Education and Training and Higher Education teachers to test the functionality of the digital Toolkit, the e-learning platform, design, quality, and impact of the content. Data analysis indicates that participating teachers improved their digital competencies and facilitated innovative learning experiences in their practices.