The Measurement and Development of Digital Pedagogy Competences in the Context of a Hungarian Higher Educa!on Ins!tu!on

Abstract

The digital competences of educators play a central role in the effective integration of technology into educational and research processes, and several comprehensive studies have been published in this area in Hungary. The OECD (2021) survey, which is the most comprehensive study, found that in addition to the development of infrastructure, specific training of educators and the development of a supportive organisational culture are essential for successful digital transformation. In recent years, digital pedagogical renewal and related focused educational development has come to the fore in Hungarian higher education institutions, typically with the support of various Acadmic Development Units. Thus, in our research, we sought to answer how the Academic Developent Units of a Hungarian university can support this process: our research investigates the results of digital competence measurement and development at the Károli Gáspár University of Reformed Church in Hungary (KRE), as well as their interactions and supporting factors. The research aims to explore how different institutional influences affect the development of digital competence. In our longitudinal research, we analyse empirical data from three years, examining the impact of competency development workshops and institutional decisions on the development of digital competence of the participants. The theoretical framework of our research is provided by socio-technical systems theory, which integrates and considers the interaction of human and technological elements. We use a case study approach and three data sources for analysis: the DigCompEdu questionnaire, participation data from competence development workshops and institutional documents. Our results show that institutional support and regular workshops contribute significantly to the development of digital competences of educators.