A Catalogue of Criteria for Evaluating and Inspiring Digital Teaching Practices
This result, closely connected to the digiTED Virtual Makerspace, represents a major step forward in providing hands-on, practical guidance for teacher educators navigating the digital landscape. It stands out from existing models by blending evaluation with inspiration, making it not only a tool for self-assessment but also a catalyst for professional growth and collaboration. By integrating this result into teacher education programmes, professional learning communities, and institutional development initiatives, the project partners aim to ensure its long-term impact in advancing digital professional development for teacher educators across Europe and beyond.
Active learning with digital tools involves giving students more autonomy and fostering their understanding of how to effectively utilise interactive tools and technologies. It encourages students to engage in self-directed exploration. In this approach, teacher educators assume the role of mentors and serve as positive role models for students.
Active learning with digital tools empowers students by providing them with choices and opportunities to actively participate in their own learning process. By using interactive tools and technologies, students can actively manipulate, analyse, and visualise information, which enhances their understanding and competences.
Teacher educators play a crucial role in facilitating active learning with digital tools. They guide and mentor students, offering support and scaffolding when needed. Teacher educators also provide opportunities for reflection and feedback, helping students refine their skills and deepen their understanding of the subject matter.
Collaborative learning with digital tools involves the joint utilisation of tools within an educational setting, allowing students a certain degree of choice in their collaborative endeavors. It encompasses not only collaboration among peers but also extends to engaging with individuals outside of the immediate group, incorporating virtual or hybrid formats. This may involve reaching out to subject matter experts, participating in virtual discussions or workshops, or leveraging online communities and networks. By connecting with a broader range of perspectives and expertise, students can gain deeper insights and expand their learning beyond the immediate classroom context.
Collaborative learning with digital tools emphasises the importance of students working together, pooling their knowledge and skills, and leveraging interactive technologies to achieve shared learning goals. Within a seminar, students have the opportunity to select and use various tools that enable collaboration, such as online platforms, communication tools, or collaborative document editors. This fosters active engagement and shared responsibility for knowledge construction.
Teacher educators play a supportive role and facilitate connections between students and external resources. They provide guidance and assistance in selecting appropriate tools, establishing connections, and fostering a supportive learning environment. Teacher educators also facilitate opportunities for students to engage in meaningful collaborations, whether within the classroom or in virtual settings. By nurturing these collaborative experiences, teacher educators empower students to develop vital teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills.
Constructive learning with digital tools involves empowering students to take control of their learning process by actively using tools to build knowledge. It encourages the interactive delivery of information and fosters creativity through the use of digital tools and technologies to produce digital content that constructs meaning.
In constructive learning with digital tools, students are given autonomy and agency to explore and use various tools to construct their own understanding. They take an active role in seeking out relevant resources, conducting research, and engaging in interactive activities that facilitate knowledge acquisition.
Furthermore, constructive learning with digital tools encourages students to creatively leverage these tools and technologies to produce digital content that represents their learning and constructs meaning. This can include creating multimedia presentations, interactive presentations, e-portfolios, or collaborative projects. By engaging in these creative endeavors, students not only deepen their understanding of the subject matter but also develop digital literacy skills and enhance their ability to communicate and express ideas effectively.
Authentic learning with digital tools involves integrating these tools and technologies into activities that have a tangible impact on real-life people and environments. In authentic learning with digital tools, students engage in activities that go beyond theoretical concepts and simulations, and instead, directly interact with real-life contexts. These activities often involve using digital tools and technologies to address real-world problems, explore authentic challenges, or create meaningful solutions. By doing so, students gain firsthand experience in applying their knowledge and skills in practical settings, making their learning more relevant and impactful.
Moreover, authentic learning with digital tools encourages students to engage in activities that have a direct connection to real-world scenarios. These activities may involve conducting interviews, collecting and analysing real data, participating in virtual or augmented reality simulations, or developing digital products for real users or audiences. By experiencing the authenticity of these tasks, students develop a deeper understanding of the practical application of their knowledge and skills.
In summary, authentic learning with digital tools integrates these tools and technologies into activities that have a real-life impact. It fosters independent and self-directed use of tools and technologies in tasks related to real-world scenarios.
While numerous theoretical models exist, such as TPACK (Mishra & Koehler, 2006) or SAMR (Puentedura, 2010), a hands-on, practice-oriented framework specifically for teacher educators has been missing. The digiTED project recognised this gap and set out to develop a structured yet adaptable framework to evaluate and enhance digital teaching practices. This framework not only offers clear evaluation criteria but also serves as a source of inspiration, enabling educators to explore good practices from colleagues across Europe. The third result – An Online Catalogue of Criteria to Evaluate Digital Teaching Practices of Teacher Educators – is intended to support self-reflection, professional development, and innovation in digital teaching by providing an interactive, research-informed tool. The criteria developed are primarily based on the TIM Matrix (Technology Integration Matrix) from the University of Florida. However, the project also integrated elements from other relevant frameworks, ensuring a comprehensive approach that aligns with the diverse needs of teacher educators in various disciplines and educational settings.
Comment on the Result Development
At the outset of the project, the proposal envisioned an interactive online catalogue that would provide teacher educators with concrete evaluation criteria for assessing their use of digital tools. The plan was to create an online flowchart tool, inspired by the SELFIE tool developed by the European Commission, which allows educators to assess their digital teaching competences. The original idea was to guide users through a set of questions and statements, leading them to a classification that reflected their level of digital practice (e.g., foundational, intermediate, advanced). Each category would then offer tailored feedback, including relevant references, project links, and recommendations for further development.
During the first year of development, extensive research and partner discussions led to significant refinements in both content and format. Initially, the Swedish and German partners collaborated to analyse existing frameworks using an online board, systematically identifying key dimensions of digital teaching. Partners engaged in regular online working sessions, providing feedback on the evolving framework. However, expert reviewers from the National Agency provided critical feedback, questioning the flowchart approach for being too rigid. While acknowledging the value of structured evaluation, they encouraged a more flexible, innovative approach that would better support teacher educators in planning and refining their digital practices. In response, the partners decided to:
- Move away from a rigid flow chart and instead develop an interactive digital resource with structured guidance and examples.
- Enhance the resource with multimedia content, including video-based good practices, to make the tool more engaging and applicable.
- Use the TIM Matrix as the primary framework for categorisation, ensuring alignment with a widely respected model while adapting it for teacher educators.
As a result, the initial concept shifted from a self-assessment flow chart to a more dynamic “Inspirational Guide”, designed to be both an evaluation tool and a source of inspiration for teacher educators. The final version is hosted on Genial.ly, with all video content available via YouTube, ensuring widespread accessibility. By offering hands-on guidance, real-world examples, and interactive reflection opportunities, the guide fills a critical gap in digital professional development for teacher educators.