Microcredentials

Describing Life Long Learning implementation at Universidade Aberta across the years and the recent implementation of Microcredentials.N/

Perceptions of the students’ learning and evaluation process in an e-learning course in food preservation technology: a study case in a food consumption msc

Food Preservation Technology is a main module within a course integrated in a Master of Science program in Food Consumption at Universidade Aberta, Portugal. The pedagogical model adopted at Universidade Aberta encourages open practices such as teamwork and participation at the forums for learning exchange. E-learning and b-learning tools are increasingly used in the actual global world, providing the students with a great opportunity to study from distance and submit their digital works or assignments for evaluation. However, in this case the distinctive evaluation of each student and classification with the respective grade may seem to be a significant problem for the teachers. During this module for each assignment topic, every student chose a different subject related to their professional or academic interests. This gives the student a chance to improve scientific knowledge within each topic and to further explore the proposed subject. Herein we have analysed how the different assignments that students completed within this module can reflect students’ commitment to study and actively seek for their own knowledge. Besides, the following points were also taken into consideration: (1) the difficulties that a teacher might have when evaluating students’ submitted assignments; (2) the tools that the teacher has to differentiate the quality of different assignments; as well as (3) the description of how grades can be differentiated between the students. The assignments were both teamwork and individual work that resulted from previous learning activities. In this paper, we have thus tried to understand the main limitations that students have to overcome while working on the evaluation assignments. The analytical data retrieved from the assignment’s forums reveal that only a very small part of information exchanged has a constructive nature and adds value to the work to be done. From the analysed data of the works presented by the students, it is evident that they did not use an accurate bibliographical state-of-the-art list. We also debate the teamwork evaluation process within the e-learning system and its relationship with the contemporary state-of-the-art of each discussed theme, namely Drying and water activity control, Chemical preservation, Curing, Pickling, Smoking, Fermentation, Modified atmosphere, High pressure processing, Ohmic heating, Irradiation, Membrane processing, Pulsed electric fields, and Microwave processing.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Liquefied Natural Gas as an alternative fuel: a regional-level social cost-benefit appraisal

The impact from traditional marine fuels has the potential of causing health and non-health damages and contributes to climate change. Here, the introduction of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as an energy end-use fuel for marine purposes is analysed. The aim of this study is to verify LNG’s policy implementation feasibility as a step-change for a low carbon perspective for shipping by means of developing a social cost-benefit analysis on a regional basis. Emissions from the Portuguese merchant fleet, weighted by their contribution to the National Inventory, were used to quantify and monetise climate, health and non-health externalities compared with benefits from LNG as a substitute fuel. Benefits from the policy implementation are those related to the reduction of external environmental, health and non-health impacts. Costs are those that nationals are willing to pay for. In this sense, to estimate the value of the atmospheric air - a non-market commodity - people were asked about the price they hypothetically are willing to pay by responding to a specific questionnaire. The present study, based on a social cost-benefit analysis, indicates that benefits are almost 8 times superior to the costs and is consistent with real world efficiency gains. Although it addresses Portuguese particularities, this methodology should be applied elsewhere.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Liquefied Natural Gas as an alternative fuel: a regional-level social cost-benefit appraisal

The impact from traditional marine fuels has the potential of causing health and non-health damages and contributes to climate change. Here, the introduction of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as an energy end-use fuel for marine purposes is analysed. The aim of this study is to verify LNG’s policy implementation feasibility as a step-change for a low carbon perspective for shipping by means of developing a social cost-benefit analysis on a regional basis. Emissions from the Portuguese merchant fleet, weighted by their contribution to the National Inventory, were used to quantify and monetise climate, health and non-health externalities compared with benefits from LNG as a substitute fuel. Benefits from the policy implementation are those related to the reduction of external environmental, health and non-health impacts. Costs are those that nationals are willing to pay for. In this sense, to estimate the value of the atmospheric air - a non-market commodity - people were asked about the price they hypothetically are willing to pay by responding to a specific questionnaire. The present study, based on a social cost-benefit analysis, indicates that benefits are almost 8 times superior to the costs and is consistent with real world efficiency gains. Although it addresses Portuguese particularities, this methodology should be applied elsewhere.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Microcredentials: an opportunity towards the digital transformation

This communication aims to present one of the online courses included in the Microcredentials portfolio of the Universidade Aberta, in Portugal. We start by presenting a framework of the European guidelines on Microcredentials, defining its main characteristics, namely highlighting its advantages in the context of reskilling or upskilling with a view to its applicability in the labor sector. Following the guidelines of the Portuguese Ministry of Higher Education, and specific EU funding under the Impulso Adultos programme, a proposal for a Microcredential in Digital and Distance Learning was conceptualized and developed for teachers´ training, with more than 1200 teachers already involved. An evaluation carried out through a survey delivered to trainees shows very positive results in all items evaluated, with strong emphasis on the transferability and applicability of the knowledge acquired to work contexts. These results show that this course, developed within the scope of Microcredentials, broadly meets the needs of reskilling and upskilling, which are increasingly important in the adaptability of adults to the new challenges that digital transformation implies.Project funded by the Recovery and Resilience Program (PRR), Portugal, and the European Union - Next Generation, EUinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Exploring the value and perception of microcredentials: a case study of the Universidade Aberta

The Universidade Aberta (UAb) – the Portuguese Open University - has extensive experience inproviding continuous professional development courses for adult learners, ranging frompostgraduate certificates to short learning programmes and MOOCs. In 2021, the UAb initiateda new portfolio of short learning opportunities leading to micro-credentials, driven by anationally-funded project called "Impulso Adultos" which aims to reskill and upskill the adultpopulation either already in work or looking to transition to a new professional opportunity.Micro-credentials are a form of recognition for learning that are based on short, stackable, andfocused learning blocks, leading learners to develop specific skills or competencies. The conceptof micro-credentials has gained popularity in recent years, initially in North America andAustralia, and more recently in Europe (Brown & Mhichil, 2022). When publishing its EuropeanSkills Agenda, the Commission set out policy priorities and actions aimed at increasing theemployability of citizens and boosting the skills for the workplace (European Skills Agenda forSustainable Competitiveness, Social Fairness and Resilience, 2020). In its action 10, theCommission set the ground for the relevance given to Micro-credentials. According to theCommission, Micro-credentials should: (i) encourage the take-up of flexible and quality-assuredcourses; (ii) make learning more visible and understood; (iii) be validated and guided; and (iv)should be easy to store and communicate through Europass. The UAb's portfolio of micro-credentials comprises over 20 courses, which have been offered tomore than 2,000 students over a period of two years. These courses cover various thematicareas, including distance and digital education, language and communication, sustainabledevelopment goals, and digital transition and transformation. All of these courses are deliveredonline and often involve collaborative development with industry and organizations. They aredesigned to be short (ranging from 1 to 4 ECTS) and cater to working students, typicallyrequiring around 7 hours of learning per week. Moreover, the assessments for these coursesare usually applicable within students' professional settings. UAb decided that the courses arepredominantly asynchronous to take advantage of the flexibility that online learning promotes.Students can access content anytime and from anywhere the flexibility of online learning suitsstudents’ needs and personal and professional commitments (Kumar, 2019) which is particularlyrelevant for adult learners that are, at the same time, employed. This communication will present an evaluation study of the UAb micro-credentials project, witha focus on assessing students' satisfaction, their perception of the relevance of the learningexperiences, and their views on the pedagogical approach and the framework employed. Giventhe limited research available on substantial cohorts of students attending micro-credentialsand their perception of the value of this type of recognition, this study aims to shed light on howstudents perceive and value micro-credentials. Furthermore, the findings of this research willprovide evidence that can inform other projects and institutions in shaping their strategicobjectives and initiatives in this domain.Impulso 2025, PRR, PortugalN/

Energia e ambiente

A energia, o ambiente e a sociedade: que futuro? A dependência energética da nossa sociedade tem vindo a aumentar cada vez mais em nome do desenvolvimento tecnológico e do bem-estar social. Contudo o preço a pagar é cada vez maior devido à falta de atenção para que se mantenha uma relação com o ambiente que garanta a sua sustentabilidade. Muitos fenómenos naturais estarão associados a esta relação fraca o que conduz também a uma crescente instabilidade financeira e política que se vive globalmente e que fez disparar os custos da energia. A nossa dependência energética é de tal forma crítica que se tornou fundamental desenvolver, de forma rentável, mas acima de tudo garantindo a sustentabilidade ambiental, alternativas energéticas. Estaremos prestes a atingir o ponto a partir do qual será irreversível o desenvolvimento de outras formas de energia? Contudo não são apenas questões económicas que se levantam. Todos os dias somos confrontados com o impacto que as novas formas de aproveitamento energético provocam no ambiente, formando-se diversas opiniões. Nesta apresentação far-se-á uma abordagem aos diversos tipos de energia existentes e às questões técnicas, ambientais e até sociais que estas levantam

Aprendizagem ao Longo da Vida (ALV): desafios e inovação

II Encontro Nacional de Educação de Adultos, realizado na UAb de 26-27 de maio de 2022.N/