This presentation outlines the findings of the SEDA-funded evaluation of a framework developed by the Abertay Learning Enhancement Academy for designing and delivering online microcredentials. The framework integrates various pedagogical models to support staff in creating student-centered learning experiences. Findings show improvements in teaching practices, digital skills, and educator confidence. The framework aligns with themes like curriculum design, professional development, and educational innovation, offering a model for institutions to effectively implement microcredentials

Blackwell-Young, Julie

Hogan, Jack

English

Abertay Research Portal

Title:Evaluating a framework for microcredential design and deliveryAuthors:Jack HoganJulie Blackwell-YoungStatement:This presentation was delivered at the SEDA Autumn Conference 2024 : New Challenges for Educational Development - National and International Perspectives, Online, 28 November 2024Citation:Hogan, J. & Blackwell-Young, J. (2024) 'Evaluating a framework for microcredential design and delivery', SEDA Autumn Conference 2024, 28 November 2024.Evaluating a framework for microcredential design and deliveryJack Hogan & Julie Blackwell Young, Abertay University, Scotland#BeAbertay• Scott Cameron – Faculty Head of Teaching Quality and Learning Enhancement (Faculty of Social and Applied Sciences)• Ellie Grigg – Research Assistant• Technology Enhanced Learning Support team• Research Participants • SEDA for funding this evaluation project• Alice Lau – SEDA mentorAcknowledgements#BeAbertay• Abertay – Widening Access Institution • Introduction of 5 credit Microcredentials• Mandatory for all First-Year Students• Based on Lizzio’s (2006) ‘5 Senses of Success’• MySuccess Modules• ABE101 Being Successful at Abertay• Plus 3 optionsThe Context#BeAbertayCredits: Microcredentials can be 5 (50 Hours) or 10 (100 Hours) creditsLearning Outcome: 1 learning outcome per 5 credit microcredentialDelivery: Content should be Asynchronous (Online) with supporting synchronous activities where possible. Microcredential must be available to deliver all year roundAssessment: Microcredentials should be assessed through automated toolsAbertay Attributes: Microcredentials must explicitly link to the Abertay attributesStudent Choice: Students can choose any microcredential that is available to them. Discipline teams are encouraged to offer guidance to students however cannot make it mandatory or exclude studentsPrinciples of Microcredentials at AbertayABE101 - Being Successful at AbertayDelivered by: Abertay Learning Enhancement (AbLE) AcademyABE102 - Successful Writing at AbertayDelivered by: Learner Development ServiceABE104 – Dundee & MeDelivered by: Department of Built Environment & Life SciencesABE106 – How to Sell your Ideas!Delivered by: Department of Built Environment & Life SciencesABE108 – Your Student LifeDelivered by: Abertay's Student AssociationABE103 – Digital Skills for University & Beyond!Delivered by: Technology Enhanced Learning Support (TELS) TeamABE105 – Research & Enquiry Skills for the Digital AgeDelivered by: Learning Resources TeamABE107 – Planning your Future CareerDelivered by: Careers ServiceABE109 – Wellbeing Tools & TricksDelivered by: Counselling & Mental Health TeamABE111 – Numbers for Everyday LifeDelivered by: Department of Built Environment & Life Sciences#BeAbertay• Online Support (Covid-19)• New delivery mode (100% asynchronous) • Teaching Experiences of the module creators/developers (Academics, Professional Services & Students Association)Challenges#BeAbertay• Workshops (Idea & Design) Series of group workshops around pedagogic model:Laurillard's Conversational FrameworkICARE model (Hoffman & Ritchie, 1998)Universal Design for LearningCarpe Diem (Salmon)Buddy activities Emphasis on student activity• Templates (Design & Learning Activity Development) Module and topic level• 1:1 Support (At each stage)• Mentoring (At each stage)• Student testers (Testing) What is the support?#BeAbertay• Guskey (2008) Evaluation Framework• Kneale et al (2016) to create questions • 6 x Semi-Structured Interviews • Self-Reflective Written Accounts• 2 x Self-Reflective Recorded Accounts • Thematic Analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006)Methodology #BeAbertay“if  you're  going  to  ask  me to  come  down  to  what actually  helped  make  it  work  for  me, it  was  the  support  from  you  guys. … the  workshops,  absolutely  fantastic. It  really  did  help” (R6)I found  the  way  that like  the  ICARE  model  and the  conversational  framework  stuff, the  way  that  that  was  presented, I  found  that  very  useful” (L4)  “even  if  you've  been  teaching  for  ages, it's  always  nice  to  know  that there's  something  new  out  there. It's  also  nice  to  know  that  actually, even  if  you  didn't  know that  that  was  what  it  was  called, you're  incorporating  at least  some  of  those  principles” (L3)Was it successful?#BeAbertay“I learned loads  of  really  new  techniques and  ideas  about  how to  put  it  all  together.  It  was  almost  like  a huge  leap  to  the  same  types  of  topics. Just  looked  like  Hollywood  going  from  like a  cinema in  your  back  garden to  Hollywood  stuff. It  just  opened  so  many  more  doors.” (R2)“the  two  models  ICARE and conversational  framework  were  kind of  new to  me. And  just  invaluable  to me  as  well  when  I  was  putting  that  course together  and  just  gave me  some  confidence  that I  was  going  to  end  up  with  a  quality  product.” (J1)“it  was  the  ICARE model ... Because  I  think  that appealed  to  both  me  and  [another module developer]. … Yeah,  I  think  that  was  really  helpful because  it  gave  us a  sort  framework  that  we  could… give us  a  framework  that  we  could  apply to  the  ideas  that  we  have.” (L3)“I  think  the  workshops  were  really useful  for  that  because I  think  they  help  to  disaggregate almost  the  emergency  online teaching  that  you  do  from okay,  actually  we're designing  an  online  course. We're  designing  something  that is  meant  to  be  taught  this  way.” (L3)Theme 1: Learning Design Development #BeAbertay“Using  an  online  platform,… That  wasn't  a  particular  problem. But  using  that  tool  in  a  different  way  to deliver  entirely  online  rather  than just  have  it  as  a  repository  or a  filing  system  for students  to  go  to find  the  resources  for  the  module. Yeah,  it  was  a  new  approach  to using an  existing  tool  or  system” (R6)“I  was  really  impressed with  the  stuff  that the  support  we  got  from  when  we were putting the assessment together  was  particularly  good about  the  whole  how  you  put your  bank of  questions  together” (R2)“the  little  mini  videos  [on how to do things in the virtual learning environment] that  have  been  made. … And it's  great.  I've  got  a  visual. I  can  stick  it  up  here, I  can  have  my  other  screen. And  yeah,  I  have  to  say  they  are  brilliant.” (K5)Theme 2: Technical Skills Development #BeAbertay“in advance of the support, I suppose I was just hoping that there would be some reassurance about the support that would be available” (J1)“I  think  it  says  a  lot  about your  ability  to  calm  nerves and  show  people  a  pathway to  get  to  where  we  need  to  get to  and  to  convince  people  through  that, that  it  was  deliverable  in spite  of  the  natural  anxieties” (J1)“the  frameworks  and the  templates  were  really  useful. I  think  that  it's  always  nice  to, to  have  that  because  you  don't  know, then  it's  there  and  you  can  work  off  that. It  also  takes  quite  a  lot  of the  anxiety  out  of it” (L3)“I  felt  I've  definitely  felt more  prepared  … we  had  we did  have  a  lot  of  meetings. A lot  of  a  lot  of you  know,  clarity  was  needed. Just wanted  to  get that  sort  of  sense  checked. Do I  understand  this?  I’m doing this  right” (L4)Theme 3: Building Confidence and Reducing Anxiety #BeAbertay“workshops done in groups and it wasn't like you guys were going around department by department. You were bringing us all together. You're effectively creating that community of course designers that was in itself quite supportive” (J1)“it's  the  networking  with other  academics  that  are doing  the  same  thing. And  actually,  the  peer  learning that  I  remember  as  being  very  useful” (R6)“The  very  fact  that  we  had  sessions where  we  all  came  together was  hugely  important, partly  because  I  was  a new member of staff, but  also  partly  because  then  it meant  I  knew  who  else  was  working  on  them. And  when  I  had  a  problem,  I felt  like  I  could  go  to  whoever  and  see  if they'd  come  up  with  a  solution,  that  was definitely huge” (K5)Theme 4: Collective Understanding & Sense of Connectedness#BeAbertay“again, the word I would use is reassurance to know that we were on the right lines that were following good practice in terms of accessibility and inclusion, which might have been overlooked otherwise” (J1)“A  lot  of  the  stuff that  micro credentials  taught  us, particularly  being  inclusive and  more  flexible, allowed  us  to  target  people” (R2)“that  was  a  brilliant  learning piece  for  me,  you  know, because  it  was  about  me  enabling somebody  else  to  take  a  look  at my  content  and  present  it in  a  different  way  to enhance  the  accessibility  of it  for  the  learner.” (R6)Though some would have liked more of this:“I  do  think  as  well  that  some  very important  elements  … we  didn't  necessarily have  time  to  look  at  properly. And  I'm  thinking  specifically  about accessibility  and the  inclusivity  parts  of  it” (L4)Theme 5: Understanding of Inclusive Practice#BeAbertay“learning  experience from  a  student's  perspective” (J1)“[More student] Feedback  would  be  good” (R2)“I  felt  that  maybe the  support  wasn't  quite as  I  guess  tailored  as  it  could  have  been, is  more  on  like  the  my  learning  space, that  the  technical  side  of  my  learning  space” (L4)Theme 6: Missing elements from the support#BeAbertay• Short report available on SEDA website• Article in March 2025 SEDA “Educational Development” magazine• Set of resources e.g. templates, PowerPoints coming soon…• Journal articles in 2025• Millard, L, Blackwell Young, J & Hogan, J 2023, Designing personalized student development through microcredentials: an institutional approach. in D Willison & E Henderson (eds), Perspectives on enhancing student transition into higher education and beyond. Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development (AHEPD) Book series, IGI Global , pp. 122-142. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-6684-8198-1.ch006 Contact us:• Jack Hogan, j.hogan@abertay.ac.uk• Julie Blackwell Young, j.blackwell-young@abertay.ac.uk Further information#BeAbertayBraun, V., and Clarke. V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology. 3:77. https://doi-org./10.1191/1478088706qp063oa.CAST (2023) About Universal Design for Learning. https://www.cast.org/impact/universal-design-for-learning-udl Guskey, T.R. (2000) Evaluating professional development.  Thousand Oakes: Corwin Press.Hoffman, B., & Ritchie, D. C. (1998). Teaching and learning online: Tools, templates, and training. SITE 98: Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference Proceedings. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED421092.pdfKeale, P., Winter, J., Turner, R., Spowart., L. & Muneer, R. (2016b) Evaluating teaching development activities in higher education. A toolkit.  York: Higher Education Academy.Laurillard, D. (2012). Teaching as a Design Science: Building Pedagogical Patterns for Learning and Technology (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203125083Blackwell Young, J. and Hogan, J. (2024) Evaluating a framework for microcredential design and delivery: Final project abstract. Available at: https://www.seda.ac.uk/research/research-and-evaluation-small-grants/grant-holders/2023-grant-holders/Millard, L, Blackwell Young, J & Hogan, J 2023, Designing personalized student development through microcredentials: an institutional approach. in D Willison & E Henderson (eds), Perspectives on enhancing student transition into higher education and beyond. Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development (AHEPD) Book series, IGI Global , pp. 122-142. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-6684-8198-1.ch006 Salmon, G. (n.d.) Carpe diem.  https://www.gillysalmon.com/carpe-diem.html References

Evaluating a framework for microcredential design and delivery

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Evaluating a framework for microcredential design and delivery

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