Introducing you to the fourth and last pilar of the e-learning structure. This time the focus is DigComp. Do you know what we have in store for you? What are the key competences for the future?

Let’s start by explaining what DigComp is. DigComp stands for Digital Competence Framework. It is a point of reference for anyone aiming at improving their digital skills, but not only. Besides digital competences, DigComp focuses on other competences like entrepreneurship, critical thinking and problem solving, among others.

This common framework is for 3 fields: education, training and employment. It has been developed by a unit of the European Commission with the aim to address the skills for personal development, social inclusion, active citizenship and employment. The framework includes a combination of skills to adequately address the skills challenges in the technology-driven world. However, the core focus are digital skills – and this has been imposed by globalisation, the need to be informed and staying in touch.

The framework is useful for policy makers, educators and individuals – who will find out what digital competences they should possess in today’s world.

The European Commission places digital skills among its top priorities. Digital skills are nowadays needed across different sectors and at different levels of education. Many initiatives at European level are also using the DigComp as a fundamental for building own frameworks.  The first DigComp framework was published in 2013, with the most recent update in 2022, although it originates from another work of 2006 when the EU proposed 8 key competences and the digital competence was already one of them. This proves that digital skills fall into the pool of transversal skills, changelessly important, supporting succeeding not only for employability, but also personal development.

Now let’s speak in more detail about the competences. DigComp covers 5 competence areas: information and data literacy, communication and collaboration, digital content creation, safety, and problem solving. These areas are divided into 21 competences. With our project and in Pillar 4 we intend to extend the competences areas looking into the future of how technology will impact our lives. It is important to provide training in the broadest possible form (=thematically) in order for the trainees to be accustomed with the digital competences which they might currently not be in need of but for the future in view of the ongoing digital transformation.

Therefore Pillar 4 is 8 competences areas:

Competence 1 Information and data literacy

Competence 2 Communication and collaboration through digital technologies

Competence 3 Digital content creation

Competence 4 Problem solving in digital environments

Competence 5 Safety in digital environments

Competence 6 Entrepreneurship and AI

Competence 7 Internet of Things and data literacy

Competence 8 Fundamentals of cloud computing

Looking into the learning outcomes, Pillar 4 in intended to:

• increase the awareness on digital competences in trainees demonstrating different competence levels, from beginners to advanced digital solution practitioners;
• upskill on transversal digital skills to be practiced in work context, but also in other daily environments;
• develop competences for driving SME staff towards the introduction of initiatives encompassing digital aspects to outperform SMEs providing more attractive service, support or solutions for their audience;
• increase information and digital competences in trainees;
• increase communication and collaboration skills of participants;
• equip with the responsibility and autonomy to create digital content;
• equip trainees with problem solving skills and especially for digital environments;
• increase the knowledge and skills regarding safety in digital environments;
• provide the know-how on the fundamentals of cloud computing for practice;
• increase the awareness on IoT and AI for entrepreneurship.

What is more, Pillar 4 can be characterized by a direct approach since the training on digital competences will in fact involve the use of digital tools, solutions and techniques.

And finally, who should be the trainee of Pillar 4? The course within Pillar 4 will be for SME managers, entrepreneurs at SMEs, beginner entrepreneurs, would-be entrepreneurs, educators of adults (andragogs) and any other adults interested in upskilling on digital competences TO BE digitally savvy in an increasingly globalised and digital world.

Participation in the course will allow entrepreneurs to be better aware of the transition to sustainability and digitalisation by efficiently using acquired skills and making use of technology around them. Information and data literacy, communication and collaboration through digital technologies, digital content creation, problem solving in digital environments, safety in digital environments, entrepreneurship and AI, internet of Things, as well as fundamentals of cloud computing – are crucial for the recovery after the COVID-19 crisis, and although some of them are still new for the current times, due to the fact that digital skills are transversal, they will impact a sustainable and digital Europe in the nearest future.

Covering professional competences described within both frameworks (=EntreComp and DigComp), the trainees will acquire a set of interconnected competences impacting how they perform at the SME, both at internal (=in-company activities) and external (=interaction with customers, clients, suppliers, promotion, etc.) level. Moreover, digital competences, being cloud computing, problem-solving, communication, collaboration, data literacy of safety in digital environments are transversal and will be practiced in contexts outside work. This makes it even more essential to concentrate on their development.