The Irish Universities Association has launched a three-year project to mainstream digital in teaching, learning and assessment through an ambitious professional development programme. The aim is to move away from individual champions, towards effective engagement of all staff with digital technologies. This includes attempts to diversify the assessment methods utilised across the university.

“Faculty who have employed traditional assessment methods for some time often have difficulty conceptualising the possibilities that digital technologies can afford. Discussions with DCU faculty have highlighted the need for a bank of technology-supported assessment exemplars across a range of disciplines. These exemplars can offer inspiration and guidance for those academics who lack experience in using digital assessments. The opportunity for creating a crowd-sourced Open Educational Resource (OER) emerged from reflections on building such a resource. Drawing on the collective knowledge of the digital education community will strengthen the resource by broadening the scope for contributions. The community can then draw on this resource to support staff engagement with digital assessment.”