About
Using UCDOER for accreditation
UCDOER has been established by UCD Teaching and Learning to host a number of open educational resources, these materials are derived from its collection of programmes and workshops. Those with a teaching function within Higher Education may wish to engage with this content as module/s within UCD’s Graduate Diploma in University Teaching and Learning.
Currently, the material supplied within this OER can be related to two Professional Certificate / Diploma modules each of which is worth 7.5 credits at NFQ Level 9. The modules available are:
1. Becoming a Better University Teacher.
2. Assessing and Teaching for Learning.
If you wish to undertake any of these modules as part of the Professional Diploma in University Teaching and Learning you must do 3 things
- 1. Create an account within UCDOER, to enable your entries in the exercises to be captured and presented as part of your assessment portfolio.
- 2. Apply to become a student on the Professional Diploma programme and, if accepted, register as a student to the relevant module through UCD’s Student Information System. You will also need to pay the stated fee.
- 3. Once you are registered you will be contacted by the Programme Director or Module Co-ordinator who will give you details of the cohort to which you have been assigned. Cohorts are not established for every semester; they are set-up only when a sufficient number of applications have been received.
Please note that the modules within the Professional Diploma for University Teaching and Learning are offered in blended learning mode. They are NOT offered in distance learning mode. Although much of the work may be completed online, when you sign up to a module, you will be allocated to a cohort that you will be required to attend a minimum of three group workshops as follows:
1. An introductory session where the requirements of the module are explained and explored.
2. A mid-way session to review and finalise the negotiated assignment.
3. A final session where penultimate drafts of the negotiated assignment are reviewed.
Please note that all negotiated assignments are based on providing evidence to attain/demonstrate that the learning outcomes have been achieved. Each Module is graded as a Pass/Fail. All exercises undertaken within the UCDOER are purely formative and may provide the basis upon which the final assignment is formulated.
The UCDOER Design
The design of UCDOER enables the learner to access and engage with content as determined by their needs, whether for professional development, evaluating practice or as part of a negotiated assessment.
Each module is primarily self-directed online and via professional practice, however each module has a mandatory minimum of three core face to face sessions.
These sessions will provide a pivotal role in supporting the learners; to engage with the UCDOER as a supportive framework for academic development and by association The Graduate Diploma in University Teaching and Learning, to determine, design and implement a personal negotiated assessment, and to review and evaluate the resulting portfolio of work.
Each themed section or available module content within UCDOER offers a series of exercises and activities embedded amidst core theory and practice. It is the intention that these provide the impetus for academic engagement and development. The nature of these activities predicates that the individual will apply these in a cyclical or re-iterative manner within their practice, developing over time a reflective, evaluative and transformative approach to teaching and learning. In this manner a portfolio of work is created that may form, in part, the basis upon which their negotiated assessment is formulated.
The structure of the UCDOER enables individual registered users to capture their input through the many exercises, activities and collaborative discussions. These are held within their own personal collection, providing a complete history of all their actions (contributions, amendments, edits, discussions, references etc) via a series of individualised wiki pages. In this way the UCDOER acts as a personal e-portfolio of one's academic and reflective practice.
