April 12, 2016 - hilaryweir -
Thanks to everyone who came along to the launch event for our digital learning guides at Wheatley Academy’s excellent conference facilities in Glasgow last week. It was a really enjoyable day and hopefully worthwhile for everyone to finally get to see what the guides look like. The event was introduced by Alastair MacGregor, Head of STEM at SQA and began with keynotes from Colin Cook, Head of Digital at Scottish Government and David McNeill, the new Director of SCVO. Contributors…
Read moreRead more about Digital guides now available for use!
March 18, 2016 - sqablogs -
The launch event for the new Digital Learner Guides is being held on Wednesday 30th March, 11am – 1pm. There will be keynote speeches from Scottish Government and SCVO as well as input from learners who have benefitted from using the guides. Some of the people involved in producing the guides will also be in attendance; with plenty of opportunity to ask questions, network and participate in discussions, it should be an interesting event! There are still some places available…
Read moreRead more about Countdown to the Digital Learner Guides launch event
March 2, 2016 - hilaryweir -
You may have read in a previous post that SQA has been producing a number of digital guides to help people get online for the first time and carry out a range of activities using internet websites. The guides will soon be freely available to anyone who wants to use them and we are hosting a launch event on Wednesday 30 March from 11 am to 1pm at Wheatley House, 150 Ingram Street in Glasgow. If you would like to find out more about the learning guides,…
Read moreRead more about Launch event for SQA digital learning guides
January 25, 2016 - hilaryweir -
Digital skills gaps exist amongst staff in most industry sectors. Research by Oxford Economics claims Scottish businesses could increase revenues by £10.7 billion (3.6%) if firms fully develop their digital potential, and that UK companies would add more than one million new jobs over the next two years by improving the digital capabilities of all their employees, becoming more productive, innovative, profitable and secure. The UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) highlights growth opportunities for sectors such as retail,…
Read moreRead more about Digital skills gaps
January 8, 2016 - hilaryweir -
The Digital Leaders lecture in December was given by Jaqueline de Rojas, Advisory Board member, presenting an 11 point plan of opportunities for UK to become a significant digital nation. There were no surprises. Existing technology is available to all of the UK and can be harnessed to overcome risks of social exclusion through all the reasons we already know about – whether geographical, age, disability, or income related. There is a skills challenge: 2 million digitally skilled workers required by 2020. The…
Read moreRead more about Digital DNA
December 11, 2015 - sqablogs -
The first batch of Digital Learner Guides currently being developed are now ready to be field-tested. We have arranged a series of ‘tester events’ to take place over the next couple of months, with learners from various organisations covering a range of age groups participating in the process. Learners will work their way through each of the Guides with the help and support of a Digital Volunteer from SQA; they will then provide user feedback, comments and suggestions for improvement. Their feedback…
Read moreRead more about Digital guide testing
November 27, 2015 - sqablogs -
The Digital Literacy team have received an award from the SQA Board of Management for our contribution to digital participation, both within and outwith SQA. As a signatory to the Scottish Government Digital Charter, SQA has a series of obligations; Hilary and I have responsibility for ensuring that we meet our commitment. We are working in partnership with various external organisations to upskill the digital literacy of both our staff and theirs, and this has been widely praised as a…
Read moreRead more about Digital Charter Award
October 5, 2015 - hilaryweir -
Digital World is an initiative to promote careers in the digital technology industry. It has been developed by Scotland’s digital technologies sector and Skills Development Scotland. This includes collaborating with some of Scotland’s top tech companies. It’s all about inspiring people to challenge convention and make a difference with tech, whether you’re a student, a graduate or looking to switch careers. That’s why Digital World highlights the amazing ways digital technology betters lives, and showcases Scotland’s success stories in the…
Read moreRead more about Digital World
September 15, 2015 - sqablogs -
I attended the Ofcom Scotland Stakeholder Event on Tuesday 15th September 2015. It was an interesting seminar with a wide and varied audience, but the focus was primarily on digital participation amongst the general population in Scotland compared with the UK. James Thickett and Vicki Nash from Ofcom presented some interesting data from the annual Communications Marketing Report (CMR); highlights included: 64% of adults (over the age of 16) have a smart phone; smartphones have overtaken laptops as the most…
Read moreRead more about Ofcom Scotland Stakeholder Event
September 15, 2015 - hilaryweir -
SQA recently launched Ushare, a free online community where users can rate, comment on and share links to open-source learning and teaching materials. Ushare allows students, teachers, lecturers and other education professionals to share links to relevant resources, such as articles and videos, presentations and research that assist with the delivery and study of a number of SQA qualifications and awards. Users can create a profile, share a link to a resource they think is useful, or rate or comment…
Read moreRead more about Ushare – a new online community and learning resource