Essential Competencies for Instructors

NIC Essential Teaching and Learning COMPETENCIES

DRAFT VERSION: NIC Essential Competencies for Instructors DRAFT

This set of essential teaching competencies was mostly taken from the University of Saskatchewan’s Certificate in University Teaching and Learning – Essential Teaching Competency Rubric. This rubric addresses the essential competencies and aligns with other frameworks. The NIC version was further enhanced with insights from the following pieces of work – but the digital competencies need to be completed with the BC Digital Learning Strategy competencies and AI Competency Framework. For now – the draft version gives you a good sense of the most important skills, knowledge and applications to have as a competent teacher.

• Critical Teaching Behaviors Project
  • The Critical Teaching Behaviors (CTB) Framework defines instructional practices to create a shared understanding of good teaching by providing a concise synthesis of research-based teaching behaviors proven effective for improving student learning. It consists of six defined categories, representative behaviors, and documentation an instructor can collect as evidence of engagement in these behaviors. Aligned peer observation and student feedback instruments allow instructors to create narrative coherence across their teaching materials.
• AI Competency Framework (UNESCO)
  • Teacher Version (Sept 2024) – guiding framework of competencies for teachers
  • Student Version (Sept 2024) – guiding framework of competencies for students
• Algonquin College
  • What is the Professor of the 21^st Century? – includes a framework with stages and competencies and ‘can do’ statements to explore stages of growth
• BC Digital Learning Strategy
  • BC Post-Secondary Digital Learning Strategy including The BC Post-Secondary Digital Literacy Framework outlining competencies and literacies for digital citizens, instructors, students etc.
• eCampus Ontario
  • Empowered Educator Resource Book, Anatomy of 21^st Century Educators, Ontario Extend Modules and Dr. Simon Bates – Anatomy of a 21^st Century Educator
• McGill University
  • A Teacher’s Journey which is the ongoing, circular, collaborative and expansive journey of a teacher reflecting, relating, understanding and doing expanding outward in teaching practices which in turn is informed by Teaching by the Medicine Wheel by Dr. Nicole Bell
• Saskatchewan Polytechnic
  • Instructor Competencies: Outlining Excellence in Teaching – articulate the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to be a successful instructor
• Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE)
  • Ethical Principles in University Teaching  (U of Alberta version)
• University of British Columbia (UBC)
  • Educational Leadership Mapping Tool – a resource to help instructors plot past and future journeys to see/communicate where you are in the educational leadership landscape
• University of Saskatchewan
  • Learning Charter – outlines ‘Our Journey of Teaching and Learning’, ‘Our Teaching and Learning Pursuits’, and ‘Our Commitments and Responsibilities to One Another’