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2. PAN-EUROPEAN ADULT EDUCATION MENTORING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
SCHEMES

This section provides information on pan-European mentoring and professional development

schemes that can support adult education teachers and leaders in developing their metacognition
skills.

2.1 DCDS PLATFORM

It is said that digitalisation is the fourth industrial revolution of today’s world. In order to be well
positioned on the labour market and be an active member of the society, adults must develop their
digital competences. DCDS Platform (Digital Competences Development System) is an example of

digital skills online learning platform developed at European level.
The tool was developed for adult learners with low digital skills and different stakeholders, mostly
non-formal adult trainers and policy makers and it offers a wide range of professional,

organisational, and technical resources that will help and guide the users through specific activities.
The online platform includes the following modules:

1) Self-assessment tool to help adult learners find out their digital skills level before starting the
training course,

2) Recommendation tool that uses the data from the self-assessment practice and learners’ profile
and prepares suggestions for the learners and trainers about the possible learning paths to follow,
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3) Modular learning paths according to each learner’s needs created to cover a wide range of basic
digital competences,

4) Mixed learning approach - distance learning, online and offline, and face-to-face lessons
organized in the local digital competences centres,

5) Gamification features to motivate learners,

6) Assessment center to help learners and trainers validate the level of acquired digital skills,

7) Modular training content for adult education teachers,

8) Handbooks for adult learners and trainers,

9) Online communication platform to enable discussions with teachers and peers.
The great advantage of this platform for the adult learners is that it offers the users the opportunity
to develop their basic digital skills that will lead to building and increasing self-confidence in using

digital technology that will further lead to enhancing their employability chances and social
inclusion. The advantage for the trainers is that they get access to a wide range of tools that will
help them best teach and educate adult learners according to the technology requirements of
modern society. The trainers have access to a whole infrastructure of teaching and learning modules
they can organize according to their needs so that their teaching techniques are most efficient.