The Essential Digital Skills Programme 3 Years on

Nearly 12,000 King’s students have enrolled onto the Essential Digital Skills Programme, providing over 2.5 million interactions with the course between September 2021 to June 2023. 45% of students were classified as active users, which meant that these students interacted with the programme page 20 times or more. The programme is open to all King’s students to utilise the content as they require, therefore some students gain the information they require in fewer than 20 interactions whilst other opt to review the programme more systematically.  

54% of students were postgraduate students, whilst 46% were undergraduates. In 2023, of those students who completed the programme evaluation, 85% agreed that the Essential Digital Skills Programme was at the correct level for them, 88% felt that the programme covered enough material and 87% felt that the material covered met their needs as a King’s student. This illustrates that the programme is particularly beneficial to students in the first year of King’s irrespective of whether they are studying an undergraduate or postgraduate degree.  

Students’ reaction to the Essential Digital Skills Programme has remained high since the programme begun, with student satisfaction averaging at 90%. The programme continues to have a positive impact on students’ confidence, learning and behaviour. Over the past three years: 

• 88% of the students that completed the programme evaluation agreed that they could apply what they learnt to their studies at King’s.
• 75% reported using what they learnt to apply for jobs and further study. 
• 82% reported an increase in confidence in the digital world, since undertaking the programme.  

Over the years, students have been given the opportunity to provide open feedback within the programme evaluation. When asked “What is the biggest change you’ve noticed in your studies so far with the new skills you have developed or learnt on the Essential Digital Skills training?”, students typically reported an increase in confidence, learning or skill development, improved efficiency and time management, and an awareness of tools and services available to support their development. Some feedback provided by students included: 

• “I think the biggest thing I've noticed is an improvement in confidence. I am also more likely to seek resources to help me with any challenges I might face in a digital environment instead of just giving up”. – Second year, Faculty of Arts & Humanities, undergraduate student 
• “How I have started thinking and creating a positive digital footprint. I haven't really thought about it before”. - Third year, Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience, undergraduate student  
• “Plagiarism and referencing improved a lot”. - Third year, King's Business School, undergraduate student 
• “I am now able to research the Library a lot better than before, and can understand the needs of an essay through learning about the meaning of the title”. – First year, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery & Palliative Care, undergraduate student 
• “I now know how to use the accessibility tools on KEATS and they have helped me greatly, especially when I was still waiting for an official learning difficulty diagnosis”. – Second year, Faculty of Arts & Humanities, undergraduate student 
• “ I am still in my early stages of learning at King's and initially things felt a little bit daunting. However, in a short space of time I have learnt a lot and am looking forward to developing further”. – First year, Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences, postgraduate student.  
• “Completion of online tasks requiring use of topics covered in the programme became quicker and easier/ability to guide group projects where others do not have the same level of digital skills”. – Fourth year, Faculty of Arts & Humanities, undergraduate student
• “Locating sources, accessing information and data, evaluating sources”. – Third Year, Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy, PhD student 

Overall, the evaluation results and feedback demonstrate the value of the essential digital skills programme in supporting student success at King’s. Adopting a truly holistic, highly contextualised, and fully flexible approach to learning are some of the reasons why the programme remains a success three years on.  

A comprehensive evaluation was carried out to measure the impact and benefits of the programme in the 2022-2023 academic year and over a three-year period between 2021-2023. 

Access the Student Essential Digital Skills Programme Benefits Realisation Report 2022-2023 and three year review here. (Internal) 

Research was carried out using data collected within the first year (2021-2022) of the Essential Digital Skills Programme. The research paper can be accessed below. 

University-Wide Digital Skills Training: A Case Study Evaluation https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13040333