Digital Ambassadors

Main idea

The Digital Ambassadors work with Access and Lifelong Learning, and they facilitate online and in-person drop-in sessions for IT support for students. In addition to this, they prepare support materials in a range of options including written and video step by step guides to digital literacy.

Outline

The Digital Ambassadors (DAs) are Access Leaders (current UCD students) who work with Access and Lifelong Learning, and they facilitate online and in-person drop-in sessions for IT support.

This informal setting allows students to ask some of those ‘silly’ questions and provides a comfortable environment for them to become familiar with different software and programmes. The project was initially started by UCD Teaching & Learning as part of a National Forum initiative. The Digital Ambassador programme helps all students in UCD gain the skills they need with technology to succeed. 

Students often do not ask for help fearing that their questions may be considered “stupid” and feel uncomfortable or awkward approaching professional colleagues on the IT Service Team for advice. This can be particularly compounded when students feel uncomfortable with digital technology and being unfamiliar with the basics such as uploading an assignment to the VLE or using Zoom.

The result of this was that the Access & Lifelong Learning (ALL)  team were frequently approached by students with IT queries. The ALL Team are not tech experts and recognised that many of the students who work with them as Access Leaders have relevant digital skills and a wealth of knowledge to share. The service particularly came into its own during the pandemic with the move to online learning and many students receiving laptops from the Laptop Loan Scheme.

UCD Access & Lifelong Learning introduced the Digital Ambassadors programme in 2016 and further developed it during the pandemic to provide support to students struggling with digital technology while learning online. Students have varying degrees of digital literacy and know-how and some of these issues were exacerbated during this period with students being unable to access the IT Support Desk in-person. 

• UCD ALL facilitates the Digital Ambassador programme to help all students in UCD gain the skills they need with technology to succeed 

• This support is part of UCD’s University for All  a whole-institution, evidence-based approach to mainstreaming inclusion in UCD. 

Goals

• Peer to peer learning/support 
• Building Digital Literacy Skills

Students involvement

The Digital Ambassadors were employed as co-creators of this service. They were given a lot of autonomy to set their own boundaries in the design and running of the service. Training was provided to them in conjunction with IT Services. With support from ALL, they ensured that the service was welcoming and recognised that students had different needs and levels of knowledge, as such they worked at the students’ pace. Weekly drop-ins online or in-person were organised by the DAs.

The DAs operated a short Google Form which students completed before receiving advice. Importantly, in the drop-in sessions, they guided students through the issue, not immediately doing it for them, ensuring they understood how to work their way through it. Video guides were created as a further resource and shared on the ALL website which take students through some of the commonly asked questions and issues. 

Students are compensated for working as Digital Ambassadors by the University.

Inspiration and evidence

This initiative started as a Teaching and Learning project in the university.  The initial project was part of a digital literacy initiative, based on an awareness of the digital literacy gap evident in the student population.

The pilot project was so successfully received by students that it was decided to continue to offer it in Access and Lifelong Learning.

Success criteria

The impact of this service has been overwhelmingly positive. It enhanced the overall offering of the ALL team while also streamlining the IT related queries to the Digital Ambassadors and freed up team members who would ordinarily try to assist with these.

The students valued the welcoming and non-intimidating environment, they felt comfortable enough to ask some of those questions that they did not want to waste IT Services time with. They felt more confident in their IT/tech abilities after using the service and felt encouraged to come again and enjoyed learning from their peers. It also reduced the number of tech related queries being reported to the ALL team.

For the Digital Ambassadors themselves, there were obvious benefits. They developed skills in leadership, organisation and advising, particularly valuable during the pandemic when other sources of employment were scarce. Their own technical skills and knowledge were enhanced and reinforced.

Effectiveness

We have collected qualitative and quantitative information from the first year. 

Do you feel you can effectively provide the support that students require?

We strongly agree.

Would you recommend this to other institutions?

strongly agree

Evaluation

Students were encouraged to complete a short survey midway through the pandemic. The results are below:

• 90% would use the service again.
• 75% felt more confident in their digital skills and felt equipped to deal with IT issues later in their studies.
• 80% enjoyed learning from their fellow students and valued the welcoming environment created.
• 89% would recommend their service to their peers.

Communication

Email is sent to all students, and it is advertised on the website.

Timing

In person or online drop-in sessions take place on a weekly basis every Wednesday during the academic year. They can be up to 2 hours in duration depending on the demand. Students can submit IT queries in advance through an online form https://www.ucd.ie/all/ucdstudents/support/digitalsupport/digital-ambassadors/

Resources

• Video guides/resources created by Digital Ambassadors.
• Digital Ambassador Role Description

Extra information

• UCD Digital Ambassador webpage
• Video about Digital Ambassadors and Universal Design

Transferability

We think it is easily transferable to other contexts or groups.

Yes – it is not resource heavy and you can work with students to design and deliver it. 

• Actively engage students as partners/co-creators, they will design a service that works for their peers that will work much more effectively than one that has them only passively involved. Ensure they have ownership and direction.
• Collaborate across the institution (in this case IT Services and Teaching & Learning) to ensure service is complementary to other provided and are beneficial – additional training provided by IT was a valuable resource for the DAs and enhanced the service.
• Ensure the service is a welcoming environment and is not intimating to users but also ensure there are clear boundaries set to protect the student facilitators.
• Develop in line with universal design principles.