Abstract:

Higher education is facing major challenges including transformation, digitalization, globalization, Covid-19 impact, innovations, that all require additional competences and skills from the academic staff. The reasons for the mentioned ongoing challenges in higher education are complex and inter-related. As higher education institutions play an important role in achieving the European Education Area and the European Research Area, in synergy with the European Higher Education Area, paying special attention to academic staff as key actors for adopting to changing conditions, achieving vital success and excellence. Academic staff has to be equipped with different skills and competences, while there is no clear concept for pedagogical competence of academic staff. The aim of this article is not to revisit the basic didactic and teaching/learning aspects of pedagogical competence, but to highlight new skills and competences needed by forming the updated concept of pedagogical competence, covering modern trends, recommendations and requirements, based on effective frameworks and good practices analyses.

The research was conducted in two stages. Firstly, the strategic documents and related literature have been analyzed for highlighting transformational challenges and trends for pedagogical competence in the perspective of academic staff. Secondly, the effective frameworks and good practices have been investigated for the development of pedagogical competence profile in accordance with the up to date vision. The key domains of the pedagogical competence of academic staff have been listed, paying special attention to the necessity of enlarging the concept by transformative, innovative and digital ones.

Methodology:
The research undertaken for this study is theoretical and based on an overview of existing models and frameworks of pedagogical competence in academic staff perspective, focusing on new trends, recommendations and requirements. The report about modernization of higher education in Europe: academic staff offered by European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice is the main theoretical basis for the present study, including the updated EC European strategy for universities and recommendations for effective European higher education cooperation.
While forming the concept of pedagogical competence of academic staff the research covers the transdisciplinary fields considering many disciplines such as economics, information technology, philosophy, communication studies, pedagogy, didactic, psychology and others. The focus of this article will be on pedagogical, teaching and learning aspects.

Findings and Conclusion:
Based on the preliminary results of the research, firstly, the new domains of pedagogical competence of academic staff have been highlighted, covering transformational challenges and trends, that have been listed in strategic documents at national and international level. Secondly, basing on the investigation of effective frameworks and good practices of five European countries: Denmark, the UK, Ireland, Estonia and Lithuania, the pedagogical competence profile has been developed matching Latvian case in the perspective of academic staff. Additionally, the framework for the updated concept of pedagogical competence of academic staff has been offered.

Keywords:

Pedagogical competence, academic staff, higher education, higher education institutions.