Towards the development and validation of a framework for pedagogical competencies in Moroccan higher education: An exploratory study using the Delphi method

Abstract

The question of the professionalization of teachers and their pedagogical development has been the subject of numerous research projects in the educational sciences for more than twenty years, it seems more than ever topical in the context of the Moroccan university, a real engine of the economy and social cohesion which, under the constant pressure of the massification of its teaching staff making it difficult to structure university pedagogy (Romainville & Rege Colet, 2006), but also of the "new demands that the knowledge and knowledge society now addresses to its higher education" (Romainville, 2006, p. 4). 9), is undergoing a major change which is not without effect, in particular on the transformation of the conditions of practice of the university teaching profession and the organisation of its career, as well as on the relative distribution between research and teaching tasks. So shouldn't these university professors be given points of reference so that they become confirmed professionals in pedagogy? It is in this perspective that we conducted an exploratory Delphi study with 25 experts in higher education to develop and validate a framework of teaching competencies in higher education needed to exercise the profession of university professor in Morocco. The framework was established and validated in a consensual way during the various rounds, a convergence of answers was indeed identified thanks to the Delphi methodology. After three rounds, the rating change was minimal, so the results were considered stable.