Mapping and evaluating dRTP’s contributions to computing skills’pedagogies

Preliminary results

Carlos Cámara-Menoyo | Timothy Monteath

Dr. Carlos Cámara-Menoyo (PI)

Senior Research Software Engineer, Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies (University of Warwick), SSI Fellow

carlos.camara@warwick.ac.uk

@ccamara.scholar.social

@ccamara.scholar.social.ap.brid.gy

Dr.Timothy Monteath (Co-I)

Assistant Professor, Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies (University of Warwick)

Timothy.monteath@warwick.ac.uk

@twm.mastodon.sdf.org

@twm.bsky.social

Hello, my name is Carlos Cámara, and I’ll be presenting the work done with my colleague Tim Monteath. We both work at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies at the University of Warwick, me as a Senior RSE and Tim as an Assistant Professor.

The challenge: training DRCs

We are seeing a computational turn in research, as seen in a

• growing number of research that relies on data or research software (Crouch et al. 2013),

• adoption of computational methods by fields that didn’t traditionally use them (e.g. computational social sciences, digital humanities…)

• growing importance of OpenScience and expectation to manage data and outputs following FAIR principles,

• growing number of infrastructure and professionals needed for its delivery,

• the advent of AI (adding a new level of complexity).

This requires a broad set of skills -Digital Research Competencies (DRC)- that need to be learnt and taught.

DIRECT Framework (Nenadic et al. 2026)

Research is becoming increasingly computational, as seen in

This requires a broad set skills -Digital Research Competencies- that need to be learnt and taught.

DIRECT framework acknowledges the importance and diversity of training and Digital Research Competencies, but it does not explain some of the questions that we were having…

So we wondered…

• If training is needed, and RSEs are not doing it, who are the professionals filling this gap?

• If multiple professionals are doing it: does the training differ based on their backgrounds?

• And more broadly: how are DRC being delivered and what are their key defining factors?

RSE International Survey (Hettrick et al. 2026) (results from 2022 and UK only)

For example, after seeing the RSE international Survey, and how training was tangential to RSEs, we wondered…

Our research

“Mapping and evaluating dRTP’s contributions to computing skills and pedagogies in Higher Education” is a project funded by the UKRI’s DisCouRSE Network+ and aims to map and analyse the provision of digital research competencies (DRC) which are led by or involve dRTP’s across Higher Education institutions in the UK.

The research acknowledges and complements existing competency frameworks like DIRECT but examines the material conditions of training delivery instead of learning needs.

Research questions include:

• How are dRTPs engaging in the teaching of Digital Research Competencies?

• What are the methodologies and technologies used to deliver the training? How are decisions on training delivery made?

• How is the training influenced by matters such as type of professional, career stage, background, pedagogical approaches, trends, availability, licences or teachers’ beliefs?

• Are there any approaches that are more frequently used for specific audiences or cases?

This work was supported by the DisCouRSE Network+, which received funding through the UKRI Digital Research Infrastructure Programme

The research acknowledges and complements existing competency frameworks like DIRECT but examines the material conditions of training delivery instead on learning needs.

Methodology

Survey

People

• Who are involved? What are their job titles?

• How are they involved in the teaching?

• Do they have any pedagogical background?

• What are their beliefs in relation to tech and pedagogy? (e.g. stance as a teacher, importance of opensource, AI, licences…)

Training and pedagogies

• What is being taught?

• What formats and delivery mode are used?

• What are the key factors influencing how the training is delivered?

• Infrastructure needed

• Challenges

Link to the survey: https://tinyurl.com/DRTP-training-survey

Warning

At the time of writing, we have received 41 responses, covering 34 trainings. We need more responses!

Systematic analysis + Interviews

What next?

Open repository using FAIR principles, containing:

• datasets
• reports

Inform decision-making processes about designing and delivering training

We need your help!

• Fill in (and share) the survey (we need more responses!)

• Volunteer for interviews

• Reach out to us!

Thanks!

References

Crouch, Stephen, Neil Chue Hong, Simon Hettrick, et al. 2013. “The Software Sustainability Institute: Changing Research Software Attitudes and Practices.” Computing in Science & Engineering 15 (6): 74–80. https://doi.org/10.1109/MCSE.2013.133.

Hettrick, Simon, Radovan Bast, Alex Botzki, et al. 2026. RSE Survey Longitudinal Dataset up to 2022. March.

Nenadic, Aleksandra, Phil Reed, Dave Horsfall, et al. 2026. DIRECT Competencies Framework for Digital Research Technical Professionals. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/ZENODO.19485964.