Integration of digital technologies in education has been\ngradually modernising learning experience globally. The COVID-19 crisis has\naccelerated this process, placing digital technologies at the centre of\neducation and training, and completely disrupting education systems. The\nproponents of digital education argue that it is characterised by greater\naccessibility than traditional education. For example, learning materials can\nbe easily downloaded, shared, free of charge. Based on this, the proponents\nargue that digital education could help in tackling education inequality,\nsupporting students at risk of marginalisation (e.g. due to socio-economic\nbackgrounds, isolated\/distant locations, migrants) to access good quality\neducation, and even to mitigate economic inequalities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, the above is only one side of the story. The\nCOVID-19 pandemic has highlighted not only the success of digital education,\nbut also that action is still needed to achieve true inclusivity. By examining\nin particular the challenges students face to engage with digital learning, the\nfollowing paper asks two important questions. What lessons can be learnt\nin terms of accessibility of digital education during the pandemic? How can\npolicy-makers support access to digital education in the future?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The research findings confirm that digital education provides a better access to learning resources, but not for everyone. Education inequality has been accelerating in the past years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic [1].<\/a> Access to education has been conditioned by access to digital technology and high-speed Internet connectivity. Students from low-income households and from less developed areas, where broadband speed tends to be low or electricity supply is interrupted, do not have the means (e.g. technologies) or conditions (e.g. lack of study space) to properly participate in the education process. Similarly, the education establishments with limited financial resources have insufficient digital infrastructure, while their teachers lack training to offer good quality online education. Thus, the pandemic has been exacerbating the digital divide, reinforcing the vicious cycle of poverty and inequality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Skills, competences and online teaching tools of teachers have been an important factor in accessing good quality digital education. Despite that many teachers did not feel prepared to teach remotely when the pandemic started (e.g. 83% of teachers in Brazil felt anxious and unprepared), pedagogical adaptations of learning materials and methods of teaching have been crucial for ensuring effective transition from traditional to digital education [2]<\/a>. Digital, tech and communication skills have been key to support teachers in quick adaptation to the \u201cnew normal\u201d. Undoubtedly, the crisis has been an exceptional time of learning and a test on adaptability for teachers. The teachers that worked at schools that had been investing in integration of digital technologies prior to the crisis experienced a smoother transition, as online learning platforms and other teaching materials had already been available and familiar to both teachers and students. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Digital skills of students also have had an effect on access to digital education during the COVID-19 pandemic. A broad look at the issue reveals that a lack of necessary skills can manifest in instances of \u201ctechnophobia\u201d to students. If unaddressed, \u201ctechnophobia\u201d can result in a psychological state where the student is less motivated to participate in the online learning process diminishing their learning achievements [3]<\/a>. While this \u201ctechnophobia\u201d is a horizontal issue that affects students from all backgrounds, there are, unfortunately, student groups that are more susceptible to negative learning experiences and learning outcomes in a digital learning environment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n First, there is a gender gap in student digital skills where\nfemale students, particularly in less developed countries, use digital\ntechnology less often than male students; therefore, their digital skills are\nless advanced. This, in part, is related to cultural factors (e.g. gender\nstereotyping) and negative experiences of girls and women of cyber-bullying,\nonline harassment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another group of students that has been lacking digital skills to access education are younger students (enrolled in primary education). They experienced a greater need of intensive teaching support and a supportive learning environment. This to ensure that their learning outcomes from digital education match the outcomes expected in a classroom environment [4]<\/a>. The report of the JRC highlighted that during the COVID-19 pandemic more affluent families were able to better or more easily support their children in education and help to develop digital skills, as parents could enjoy flexible working arrangements [5]<\/a>. Once again, the economic factor has been strongly linked to access and quality of digital education. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The UN reports that among other student\ngroups that struggled to access education during the pandemic are migrants and\nrefugees, due to lack of language skills, and students with special educational\nneeds (e.g. disabilities). On both accounts instead of serving the purpose of\ncreating pathways for students to integrate with society, digital education has\nbeen further enabling the barriers to those pathways, as it failed to adjust to\nstudents\u2019 needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The development of digital skills is crucial not only for the current learning process, but also for engagement in life-long learning and for successful integration in the labour market, given an immense role of digital technologies in the world. Learning losses threaten to extend beyond this generation and erase decades of progress. According to preliminary estimates, around 23.8 million children and youth (from pre-primary to tertiary education) may drop out or not have access to school due to the pandemic\u2019s economic impact alone [6]<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While the pandemic has, in many ways, reinforced the division in access to learning, the disruption to the education systems, and the flexibility resulting from countries trying to rapidly respond to changing conditions, offers a window of opportunity to address these challenges. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Regardless of how long the crisis will last, it is clear that\nthe role of digital technologies in education is unlikely to diminish when the\npandemic subsides. In light of great unpredictability related to COVID-19, there\nare three scenarios of how the future of education might look like: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Under all three scenarios the policy makers should ensure\nthat all students and education establishments have access to digital\ntechnologies and have sufficient digital infrastructures. Particular attention\nneeds to be given to the student groups that are vulnerable to digital\nexclusion (as listed in this article). The use of digital technologies should\nalways come with a view to reduce barriers to education, not to create new or\nenforce existing ones. In the short-term, investment in the development of\nnation-wide digital education platforms and online materials is needed to\nensure equal access to education resources. However, in the long-term, more\nfundamental changes to education infrastructures are needed. Integration of novel\ntechnologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, should support\nteachers by providing analysis on performance and wellbeing of children at\nschool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Under scenario #3, the education institutions should assess\nhow and for what purposes digital technologies should be utilised. It is\nadvisable to launch a discussion on the use of digital technologies, on\nusefulness of different learning materials and teaching methodologies at\nschools between teachers, students and parents (for children that are\nundergoing primary education). Using the data on educational outcomes of\nstudents during the pandemic, teachers can analyse in what cases (e.g. which\ntopics, subjects) digital education has been effective. The sharing of\nexperiences and lessons learnt between schools should lead to the formulation\nof guidelines for education institutions on how to best integrate digital\ntechnologies in the education process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Under scenario #1 and #2, a significant investment should be\nmade in the development of online learning platforms, learning\/teaching\nmaterials and teaching methodologies, targeting areas or student groups that\nhave been identified as particularly vulnerable. For example, prioritising\nprimary schools if the education outcomes of students have significantly declined\ncompared to pre-COVID period. Some research has shown that the learning of\ncomplex topics or the development of communication and language skills through\nonline mode of education has been challenging for many students, due to\nlimitations of social interaction in a virtual environment. Hence, the\neducation institutions should assess suitability of teaching methods for\ndifferent topics\/skills and develop appropriate innovative teaching methods,\nbased on feedback of students. In addition, national methodologies that outline\nthe curriculum for different subjects should be critically examined to align\nstudy subjects with digital technologies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The set of skills and competences of\nteachers should be aligned to the realities of working both in traditional\nclassrooms as well as digital learning environments. In this regard, the COVID-19\npandemic presents an opportunity to critically examine what digital competences\nteachers need; whether to acquire or to improve. The critical consideration is\nthat such exercises should not be about shaming or discrimination. While this\narticle focused more on the digital divide in different student groups,\nteachers are no less susceptible to discrimination or \u201ctechnophobia\u201d due to\ntheir digital skills level. Long-distance teaching and learning calls for a new\nunderstanding of the teacher-student relationship, stressing the need of high\nflexibility in teaching methods, adaptability to learning needs of students and\neffective engagement with students digitally. For students, digital skills\nshould become part of everyday curriculum even at the primary education level.\nChildren grow in a highly digitised society which makes it all the more\nnecessary for the education system to support acquisition of skills that allows\nstudents to engage with digital education. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Our (Technopolis Group) work on such projects as \u201cEnhancing learning through digital tools and practices<\/a>\u201d, led by Ecorys, and \u201cPathways to Inclusive Labour Markets<\/a>\u201d highlights that an urgent adjustment of education systems and their actors is needed. As part of our work in the Africa Europe Innovation Partnership we have setup the EdTech challenge<\/a> in order to increase access to quality education (SDG4) through collaboration. The future outlook for education should result in a harmonisation of digital and traditional learning, and in equalisation of education opportunities for all. Otherwise, many people will lose their passport to the future. [1]<\/a> Vegas E., Winthrop R. (2020). Beyond reopening schools: how education can emerge stronger than before COVID-19. Available at: https:\/\/www.brookings.edu\/research\/beyond-reopening-schools-how-education-can-emerge-stronger-than-before-covid-19\/<\/a> Integration of digital technologies in education has been gradually modernising […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"solution":[172,147,116],"sector":[106,84],"class_list":["post-29712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-okategoriserad","solution-complex-sv","solution-evaluation-sv","solution-strategic-studies-sv","sector-digitalisation-sv","sector-higher-education-sv"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAccessibility of digital education<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
How can policy-makers support access to digital education in the future?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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[2]<\/a> Barron M., Cobo C., Munoz-Najar A., Sanchez Ciarrusta I. (2021). The changing role of teachers and technologies amidst the Covid 19 pandemic: key findings from a cross-country study. Available at: https:\/\/blogs.worldbank.org\/education\/changing-role-teachers-and-technologies-amidst-covid-19-pandemic-key-findings-cross<\/a>
[3]<\/a> OECD. (2019). The role of education and skills in bridging the digital gender divide: evidence from APEC economies. Available at: https:\/\/www.oecd.org\/sti\/education-and-skills-in-bridging-the-digital-gender-divide-evidence-from-apec.pdf<\/a>
[4]<\/a> Loeb S. (2020). How effective is online learning? What the research does and doesn\u2019t tell us. Available at: https:\/\/www.edweek.org\/technology\/opinion-how-effective-is-online-learning-what-the-research-does-and-doesnt-tell-us\/2020\/03<\/a>
[5]<\/a> Sostero M., Milasi S., Hurley J., Fern\u00e1ndez-Mac\u00edas E., Bisello M. (2020). Teleworkability and the COVID-19 crisis: a new digital divide?, Joint Research Council, No. JRC121193.
[6]<\/a> United Nations. (2020). Policy Brief: education during COVID-19 and beyond. Available at: https:\/\/www.un.org\/development\/desa\/dspd\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/08\/sg_policy_brief_covid-19_and_education_august_2020.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"