Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director for Education and Skills
When the OECD launched the first Digital Education Outlook in 2021, some of the technological advances that we discussed were thought to belong in the realm of science fiction. Now, only two years later, developments in AI are advancing at an unimaginable pace.
Today’s launch of the 2023 Digital Education Outlook (DEO) comes at a pivotal moment in the evolution of education. The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated a rapid uptake in technologies that facilitated remote learning, and many education systems have begun to digitalise their systems and tools. As a result, education systems the world over are now awash in data, and a host of new actors from the private and public sectors have entered the education space.
But is this a true digital transformation? How have these changes reconfigured the relationship between people, technology and space in entirely new ways? How coherent, interlinked and open is this change at the system level? In other words: is the whole of the digital education ecosystem greater than the sum of its parts?
These are the questions asked by the 2023 Digital Education Outlook, as it explores countries’ readiness for the digital transformation.
Technological integration and infrastructure
Key to this transformation is the deployment of educational tools such as student information systems and learning management systems, underscored by the critical need for robust internet connectivity. This infrastructure is essential for realising the full potential of digital education, particularly in regions currently under-resourced.
Yet while most countries have national student information systems, few have leveraged them fully to provide users (educators or parents) with real-time information, comprehensive assessment data or link students to teachers.
Redefining the educator’s role
The 2023 Outlook explores the evolving role of educators in the digital era. How students navigate an ever-more complex digital world will be highly influenced by the ability of teachers to help them navigate those changes. Yet this shift necessitates extensive training and access to digital resources. As the Outlook shows, many countries are currently facing a gap in current educator preparedness, with teachers reporting that they require further training at all stages of their service.
Generative AI: potential and ethical considerations
Generative AI has tremendous potential for education. Its biggest promise is personalised learning, offering educational experiences that are tailored to the needs of individual learners, and adapting as they go. Game-based learning, personalised feedback, augmented reality and other aspects have the potential to enrich the learning experience.
Yet while AI and digital technologies offer opportunities for personalised and dynamic learning experiences, they also raise ethical considerations.
Digital technologies may exacerbate digital divides – providing benefits that accrue to the most well off. They may also amplify existing biases against certain groups or individuals. Technologies, especially ones that emerge in lightly regulated or unregulated markets may be inefficient, poor performing or not address privacy or ethical considerations.
The 2023 Outlook emphasises the need for guidelines to navigate these challenges effectively and provides a set of opportunities, guidelines and guardrails for the effective and equitable use of AI in education, developed together with Education International, a global federation of teachers’ trade unions.
Change is here, but bigger change is coming
For countries to turn the digital transition to a digital transformation, a system approach to digital education transformation is key. This approach goes beyond individual tools or strategies and encompasses policy frameworks, infrastructure development, and a culture that supports continuous adaptation and learning.
The 2023 Digital Education Outlook will provide policymakers and educational professions with a better understanding of the state of play in participating countries that will facilitate the integration of technology in education, thereby preparing current and future generations for a digital world.
Read: 2023 Digital Education Outlook
Read: Opportunities, guidelines and guardrails for effective and equitable use of AI in education
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