Key factors for effective digital education and post-pandemic blended learning

Ruzin, Aleksandra Nakeva Conference Paper Key factors for effective digital education and postpandemic blended learning Provided in Cooperation with: University American College Skopje Suggested Citation: Ruzin, Aleksandra Nakeva (2021) : Key factors for effective digital education and post-pandemic blended learning, University American College Skopje, Skopje, pp. 89-104, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7289609 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/302825 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. Terms of use: Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your personal and scholarly purposes. You are not to copy documents for public or commercial purposes, to exhibit the documents publicly, to make them publicly available on the internet, or to distribute or otherwise use the documents in public. If the documents have been made available under an Open Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Post-Pandemic Sustainability in Europe 89 KEY FACTORS FOR EFFECTIVE DIGITAL EDUCATION AND POST-PANDEMIC BLENDED LEARNING Aleksandra Nakeva Ruzin Univeristy American College Skopje, R.N. Macedonia [email protected] ABSTRACT: Education systems are part of the global digital transformation, not only because schools have a significant role to play in developing students’ digital competencies and in preparing them for the world driven by technology, but also because technology can influence the way we teach and learn. The prolonged perception of the limited potential for using digital technologies in education was abruptly changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, which put the traditional schooling to a halt. In difficult circumstances, continuity of the educational process was enabled by an unprecedented use of digital technologies, although with significant variations in the effectiveness of practices which impacted the quality and inclusiveness in education. Based on best practices and lessons learned in the process of implementing online and distant learning in the primary and secondary schools in the EU and in North Macedonia from the beginning of the outbreak, this paper elaborates on the key factors for effective digital education. Taking into account the positive effects and benefits of using digital technologies in education, it offers a discussion on the modalities for applying blended learning from the next school year. KEYWORDS: Digital education, remote teaching, distance and online learning, blended learning, digital transformation of schools Sixteenth Annual International Academic Conference on European Integration – AICEI 2021 90 INTRODUCTION The rapid digitalization over the past decade - the so-called Fourth industrial revolution - has transformed many aspects of our social life and labor markets, including the education systems. Schools are part of this digital transformation, not only because they have a significant role to play in developing students’ digital competencies and preparing them for the world driven by technology, but also because technology can influence the way teachers teach and students learn. Hence, the term “digital education” encompasses two different, but complementary perspectives: development of digital competences of students, and pedagogical use of digital technologies for facilitating, advancing and transforming the teaching and learning processes. Primarily, digital education can play an essential role in enhancing the digital competences of students,1 bringing along manifold benefits that span across various dimensions. From a labor market perspective, digital education is key to bridging the gap between the supply and demand for a digitally competent workforce (European Commission, 2020b).2 Digital technologies and skills are also considered essential for the implementation of the European Green Deal and for achieving climate neutrality of the EU by 2050 (European Commission, 2020a).3 From a social point of view, education 1 With the Council Recommendation on Key Competences for Lifelong learning (2018/C 189/01), digital competences are recognized as key competences for lifelong learning. Being digitally competent involves the confident, critical and responsible use of, and engagement with digital technologies for learning, working, and participation in society. 2 According to the European Commission, 90% of the jobs in the future will require a certain level of digital skills, however, 35% of Europe’s workers lack these skills today (European Commission, 2020b). 3 Commission’s Communication on the European Green Deal (COM/2019/640 final) and the new Skills Agenda (COM(2020)441 final/2) recognize the links can contribute to reducing digital skills divide that generates social differences between population and leads to economic and social exclusion. The second dimension of digital education, namely the use of digital technologies in the processes of teaching and learning, has increasingly gained momentum over the past decade. Although empirical evidence on the effects of digital technologies on improving the learning outcomes is still scarce, some potential benefits are more than obvious. Digital technology, when applied skillfully and effectively by teachers, can fully support the agenda for high quality and inclusive education for all students (European Commission, 2020b) and, conditioned on teachers’ adequate access to digital devices and tools, proper training and freedom in implementing the curriculum, it can serve as a useful and functional tool in effectively integrating curricula and student assessment (Microsoft, 2018). According to the European Commission (2020a), the use of digital technology can also provide innovative and stimulating learning environments, facilitate individualized and flexible learning, and increase student motivation. It can be a powerful and engaging tool for collaboration and creative learning, and can help students and teachers access, create and share digital content. Hence the essential role education systems should play in embracing digital technologies in the processes of teaching and learning, while avoiding the risks that may arise from digital exclusion or inappropriate use of technology (European Commission, 2020a). between the green and digital transitions and the need to exploit synergies between them. Digital technologies are seen as basis for the green economic transition, including to a circular economy and de-carbonization of the energy sector, transportation, construction, agriculture and other sectors and industries. Post-Pandemic Sustainability in Europe 91 To this end, the first framework for digital education in the EU was introduced in 2018 with the adoption of the Digital Education Action Plan for 2018-20204, and a number of other initiatives have also been undertaken in this domain at a global level. However, they have often been viewed as limited in scope and with a marginal systemic impact, which has been partly a result of the perceived limited potential of the use of digital technologies in education (European Commission, 2020b). Such a perception was abruptly changed with the COVID-19 outbreak, which has put the traditional schooling to a halt and has profoundly affected the education systems world wide. In difficult circumstances, continuity of the educational process was enabled by an unprecedented use of digital technologies, thereby accelerating the already commenced process of digital transformation in education. However, there has been a significant variation in the effectiveness of digital education practices, which has impacted the quality and inclusiveness of the overall process. The remote teaching in North Macedonia and in the EU during the pandemic times has uncovered the systemic challenges as well as the key factors that influence the effectiveness of digital education, that governments would need to strongly focus on, not least in applying the blended learning concept in the aftermath of the current health crisis. DIGITAL EDUCATION IN COVID-19 TIMES The unforeseen health crises and abrupt closure of schools in March 2020 - as a 4 Even though the first Digital Education Action Plan was well received by Member States and has contributed to initiating policy dialogue in this domain, its short duration (2018-2020) and limited budget, have prevented it from realizing its full potential and having the necessary impact (European Commission, 2020a). measure of containing the spreed of the COVID-19 virus - created a sense of urgency in using digital technologies for continuing the educational process. According to the public consultations conducted in the EU during 2020, this has resulted with the digital learning practices being implemented rapidly, often in an unplanned and unstructured manner (European Commission, 2020a). Similar experiences were also present in North Macedonia, where the school closure at the beginning of March caught the system completely unprepared, in terms of lacking both policies and practices for remote teaching and learning. This “premature” implementation of the digital education, both in the EU and at home, resulted in swift learning and adapting to the new circumstances by all stakeholders in the education system, opening up a space for innovations and creativity within the sector. However, it also created a room for suboptimal practices, which resulted from systemic shortcomings that hinder successful integration of digital technologies into education - primarily lack of teachers’ skills in this domain and insufficient digital capacity of institutions at all levels of the education systems. In terms of teachers’ readiness, despite the EU’s Digital Education Action Plan 2018-2020 - whose aim was to adapt the education systems in the Member States to the digital age - the public consultations, conducted for the purpose of renewing the Action Plan for the period of 2021-2027, show that, before the crisis, almost 60% of the respondents (teachers, students, parents and institutions) had no experience in remote teaching and learning (European Commission, 2020a). In North Macedonia, the initial findings from a Survey on the experiences of principals, teachers and parents with the Sixteenth Annual International Academic Conference on European Integration – AICEI 2021 92 online and distance learning in the second half of 2019/2020 (REACTOR, 2020), indicate heavy inefficiencies in the teaching process. This prompted the education authorities in the country i.e. Ministry of Education and Science, to swiftly approach designing, developing and implementing a National Platform for Online Learning (National Platform)5, which became operational at the beginning of the 2020/20216 school year. However, it should be noted that the National Platform and the overall remote education process in the country was conceptualized, designed, developed and implemented as a response to, and at a time of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is several years ahead of the time planned for it with the Strategic Plan of the Ministry of Education and Science for 2019- 2021.7 Such an abrupt and untimely-planned integration of digital technologies into the education system in North Macedonia has revealed many of its structural challenges - not least insufficient or obsolete digital infrastructure; teachers and students lacking digital devices and Internet access, particularly pronounced in disadvantaged families; deficient digital capacity8 of schools and teaching staff, etc. 5 More details about the goals of the National Platform, its overall design and plan for implementation can be found in the presentation of the author at the Fourth Internet Government Forum (held virtually, on 15 Dec. 2020). A recording is available at: https://youtu. be/hnenqh4d2k8?t=2213. 6 The school year 2020/2021 started with a preplanned delay of 1 month, at October 1, 2000. 7 The Use of ICT in learning processes and Establishment of a unified electronic platform for teaching, learning and methodological resources - as measures set with the Strategic Plan under Priority III. Ensuring widespread use of ICT in education and training and digital literacy - were scheduled for gradual implementation by 2025. 8 Digital capacity refers to the ability to integrate, optimize and transform digital technologies in teaching, learning and assessment. KEY FACTORS INFLUENCING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF DIGITAL EDUCATION The COVID-19 crisis has clearly demonstrated a number of key factors that influence the effectiveness of digital education, measured by improved learning outcomes and enhanced student experience. Both in the EU and at home, the most recent experiences show that high performing digital education ecosystem depends on effective strategic planning, adequate access to digital infrastructure (including digital devices), digitally skilled teachers, high quality digital content and functional and secure digital platforms. Effective strategic planning According to Microsoft (2018), the most successful initiatives for digital transformation in education globally share an identical approach to the realization of this transformation journey, i.e. planning and implementation of effective policy, leadership, and transformation of pedagogy in a holistic, methodical and systematic way. In the EU, the long-term vision for digital education in the Member States is set with the renewed Digital Education Action Plan 2021-20279 The Action Plan defines priorities and actions for addressing the challenges and opportunities for digital education in the formal, non-for- mal and informal learning environments, and in lifelong learning. It aims to “contribute to a European society powered by digital solutions… and respond to the lifelong needs of people and organizations”10, and is also viewed as a tool for 9 The renewal of the Digital Education Action Plan - as a key initiative to “help unlock the potential of digital technologies for education and to address the widening digital skills gap” - was announced in the European Commission President von der Leyen’s Political Guidelines for the current European Commission 2019-2024 (Von der Leyen, U., 2019). 10 Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic Post-Pandemic Sustainability in Europe 93 achieving the goals of the European Skills Agenda, according to which, 70% of the population aged 16 to 74 should have at least basic digital skills by 2025.11 The Digital Education Action Plan serves as a guidance for the Member States in developing and executing policies in the area of digital education. In most European countries, digital education is regulated with separate strategies, while in some of the countries this topic is addressed with more general strategies that incorporate the aspect of digital education.12 In North Macedonia, although some elements of the digital education concept are integrated in the planned National Strategy for ICT 2021-202513, the education authorities have still not enacted a digital education strategy, which, as a comprehensive top-level policy document, would offer a holistic vision for systematic and coherent implementation of digital education in the country. Although with certain differences that result from national specifics, strategies for digital education, in general, address several key issues such as: acquiring students with digital skills; training the teachers; supporting schools in the application of digital technologies; and equipping them with digital devices and infrastructure. In addition to enacting digital education strategies, of equal importance is their and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on Shaping Europe’s digital future. COM(2020) 67 final. 11 Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on the European Skills Agenda, COM (2020) 441 final/2. 12 In 2019, only six countries in Europe, including North Macedonia, have not had digital education strategies as a separate policy document (Eurydice Report, 2019). 13 The National Strategy for ICT for the period 2021- 2025 is planned to be adopted by the Government and enacted by the end of 2021. regular monitoring and evaluation with an aim to align them with the dynamic technological development and the job market needs for digital skills. Nevertheless, regular digital capacity planning and development is less common in the EU Member States, which is also noted as a weakness by the European Commission (2020a). Infrastructure, connectivity and digital devices Although investments in digital infrastructure do not by themselves guarantee progress in digital education or in enhancing students’ digital competences, infrastructure is to some extent a prerequisite for applying digital technologies in education. Moreover, the COVID-19 crisis has clearly shown that digital infrastructure is essential for ensuring inclusiveness in education. Most EU Member States have a strategic commitment to invest in digital infrastructure of schools, and in many of them, these investments are set as one of the goals,14 or even as the main focus of their digital education strategies (Eurydice Report, 2019). The2nd Survey of Schools: ICT in Education assesses progress made in mainstreaming ICT in education and aims to define a model for a highly equipped and connected classroom. There are different approaches to this end, namely some Member States have adopted so called “bring your own digital device” policy - 14 In Germany, for example, with the Digital School Pact (DigitalPakt Schule) from 2019, the Federation is committed to providing € 5 billion for digital infrastructure in schools (WiFi, new laptops and smart boards, and Internet platforms for collaborative learning), with schools contributing with at least 10% of this amount over a five-year period. Schools are responsible for the provision of learning software and maintenance of the digital infrastructure. In Ireland, the Digital Schools Strategy sets aside € 210 million for the period 2015-2020 to support school infrastructure investments, of which € 60 million is allocated through school grants. Sixteenth Annual International Academic Conference on European Integration – AICEI 2021 94 although with significant variations in its application across the Member States - and several states apply this policy in parallel to public investments in this segment (European Commission, 2019a).15 With the Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027, the European Commission also commits to supporting the Member States in provisioning of gigabit internet connection to (and in) schools, and encourages them to utilize utmost of this measure by procuring digital equipment and e-learning platforms (European Commission, 2020b). In North Macedonia, although there is no separate policy document that would specifically govern investments in digital infrastructure in schools, this segment is regulated with the Strategy for Education 2018-2025 and the Action Plan. Namely, Priority 3.1. Use of ICT in the learning process (Pillar 7 of the Action Plan), stipulates that at least 50% of the public schools in the country will be provisioned with necessary ICT equipment within the period 2020-2025. The implementation of this priority to a large extent has been accelerated for the purposes of implementing the National Platform for Online Learning. Digital competences of teachers Digital competences of teachers and their ability to use digital technologies in a confident, critical and responsible way is essential not only for their personal and professional development and integration into the digital society, but also for utilizing the potentials of digital technologies for teaching and learning. This is backed by the findings from the 2018 International Computer and Information Literacy Study (European Commission, 2019b), which show that improvements 15 In Estonia, the strategic measure “Access to Modern Digital Learning Infrastructure” aims to develop digital resources and learning technology that allows all students and teachers to use their own digital devices at schools, along with the school digital infrastructure. in digital infrastructure do not systematically lead to integration and pedagogical use of digital technology in schools across the EU. The OECD publication on the opportunities posed by the digital transformation and its risks to human well-being (OECD, 2019a) goes even further in emphasizing the importance of this component, noting that the use of digital resources by teachers who do not posses appropriate digital skills can have a negative impact on students and on the learning outcomes. Hence, the development of teachers’ digital competences is considered a key factor for maximizing investments in digital technologies and aligning schools with the needs of the 21st century.16 Teachers’ specific digital competences refer to all areas of their work, including teaching, assessment, communication and collaboration with students, colleagues and parents, and the creation and sharing of digital content and resources. These competences and teachers’ positive attitudes towards digital education are key to the effective pedagogical application of digital technologies, which is essential for facilitating the learning process. They are also called “digital pedagogies” or “digitally-supported teaching methods”, while the technologies used in this context are the means to achieve the defined learning outcomes. At the EU level, teachers’ digital competencies are governed by the European Digital Educators Competence Framework (DigCompEdu), which is a scientifically grounded general reference framework that defines what it means for 16 In line with this conclusion is a statement by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research of Germany, which, despite the Digital School Pact for providing better technology equipment in German schools, has stated that “No technology makes a good education. It is up to the teachers, who need to be qualified to use digital technologies and teach digital competencies.”. https://www.bmbf.de/de/wissenswertes-zum-digi- talpakt-schule-6496.html. Post-Pandemic Sustainability in Europe 95 teachers to be digitally competent.17 The purpose of DigCompEdu is also to support development of specific digital competences of teachers, by facilitating assessment of digital competences through self-evaluation tools and identification of the needs for further training. There is a variety of methods that education authorities can use to ensure that teachers are digitally prepared to enter the profession, as well as to be able to continuously develop and enhance digital competencies throughout their careers. Development of digital competencies of teachers before entering the profession One of the ways for teachers to acquire digital competences is by integrating basic digital knowledge and skills in the study programs for initial teachers’ training (ITT), through teachers’ competences framework and through mandatory assessment of their digital competences during ITT or before entering the profession. In most of the EU Member States, teachers’ competency frameworks include digital competencies as essential for all teachers. Most of these frameworks are based on the European DigComp and Dig- CompEdu, or the UNESCO ICT Competence for Teachers. Although the definition of what constitutes a teacher’s digital competence varies, all frameworks stipulate that teachers need to know how to integrate digital technologies into teaching and learning and be able to use them effectively (Eurydice Report, 2019). 17 The DigCompEdu framework, published by the European Commission in 2017, defines 22 competences organized in six areas, with a focus not on technical skills but on the ways in which digital technologies can be used to improve quality and innovation in education and training. The framework applies to teachers at all levels of education, from early childhood to higher education, and adult education, including high school and vocational education, education for children with disabilities and non-formal learning. https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/digcompedu Regarding the application of the frameworks for digital competencies of teachers, in some Member States it is not mandatory, in others it must be taken into account when developing ITT study programs, while in some Member States the framework also defines the use of digital technologies for assessing students’ progress at school (Eurydice Report, 2019). In North Macedonia, digital competencies for teachers are included in the general framework for teacher competencies. Although it is used to define the needs for continuous professional development, it is not applicable in ITT. In most education systems in the EU, assessment of teachers’ digital competencies is conducted during the ITT, while a limited number of states have adopted top-level regulations for assessing these competences prior to teachers’ entry into profession. Continuous development of teachers’ digital competencies Teachers’ digital competencies need to be constantly upgraded to keep up with the rapid development of technology and changes in society. This is provided through programs for continuous professional development (CPD), self-eval- uation and identification of individual development needs, as well as through new forms of cooperation and exchange of experiences, such as professional learning communities and networks. CPD in the field of digital education is supported at the highest level in almost all education systems in the EU, in a variety of ways. One of the most common ways is through training provided by national or regional training institutions, which offer a wide range of courses for the development of teachers’ digital competences, including for pedagogical application of digital technology (from basic ICT skills to specialized training in the use of digital technologies in teaching Sixteenth Annual International Academic Conference on European Integration – AICEI 2021 96 different subjects). Trainings are organized in the form of traditional face-to- face training or online courses, including through increasingly popular Mass Open Online Courses (MOOCs)18. One of the key factors for adequate setting of CPD priorities is proper assessment of teachers’ training needs. For this purpose, most education systems in the EU promote the use of self-assessment tools, namely the European Self-Assess- ment Tool (TET-SAT)19, or national models (Eurydice Report, 2019). It is worth noting that, in a pilot phase in the EU is a new online self-assessment tool based on DigCompEdu (provisionally called DigCompEdu CheckIn).20 It aims to assist teachers in evaluating their digital competences by identifying strengths and areas for improvement, while providing them with a detailed feedback on the needs for further development of these competencies. Furthermore, with the revised Digital Education Action Plan, the EU is committed to supporting teachers in strengthening their digital pedagogy and skills for using digital tools in teaching through Teacher Academies (Erasmus), as well as through a new online teacher self-assessment tool - SELFIE for teachers (Self-reflection of effective learning by facilitating the use of innovative educational technologies) (European Commission, 2020b). In addition to formal training courses, 18 Mass open online courses (MOOCs) for teachers on the pedagogical application of technology are also organized by the European Schoolnet Academy. They are free to attend, open to all teachers and with no limitation on the number of participants. 19 The online tool for self-assessment of digital competencies of teachers TET-SAT, was developed within the policy experimentation project MENTEP (Mentoring Technology - Improved Pedagogy) supported by the EU through Erasmus +. http://mentep.eun.org/ tet-sat. 20 The tool is pre-tested by the European Commission Joint Research Center with small groups of teachers in different EU Member States, while during the testing phase the tool is open to all teachers worldwide. https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/digcompedu/self-as- sessment. teachers can develop digital competencies through participation in professional communities and networks. Teacher networks can enhance collaboration and facilitate exchange of good practices, experiences and methods, as well as teaching materials and didactic resources. Digital teacher communities generally operate online and are part of broader platforms or portals that provide access to a variety of support such as digital learning resources, including open source resources for education and informal, online professional development opportunities.21 Despite the fact that participation in professional networks is not mandatory, this informal way of learning is very popular with teachers across the EU. The 2nd School Survey by the European Commission (2019a), shows that 29% of high school students and 41% of primary school students are taught by teachers who participate in an online ICT-related professional development community. Digital teaching Resources Both in the EU Member States and in North Macedonia, teachers’ surveys point out to the availability of digital teaching content as one of the key prerequisites for effective remote teaching and learning (European Commission, 2020a; REACTOR, 2020). Hence, over the past years, the EU Member States are intensively adopting policies to accelerate the development, availability and quality of digital learning resources in primary and secondary education, while from the beginning of the pandemic, these activities are positioned high on the political agenda of the respective education authorities, including in North Macedonia. There are various practices for stimulat- 21 In almost two thirds of European countries education authorities facilitate creation of teacher networks, and in some places there are specialized networks in digital education. 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