Digital transition in education is already taking place but it needs to be accelerated

A central European conference in education, "Resetting Education and Training for the Digital Age", focused on the opportunities and challenges of digital teaching and the role of artificial intelligence in education. It brought together key stakeholders, professionals, teachers and young people to discuss what the school of the future should look like.

"Digital transition is one of the biggest challenges we face, alongside green transition. We need to be aware that digital transition in education is an even more challenging process that will only be successful if we join forces and work together. That is why at this conference we have given a voice to key stakeholders, teachers, professionals and young people, who have presented a vision of the school of the future", said the Minister of Education, Science and Sport, Dr Simona Kustec, at the main European conference of the Slovenian Presidency of the EU Council in education, entitled Resetting Education and Training for the Digital Age. The Minister first of all highlighted teachers and their role.

The current situation has shown how important the role of the teacher is now more than ever. We need their voice to make the new European vision for education, our common European-wide priority, a reality.

Simona KustecMinister of Education, Science and Sport

Simona KustecMinister of Education, Science and Sport

This was confirmed by European Commission Vice-Presidents Margaritis Schinas i and Margrethe Vestager i, who stressed the need to promote the digital transition at all levels.

We all need digital skills and competences if we are to thrive in these times. The education system has a key role to play in this. But if on the one hand we talk about the benefits of digitalisation, which provides many advantages such as personalised learning, on the other hand we also need to take into account the challenges, especially in terms of equal access and ethical considerations and trust.

Margrethe VestagerEuropean Commission Vice-President

Margrethe VestagerEuropean Commission Vice-President

Teachers: For the school of the future it is vital to promote digital transition but using an integrated approach

Many teachers and head teachers at the conference stressed the need to promote digital transition for the school of the future but using an integrated approach. Digitalisation and artificial intelligence allow for an upgrade of existing teaching, more interactivity, personalised lessons, and a more personal approach to finding and supporting each pupil's areas of strength, but it cannot replace the teacher. Teachers are saying that the sheer volume of information available digitally makes it necessary to develop young people's critical thinking skills. They also stressed that school is not only a disseminator and assessor of knowledge, it is also a place where children develop socially and emotionally. This means that the school of the future should also pay special attention to the development of emotional competences. According to teachers and professionals who attended the conference, the school of the future should develop reflective, empathetic, open-minded and responsible people. In this context, teachers spoke about the great importance of the right training in digital skills and having modern technology at their disposal. Terezija Zamauda, a Slovenian primary and kindergarten head teacher, who received the European Innovative Teaching Award, presented her vision of the school of the future at the conference: "The school of the future should be a combination of the teaching staff’s highly professional skills, alongside teaching technologies and classrooms with modern equipment that provide a stimulating learning environment for the pupils." Teachers shared a number of good practices, one of which is the Innovative Pedagogy project, which for the past seven years has seen 75 schools developing the upgrading of existing teaching with modern technologies and state-of-the-art classrooms.

Pupils: The existing system gives us many options but needs to be upgraded

At the conference, young people presented their vision for the school of the future. They stressed that digitalisation and artificial intelligence offered an opportunity to upgrade the existing traditional education system. Moreover, the school of the future should include modern teaching methods, which should be interactive, with up-to-date technology that provides more than just a database. They want to learn by using the advantages offered by better simulations now available of what we cannot physically encounter, and to discover new ways of interacting with the environment, which digitalisation makes more efficient.

The third European Digital Hackathon took place in parallel to the conference, with more than 3000 young people, teachers and researchers from 33 countries participating in 62 national hackathons. It is organised by the Ministry of Education together with the International Research Centre in Artificial Intelligence (IRCAI) under the auspices of UNESCO. Young people were tasked to seek innovative solutions on the topic of digital education. The hackathon was opened by Minister Simona Kustec and European Commissioner Mariya Gabriel. "The digital hackathon enables the active participation of young people, which is one of our presidency's priorities. With the help of artificial intelligence and IRCAI, we have created a space in which concrete solutions to the challenges of the future are sought together by all key stakeholders. This is the only way to reach a resilient and competitive Europe of the future," the Minister stressed at the hackathon, adding that she would be interested in hearing about all the solutions presented at the hackathon.

The Minister will also present the conference highlights at the EU Council of Education Ministers, which is expected to adopt conclusions on blended learning. These will include digital education and the role of artificial intelligence.