Study - Bertelsmann-Stiftung publishes the ‘Digital Education Monitor — Schools in the Digital Age’ (Monitor Digitale Bildung – Die Schulen im Digitalen Zeitalter)
The education sector on the path to digital education
Teaching and learning are increasingly digitised and digital learning in schools is currently a much-discussed topic within academia and education policy-making. At the end of last year the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder in the Federal Republic (KMK) published a strategy paper titled ‘Education in the Digital World’ (Bildung in der digitalen Welt), in which the Länder agreed on education policy measures that would advance a ‘digital revolution’. The planned digital agenda Digitalpakt#D, which aims to equip German schools for digital education, has been creating waves for some months, despite the fact that its practical implementation is currently in some doubt.
‘Digital Education Monitor’ Study
Now the Bertelsmann Stiftung has released a study monitoring digital education in Germany. The representative study was carried out by the mmb Institut – Gesellschaft für Medien- und Kompetenzforschung mbH and examines the status of digital learning in four different education sectors (vocational training, higher education, schools and further education).
The primary focus of the investigation is not the technical infrastructure of educational institutions but the use and the users of digital education technology (personalised learning and participation) and the accompanying pedagogical concept, as well as possible support in the implementation and, where necessary, the creation of digital educational media.
Findings: ‘Digital Education Monitor — Schools in the Digital Age’
The third part of the study addresses ‘schools in the digital age’ and asked pupils, teachers and head teachers, in individual and group interviews, about the didactic and methodological design of digital learning in German schools.
Those questioned demonstrated a fundamental willingness to address and work with digital media and expressed high expectations for digital education.
The principal obstacles in the school sector are:
- The majority of teachers find the implementation of digital education media challenging due to a lack of digital literacy and information. Few teachers were aware of supporting factors (such as advantages for inclusion, personalised development and structuring activities in all-day schools).
- There are few concepts for the implementation of digital teaching materials. In most cases teachers are required to organise the use of new media themselves and to arrange appropriate training.
- There is a lack of suitable equipment. In addition to poor Wi-Fi connections, respondents alluded to the inadequacy of IT support and a lack of suitable training.
Videos were named the most popular medium by both pupils and teachers, closely followed by Wikis. Open Educational Resources (OER) consisting of freely available teaching material from the internet already play a significant role in schools. Teachers, however, criticised the time-intensive nature of locating suitable material. Teaching materials they had created themselves were infrequently made available to others online.
Editoria staff (mm)
Sources
Photo Credit: Computer by Tomasz_Mikolajczyk / CCO
Information sources (German only):
‘Digital Education Monitor’ Study | school | higher education| vocational training | further education:
https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/de/unsere-projekte/teilhabe-in-einer-digitalisierten-welt/monitor/schulbildung/
Collection of study material: https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/de/unsere-projekte/teilhabe-in-einer-digitalisierten-welt/monitor/materialsammlung-monitor-digitale-bildung/
Study: „Schools in the Digital Age’“ https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/de/unsere-projekte/teilhabe-in-einer-digitalisierten-welt/monitor/schulbildung/
Project blog of the Bertelsmann-Stiftung and the Centre for Higher Education for studies about digital learning: www.digitalisierung-bildung.de