Shaping digital education: enabling factors for quality, equity and efficiency

Investment in education technology has surged worldwide over the past decade and digital education technologies are now a key resource for OECD education and training systems. If used effectively, they promise to transform teaching and learning practices, to reduce learning inequalities and to create more inclusive and efficient education systems. However, countries’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic exposed shortcomings in the extent to which digital technologies are currently enabling high-quality teaching and learning, and underlined the need for supportive policies and conditions to make use of their potential. The rapidly improving capabilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI) also bring new focus to the role of education policy in preparing learners for an AI-driven future.
This report seeks to guide governments in shaping digital education. Offering a range of perspectives for governments and education stakeholders, it analyses enabling factors that can support quality, equity and efficiency in the use of digital technologies in education systems. It provides a comprehensive review of current trends and emerging policies, covering school education, vocational education and training (VET) and higher education, highlighting pathways to support a cohesive and holistic policy framework for digital education.