The Right to Education and Digital Transformation: Challenges and Opportunities

Overview:                                                                                                         

Today, education is a human right recognized in several international and regional human rights treaties[1]. It is also a foundation for peace, tolerance and sustainable development (SDG4), and a key component that brings growth and progress into society, and foster inclusion.

The right to education has however been greatly tested during the pandemic with dire consequences of learning loss resulting from school closures, and disruptions. About 147 million children missed out on more than half of their in-class instruction[2], and access to basic school services and ICT facilities remains far from being universal, disproportionally impacting those persons in vulnerable situations, especially in low and middle-income countries. About 20 years of education gains have been wiped out.

Undeniably, digital technologies contribute to the transformation of education. During this digital transformation, it is important to recognize the challenges and the opportunities ahead. Opportunities are about accelerating the implementation of SDG4 by ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning for all. Digital education, when used with an objective of inclusion, digital pedagogy, and basic digital competences, and with awareness of human rights, can help address persisting inequalities in terms of access to quality education and lifelong learning, as well as advance digital inclusion. Digital education can empower people to participate in civil, cultural, economic, political and social aspects of life. Digital technology also enables personalizing education to learners’ needs and interests and in case of new pandemics, conflicts, or natural disasters can also best ensure the continuity of education. Personalization can be beneficial especially in the case of large teaching groups.

On the same time, digitalization of education brings also new challenges in terms of equality in the fulfillment of right to education. Whereas the pandemic has accelerated the digital transformation of education, allowing millions of children and youth to access education during lockdowns it has also exacerbated the digital divide. Research by UNICEF and ITU has shown that whereas in high-income countries 87 per cent of children and young people have an internet connection at home, in low-income countries only 6 per cent can access the internet from their homes. According to the World Bank and UNESCO, in Sub-Saharan Africa, nearly 87% of children are considered learning poor. More than 49 million girls are out of primary and secondary school, with 31 million of them out of secondary education, undermining their rights and limiting their opportunities.

Connectivity is a key issue. Affordable and high-quality Internet connectivity for underserved and unserved populations, as well as access to devices, are important building blocks for digital education and skills, as well as a requirement to close the global digital divide.

At the same time, it is necessary to increase efforts to strengthen globally digital skills and competences, which are essential to enable learners to fully benefit from digital education, and to empower citizens to fully participate in the economy, society, and democratic processes. It should also be recognized that

In this regard, the EU is fully committed to promote economic, social and cultural rights, in particular through upholding the right of everyone to education. The EU are taking a stand for a digital transformation governed by human rights with the aim of tackling the various digital divides that have an increasingly important impact on realizing human rights. The EU is also committed to striving for global connectivity to an open, secure, reliable, and interoperable Internet, and empowering people with skills and competences to use digital technologies and navigate the online environment safely and responsibly.

Focus: Discussion to focus on the realization of the right to education for all, ensuring access to quality and inclusive education worldwide, in particular analyzing opportunities, challenges, and the role of regional organizations, the private sector, civil society, including to address the exclusion of women and girls and/or persons with special needs through using educational technologies and strengthening digital competencies.

[1] as well as in other international and regional instruments: including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Convention against Discrimination in Education of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, as well as the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (Art 17), African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (Art 11), Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Art 12), African Youth Charter (Art 13, 20).

[2] Report of the Secretary-General, Progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals- E/2022