Since UNESCO member states designated 19 March as International Digital Learning Day in 2023, Fundación Telefónica and Fundación ‘la Caixa’ have been joining in the celebrations through their ProFuturo educational innovation programme, which uses technology. The aim of this day is to raise awareness of the digital learning agenda, expand research in this field, disseminate new technology-based teaching approaches and promote their widespread adoption through the principles of cooperation, collaboration and solidarity.
Aligned with SDG 4 of the United Nations 2030 Agenda, which aims to ensure inclusive, equitable and quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all, ProFuturo is now present in 27 countries and more than 3,000 schools in vulnerable contexts.
Digital learning has, as UNESCO itself states, the potential to “expand access to education, improve learning outcomes and prepare learners of all age groups to face the complex challenges of the 21st century”. Furthermore, it can also promote inclusion and facilitate access to education, particularly for those affected by conflict and emergency situations.
Indeed, since 2017, one of ProFuturo’s intervention models has focused on adapting its Comprehensive Digital Education Model to crisis contexts, thereby seeking to promote access to quality, comprehensive education for children who have been forcibly displaced and are living in refugee situations, whether in camps, support centres or informal settlements in urban or rural settings.
To mark this day, UNESCO, together with UNICEF and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), will present its Charter on Public Digital Learning Platforms, which offers policy guidance to help public authorities steer the design, governance and improvement of public digital learning platforms.
