The digital environment has become an integral aspect of children’s lives. It offers many opportunities such as enhancing educational opportunities, expanding social interactions and having fun. However, the digital environment also exposes children to risks such as cyberbullying, the viewing of violent and other inappropriate content, sexual exploitation and abuse and breaches of privacy. Much current debate also centers on concerns that digital technologies can detract from human interaction and reduce the quality of children’s social and emotional experiences.

All of these issues have fueled concerns from parents, teachers, governments and young people themselves that digital technologies and social media may be exacerbating feelings of anxiety and depression, disturbing sleep patterns and distorting body image. As we integrate new digital technologies into education, we must acknowledge the challenges and complexities that arise. As stated in the OECD Recommendation on Children in the Digital Environment, it is crucial to establish conditions for a safe and beneficial digital environment. Education systems have a vital role in supporting children to navigate the risks while reaping the benefits.

The problem is not that universities are lacking in innovation, but rather that they suffer from a poverty of imagination of what that innovation might be. “This is an existential moment for universities,” writes the philosopher of higher education Ronald Barnett. “All systems of higher education across the world are moving inexorably in the direction of the marketized university. Consequently, the pool of ideas through which the university is comprehended is shrinking.” Indeed, the main existential crisis facing the university is a poverty of ideas about what universities can become. We must look elsewhere, more broadly and with greater imagination, for potential sources of innovation. 

Por un lado, encontramos una corriente que idealiza y sobredimensiona el potencial de la tecnología, considerándola como la solución mágica que resolverá todos los desafíos y problemas que enfrenta la educación en la actualidad. Pero, por otro lado, también existen voces que rechazan completamente la incorporación de la tecnología en los procesos de enseñanza y de aprendizaje, argumentando que socava los métodos tradicionales y el rol fundamental del docente.

¿Es posible encontrar un equilibrio entre estas visiones extremas? ¿Cómo podemos aprovechar el potencial transformador de la tecnología sin caer en su idealización o demonización? ¿Qué enfoque debemos adoptar para integrar la tecnología de manera efectiva y complementaria en la educación?

Por Rosa María Morales de EDUBITS de Tec de Monterrey En mi clase de Econometría que imparto a estudiantes de sexto semestre de economía en...