Unlocking the Future of Education in Colombia

This project is identifying the dynamics, factors, stakeholders, and institutions involved in scaling up e-learning models to effectively integrate ICTs in schools. Some of the research questions are:

• What is required of the technological infrastructure to effectively implement new learning scenarios that promote skills development for work in the digital world?
• What characteristics and content should new educational and paedagogical models have to develop the competencies necessary for living in the digital age?
• How can technology be taught in a way that fosters creativity and autonomy?
• What educational models of digital learning can be transferred to the Colombian context?

In the years prior to its launch, the Group for Educational Informatics from EAFIT University designed, structured, and implemented a set of solutions to integrate learning technologies into formal education. The first implementation in 2012, called "TESO Digital Plan" (which translates to "transforming education to create dreams and opportunities"), was carried out through a public-private partnership in Itagüí, Colombia. Supported by the use of new technologies and based on interaction, innovation, and learning, TESO engages principals, teachers, researchers, students, and parents in new learning scenarios. These scenarios aim to support a strengthened, interconnected, and proactive educational network.

EAFIT University has been evaluating the scale-up process of this model in other municipalities in Itagüí. The Education Minister of Colombia is exploring the possibility of scaling up of the model to schools linked to the national educational programme called Todos a Aprender. However, prior to adopting the strategy in other schools, the project identified which aspects were worth transferring and which were non–transferable because they were unique to the Itagüí experience.

The team used various quantitative methods to evaluate the use of ICTs in the classroom. This included the creation of a multivariate index that accounts for the different factors that influence the adoption of ICTs for teaching and learning in the classroom. This statistically validated index has been used to measure the progress of teachers before and after the intervention. This index, alongside assessments of the characteristics of schools and teachers, has also been also used to evaluate the effectiveness of teachers' participation in the different strategies of the programme. These results were complemented with qualitative data in order to measure good practice in implementing e-learning programmes. For example, data about the training strategies that have the greatest impact on the teachers were generated and shared, along with suggestions about which strategies should be transferred.

Once an understanding of the necessary steps for scaling up in diverse contexts was established, strategic recommendations applicable to development policies and programmes were designed. For example, in June 2017, Bogotá's Education Secretary presented Plan Saber Digital, which highlighted the challenges involved with connecting all schools to the internet. This plan is an outcome of "Unlocking the Future of Education in Colombia" and it represents the first outline of a public policy on ICT integration to spearhead innovation in education that will improve teaching and learning.

The enthusiasm of the Ministry of Education and the Secretary of Education of Bogotá gave the project a boost that has led to extensive networking between the EAFIT team and other researchers and educational institutions in the country. Some of the team's researchers have reinforced existing international connections and promoted new ones (with institutions in Mexico, Finland, Ecuador, etc.). International networking was deepened with an a EAFIT-hosted workshop where the research team presented their work to a number of international members of the digital education community. They shared learnings about the role ICTs can play in facilitating the evolution of educational contexts towards communities of learning by improving communication processes among its members.

This meeting was also the basis for the development of a new digital education project to be launched in 2019. EAFIT and their vision for a regional network of digital education researchers and policymakers will play a central role in the project. The university has also developed working relationships with the education team of the Brookings Institute in the context of an upcoming global project on scaling digital education.

The objective of promoting the rise of thought leaders has seen progress through the development of a think tank on digital education within EAFIT.

As of this writing, research outputs and academic papers are being prepared for publication in an open access modality. In addition, the research team is implementing a public communication plan that defines how to put digital learning on the public agenda of municipalities and governorates - whether with the design of a strategic line in its development plans or in the design of public policies. The production of additional knowledge products and tools to facilitate the scaling-up process is also anticipated.

Education, Technology

According to project funder International Development Research Centre (IDRC), education is a key pillar of economic and social development. Yet, in many developing countries, education is facing a profound crisis. In Latin America, 48% of school graduates cannot understand a basic text, 62% are not able to perform simple calculations, and dropout rates are increasing. IDRC contends that one of the reasons behind poor student performance is the traditional one-size-fits-all approach to education, which is unable to keep students engaged and is not meeting the needs of the knowledge economy.

Computers, mobile devices, and internet services are now more affordable in Latin America. These technologies allow users to create platforms that can analyse large amounts of data. So-called big data can allow for the design of more personalised learning and let teachers track student performance in real time. In the last decade, a number of ICT-based innovations have been introduced to schools, but several have not achieved the expected results. Project organisers suggest that the main challenge lies in integrating these technologies in a planned manner.

The research team stresses that introducting ICTs into a school is not an end in itself, but represents a stage of preparation for addressing substantive discussions about the role that the school plays in a given environment. To that end, the vision of the TESO Digital Plan in relation to the development of a culture of learning and innovation within educational institutions gains even more meaning and suggests, on the one hand, the importance of testing initiatives that strengthen different aspects of the culture of learning and innovation in educational institutions and, on the other, the need to explore the challenges that society poses and the role that schools play in using technology to help students overcome them.