DIGIT-AL: Smart city, smart work, smart life? Smart teaching!

Towards cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary perspectives on digital transformation. Meeting between education experts in Education for Democratic Citizenship/Human Rights Education with advocates, policy experts, and researchers on digital transformation in Europe between February 24-29, 2020 in Brussels.

Because education needs to recognize that digital transformation is not only an aspect of technologic progress but also a social, cultural or economic process, the meeting aimed to include a more holistic picture, represented by the participating experts and the guests from Brussels based institutions and organizations. The key aspects tackled included

  • The digital self, the impact on personalities and the data body/data traces. (Nils-Eyk Zimmermann, AdB)
  • Community and participation (Ricardo Caldas, Inducar)
  • E-State and E-Democracy (Sulev Valdmaa, Edgar Roditsenko, Mark-Andre Udikas, Jan Tönnisson Institute)
  • Legal challenges – Andrès Chomczyk Penedo ( Law, Science,Technologyand Society(LSTS) ResearchGroup,Vrije UniversiteitBrussel, Project Panelfit)
  • Digitalisation, Al and Equity– How to strengthenthe EU in the global race of futureskills and education,while ensuring social inclusion (Tellervo Kylä-Harakka-Ruonala, Christa Schweng, European Economic and Social Committee
  • Digital Economy and Skills (Alexander Riedl, DG Communications, Networks, Content and Technology of the European Commission, Deputy Head of its unit F.4 Digital Economy and Skills)
  • Media and information (Valentina Vivona, Centre for International Cooperation Trento)
  • Digital Human Rights (Jan Penfrat, European Digital Rights, Senior Policy Advisor)
  • The learner and the learning space (Daniela Kolarova, Partners Bulgaria Foundation)
  • Digital pathways to recognition of (non-formal) learning (Frank Elbers, DARE-network)
  • Digital Competence as citizenship competence (BarbaraQuarta, Chief Programs Officer, RenatoSabbadini, CEO, ALL DIGITAL)
  • The lifelong learning perspective: The projects DIGIT, DIMILI 4AC and Open Your Eyes (Pauline Boivin, Lifelong Learning Platform)

The next step: Reader on Digital Transformation

The partners of the European project are going to publish a reader, aiming to give a comprehensive overview and introduction in the broad topic to educators. The release is scheduled for November 2020.

Tools and methods for educators

In a second step, the project team will organize two trainings/experts meetings, one in October 2020, the second in spring 2021). In the following it will develop a handbook for facilitators including concrete methods and good practice aiming to inspire educators in a broad field of learning and education how to include digital transformation as a topic in their practice. Furthermore, it wants to deliver an overview over the different approaches to digital literacy and digital competences and support educators to make use of these in their learning context.


The project DIGIT-AL is supported in the framework of the Erasmus+ program of the European Commission (Strategic Partnership in the field of Adult Education). Project Number: 2019-1-DE02-KA204-006421


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