The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) encourages governments to set education policies so that technology is used to meet learners' needs and support teachers in their unique capacities and environments. The call was issued on the heels of the launch of the global UNESCO report on technology in education. Findings contained in the report reveal serious gaps in the deployment and operationalisation of technology in the education space, particularly in Edtech.
Moving forward, this year, the annual Global Education Monitoring (GEM) report, backed by 15 ministers of education from across the world, proposes four areas of contemplation for ministries of education when setting policies in the area.
Why does it matter?Technology appears in six of the ten targets in SDG 4. It is highlighted as having an effect in the areas of input, means of delivery, skill, tool for planning, and providing social and cultural contexts. The appropriate, equitable, scalable and sustainable application of technology in education will therefore prepare all demographics within the teaching and learning spaces across the globe to take up present and future areas of work and, by extension, be able to adequately address the world's complex problems.