Digital Gap in Universities and Challenges for Quality Education: A Diagnostic Study in Mexico and Spain

Abstract

The United Nations (UN) identifies four key elements as agents for change and for addressing societal challenges: education, research, innovation and leadership. The use of technology, from a pedagogical and organizational point of view, in higher education institutions has brought about new challenges. The integration of them in the teaching–learning processes has experienced a great evolution, giving way to a digital transformation and the acquisition of new skills and knowledge, thus pointing towards quality education within the framework of sustainable development objectives. This document aims to describe and analyze the ways in which seven higher education institutions, three in Spain and four in Mexico, have taken up the challenge of adopting technologies and applying them to the educational process. To this end, in-depth interviews and direct observations were carried out. The results point to three dimensions: technological, pedagogical and organizational, which shed light on the different factors that influence the choice and availability of the use of technologies. The results indicate that contextual factors play a determinant role in the ability of an institution to profit from technologies to aid the educational process and guarantee its quality.

ICT Skills of University Students from the Faculty of Sport and Physical Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Different pieces of research confirm that most educational institutions only transferred classroom education to online platforms [24]. Therefore, the FSPE has been using the platforms that had already been proven to be effective, such as Google Classroom, Zoom, Skype, or some of the retroactively created platforms.…”

“…Some studies state that every institution must consider technological, pedagogical, and organizational aspects [24]. This means that the relationships should be observed and found between information and communication technologies (ICT); between pedagogy and digital learning, digital competencies, innovations in education, and the knowledge of the technologies (ICT skills); and between organization and organizational and collaborative technologies [25].…”

Profile of Scientific Initiation students in Brazilian Federal Institutes: Research areas, gender, and scholarship type by region

“…In addition, research is one of the elements that the United Nations (UN) identifies as one of the main agents of change to face society's challenges. Education, innovation and leadership are also added (Rodríguez-Abitia, Martínez-Pérez, Ramirez-Montoya, & Lopez-Caudana, 2020).…”

Deep Dive into Digital Transformation in Higher Education Institutions

“…The existing institutional levels of digital transformation can be captured by assessing the digital maturity of the institutes. In this regard, Rodríguez-Abitia et al [39] put forward a framework for assessing the digital maturity of higher educational institutes. The digital maturity of any educational institute can be assessed by observing its information technology infrastructure in terms of digital tools used in classrooms and labs as well as for administrative purposes.…”