Digital Skills for Life and Work September 2017
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Working Group on Education: Digital skills for life and work September 2017 Working Group on Education: Digital skills for life and work September 2017 What are the educational implications of the ‘broadband society’ for the development of digital skills for life and work? Foreword by Irina Bokova, UNESCO technologies. So are apps and other tools that facilitate creative expression. But these clicks are not obvious to first time users of technology, and too many people are being excluded from the enrichment opportunities offered by the broadband society. To move forward, we need to tackle complex questions. How can education support the equitable development of digital skills for all? How can we advance digital skills development continually, in the context of fast-changing technologies? In response, this Report by the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development examines how digital skills and competencies The emergence of the digital world is creating can be defined and developed within and vast new opportunities for exchange and beyond formal curricula. It underlines the cooperation. It is also raising sharp questions importance of steadfast commitment to that we must address to advance progress digital skills development for disadvantaged toward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable groups and the self-evolution of these Development. skills within local communities. It offers recommendations on supporting sustainable People speak of the emergence of a new and equitable development of digital skills for generation of ‘digital natives’ as if this is all stakeholders, showing the catalytic power inevitable. It isn’t — we see new divides of multistakeholder collaboration, the role of emerging and old gaps widening, notably for international cooperation and the importance girls and women. To be truly empowering, of research and evaluation. The Report also new technologies must stand on two pillars. includes a compendium of case studies, Firstly, they must be inclusive, bridging gaps, exploring how different organizations are not widening them. Secondly, they must be forging digital skills for life and work in Africa, underpinned by respect for human rights Asia, Europe and beyond. and dignity. In this context, the imperative of fostering digital literacy for all has never been In the place of ‘digital natives,’ I believe we so important. need to support the rise of a new generation of ‘digital citizens,’ with the right skills for Recent analysis shows that, within developed life, work and engagement in connected economies, 90% of jobs require some level of communities for today and tomorrow. This digital skills, while more than one third of the can only happen through concerted policies, labour force has an extremely limited ability drawing on strong political commitments to use ICT productively. Digital skills are no and sustained investment. Digitally literate less crucial in developing countries. In Kenya women and men form the foundations for the and India, for instance, an internet-connected inclusive, knowledge societies we need for device can serve as a bank, postal service, the twenty-first century. map, library, learning hub, translation utility and record keeper, all rolled into one. Irina Bokova, In addition to helping people enter and Director-General, UNESCO excel in labour markets, digital skills also allow women and men to pursue personal interests. Music, art, sports and literature are usually just a few clicks away with broadband ii Digital skills for life and work – 2017 Foreword by John Galvin, Intel Government and Education For these reasons, Intel is helping to spearhead efforts to catalyze ecosystem partners and bring together the best ideas, innovative practices, and action-oriented leaders committed to building a better future by accelerating progress for all. I am honoured to serve with my fellow Broadband Commissioners on our shared commitment to support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. I look forward to increasing our collaboration to enable individuals everywhere to develop the twenty-first century skills required to thrive within our fast-changing broadband society. In my position at Intel, I have the privilege John Galvin of working with world leaders and touring Vice President and General Manager, hundreds of schools across multiple Intel Government and Education geographies. Throughout my travels, I consistently hear two questions: 1) How can we accelerate innovation to drive economic growth? and 2) How can we prepare citizens to thrive for the next 20-30 years? The Broadband Commission’s Education Working Group prepared this report to serve as a blueprint for change agents acting to close the digital divide. The report’s compendium of case studies describes success stories — from marginalized toddlers in Myanmar gaining quality early learning opportunities and girls in Sri Lanka becoming empowered to attend universities, to Malaysian teens transforming into innovators and entrepreneurs. These stories illustrate some of the successful ways that corporations, governments and non-profits are coming together to ensure that people everywhere have the skills and competencies they need to fully participate and succeed in the knowledge-based economy of the future. At Intel, we believe technology is a force for positive social impact and has the power to be a great equalizer, but only if everyone has access to it. We also recognize that the health of local economies — including those where our employees live and work — is improved by access to technology and quality education that prepares individuals for the jobs of tomorrow. Digital skills for life and work – 2017 iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report has been created collaboratively, drawing on contributions and insights from the participants of the Broadband Commission Working Group on Education, under the auspices of the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development. The Broadband Commission Working Group on Education is co-chaired by Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO and John Galvin, Vice President of Intel. This report explores the implications of the ‘broadband society’ for the development of digital skills for life and work. Alongside original desk-based research, the report reflects inputs from the members of the Broadband Commission Working Group and from other Commissioners. They provided the case studies that form the compendium of promising practices, included as an appendix. UNESCO has coordinated the production of the document, under the guidance of David Atchoarena, with the overall drafting support of Neil Selwyn and contributions from Borhene Chakroun, Fengchun Miao, Mark West and Chrystelle de Coligny. Christina Chin, from Intel, and Mark West, from UNESCO, oversaw the preparation of the compendium, with the support of Glynnis Kaye. The process of completing the report was facilitated by Phillippa Biggs and Anna Polomska of the Broadband Commission Secretariat at ITU. Artwork for the report was created by Yacine Kaci. We wish to thank the Broadband Commissioners, the Commissioners’ focal points, and in particular, the members of the Working Group for their invaluable contributions (listed in alphabetical order of institution): • Dr Carlos Jarque, America Movil and FCC Servicios Ciudadanos • H.E. Dr Siyabonga Cyprian Cwele, Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services, Republic of South Africa • Mr Börje Ekholm, Ericsson • Mr Kevin Martin, Facebook • Baroness Beeban Kidron, 5Rights • Mr Sunny Varkey, GEMS Education • Mr Mats Granryd, GSMA • Mr Rupert Pearce, Inmarsat • Mr John Galvin, Intel • Mr Houlin Zhao, ITU • Dr Dato Lee Yee Cheong, ISTIC • Dr Chang-Gyu Hwang, KT Corporation • Prof. Gloria Bonder, Latin American Postgraduate Institute of Social Sciences (FLACSO) • Mr Paul Mitchell, Microsoft • Mr Rajeev Suri, Nokia • Dr Ann Aerts, Novartis Foundation • Ms Irina Bokova, UNESCO • Ms Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Women iv Digital skills for life and work – 2017 TABLE OF CONTENTS DIGITAL SKILLS FOR LIFE AND WORK Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................................... 4 Chapter 1 Towards a broadband society for all: The centrality of education and skills ...................................................................................................................... 10 Chapter 2 Digital skills and digital competencies: An overview ..................................... 22 Chapter 3 Creating conditions for the development of digital skills and competencies: Promising education practices and policies ...................... 37 Chapter 4 Future challenges and recommend ations for action .................................. 57 References .......................................................................................................................................63 APPENDIX Case Study 1 She Will Connect: Africa ......................................................................................... 73 Case Study 2 1,2,3…Codez!: Enquiry-based computer science for France and beyond ................................................................................................................ 79 Case Study 3 mydigitalmaker: Fostering digital skills in and out of the classroom in Malaysia ...................................................................................................................85 Case Study 4 Connect To Learn: A global initiative for scaling access to quality education ...................................................................................................................