70 Amendments of Petra KAMMEREVERT related to 2020/2135(INI)
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas inclusive, quality education is the cornerstone of fair societies and the green and digital transitions, as well as of the fundamental pillars of society, being one of the bases for equal opportunities;
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
B a. whereas the digital transformation is also apparent throughout the labour market, with 90 % of jobs expected to require some form of digital skills in the future; whereas advanced digital skills are in high demand;
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas access to high-quality digital infrastructure and equipment that is adapted to educational needs is a prerequisite for digital learning; whereas the COVID-19 pandemic and the sudden digital transition in education have laid bare the gaps in access across the Union, affecting unequally the different levels of education and the different countries of the Union;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the sudden shift to online and distance learning also revealed alarmboth the innovation potential and the existing gaps in the digital skills of teachers, parents and learners and in their ability to use digital technologies effectively;whereas digital inclusion goes hand-in-hand with social inclusion; whereas teachers have shown that they are capable of adapting to profound changes within education systems if they are empowered by sufficient means of flexibility and autonomy;
Amendment 41 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
F a. whereas, going forward, digital technologies should be integrated into education and training so that they enhance in-person learning;
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the shift to online and distance learning has exacerbated existing inequalities, leaving disadvantaged and vulnerable learners and learners with disabilities further behind, increasing drop- out rates across education sectors, and revealing an absence of pastoral and social support in the digital environment; whereas digital technologies should not be considered as a cost-saving tool which could lead to the increase of educational inequalities;
Amendment 47 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G a (new)
Recital G a (new)
G a. whereas in-person learning is important to develop tools that can help the development of transversal skills, especially in early childhood education;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic will herald profound changes and may well not be the last pandemic; whereas it would be unforgivable not to be properly prepared to deliver full-scale quality digital education for all in the event of a potential second wavecase of a new school and university lockdown; whereas that digital education plays a crucial role in tackling educational challenges in new major crises that may arise again in the future and that it will help the educational system be resilient in the longer- term,should such crises happen again;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H a (new)
Recital H a (new)
H a. whereas it is time to develop a Union digital education policy for the medium and longer term;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H b (new)
Recital H b (new)
H b. whereas mastering basic transversal skills, such as numeracy, critical thinking and social communication skills, is a fundamental prerequisite for the acquisition of digital skills and competences;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H c (new)
Recital H c (new)
H c. whereas digital learning strategies also need to take into account research on the effects that early use of digital technology may have on the development of young children;
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H d (new)
Recital H d (new)
H d. whereas digital technologies should be introduced in a learner- focused, age-appropriate and development-oriented way; whereas it is beneficial to maintain personal contact between students and teachers and to value the well-being and healthy development of children and adult learners;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H e (new)
Recital H e (new)
H e. whereas 10% of households in rural areas of the EU do not have access to fixed-line internet and a further 41% are not covered by broadband;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H f (new)
Recital H f (new)
H f. whereas older people are vulnerable to digital exclusion; whereas only 35% of persons aged 55-74 possess basic digital skills;
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H g (new)
Recital H g (new)
H g. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented challenge for teachers and trainers at all levels, including in Vocational Education and Training (VET); whereas prior to the crisis only 39% of teachers in the EU felt well or very well prepared to use digital technologies for teaching, with significant differences between Member States;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H h (new)
Recital H h (new)
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H i (new)
Recital H i (new)
H i. whereas a significant gender gap in digital skills still persists and is expected to widen; whereas only 17% of tech sector jobs are held by women despite a share of 54% female students in tertiary education; whereas, according to Eurostat only one in three STEM graduates is a woman; whereas efforts to tackle gender bias and inequality in the digital sector are insufficient; whereas the gender gap is particularly evident in the AI sector, where only 22% of AI professionals globally are female, thereby limiting the trajectory for the digital sector in the foreseeable future;
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H j (new)
Recital H j (new)
H j. whereas 43 % of Europeans lack basic digital skills, with significant disparities within and between Member States and based on socioeconomic status, age, gender, income, level of education and employment; whereas the Skills Agenda aims to ensure that 70 per cent of 16- to 74-year-olds have basic digital skills by 2025; whereas the European Digital Competence Framework for Citizens acknowledges the importance of soft skills, including communication, collaboration, digital content and creation; whereas these skills are key components of humanities, arts and social sciences studies; whereas an interdisciplinary approach to the study of science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) can lead to a better design of human-centric digital solutions;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H k (new)
Recital H k (new)
H k. whereas data shows persisting gender inequalities in the whole digital sector whereas gender stereotypes influence subject choices (less than 3 % of teenage girls express an interest in working as an ICT professional) which in turn influence the lack of women in the ICT and STEM professions, whereas women are underrepresented in high-tech jobs and a there is persistent digital gender pay gap, whereas high-tech jobs are the jobs of the future, the driving force of innovation, social welfare and sustainable development;
Amendment 78 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the updated Digital Education Action Plan as a further step towards a more comprehensive digital skills and education strategy; believes that the plan will have been a success if, by its completion, digital education is considered a significant part of education policy and has delivered clear, consistent and positive results in terms of availability, access and quality across the Union;
Amendment 81 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Welcomes the rights-based approach to education, anchored in the Pillar of Social Rights, as a guiding principle of the Digital Education Action Plan; recalls that guaranteeing accessible, inclusive and quality education for all is necessary to enforce the right to education as a fundamental human right;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Underlines the importance of the European Education Area in delivering the Action Plan, which will ensure transparency and accountability in its implementation;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes, however, that delivering the plan effectively depends on coordination across a broad range of programmes and policies, including Erasmus+, the European Social Fund Plus and the Connecting Europe Facility; calls on the Commission to ensure effective synergies between these programmes and policies;
Amendment 94 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Points to the importance of the ‘Connect’ and ‘Reskill and upskill’ flagship investment priorities in the Recovery and Resilience Facility for driving the digital education agenda; calls for at least 10 % of the facility’s funding to be allocated to education and encourages the Member States to increase their education funding, bearing in mind that education directly contributes to strengthening the growth potential, job creation and economic and social resilience of the Member States; calls on Member States to increase their allocations for education to 10% of their GDP;
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Underlines the value of pilot projects and preparatory actions initiated by Parliament in ensuring more Union- wide cooperation to tackle the educational gaps between Member States, regions and rural and urban areas; calls for their mainstreaming into programmes; underlines the importance of the new preparatory action on increasing accessibility to educational tools in areas and communities with low connectivity or access to technologies;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Recalls that the scope for Erasmus+ to support the Plan hinges on its financial envelope; deplores, in that regard, the Commission’s revised proposal of May 2020 and the European Council MFF agreement of July 2020, which starve the programme of the money needed to deliver transformative change; recalls its insistence that the budget be tripled compared to 2014-2020; welcomes the new agreement reached in the budgetary negotiations and the increased envelope for Erasmus+ which partially covers the demands of the European Parliament;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5 b. Welcomes the Commission’s recognition that more systematic research on the future of education and training is needed; calls for more investment in cross-disciplinary and longitudinal research in order to assess the long-term impacts of digitalisation on learning, as well as, the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of digital education policies; notes that the effects of digital education on children’s development, learning and wellbeing in the early ages have to be studied; considers, therefore, that recommendations to include online and distance learning in primary education should be grounded in scientific evidences;
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Welcomes the Commission’s scheduled mid-term review of the plan and its intention to ramp up data collection; reiterates the need for a clear implementation timetable; calls on the Commission to present to the Parliament clear benchmarks and milestones for the implementation phases of the Digital Education Action Plan; remains convinced that the plan needs a clearer governance and coordination structure, in which Parliament should be involved, to monitor developments and performance on an ongoing basis; calls on the Commission, therefore, to establish a forum bringing together the Member States, Parliament and other relevant stakeholders and experts; urges the Commission to better integrate digital education into the European Semester exercise;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6 a. Calls on the Commission, to establish a forum bringing together the Member States, Parliament and other relevant stakeholders and experts; urges the Commission to better integrate digital education into the European Semester exercise and to expand its current focus on the economic impact of education to include social objectives, online and offline, as well as a focus on the quality of educational provision; considers that the European Semester should better reflect the pace of education reforms that often do not adjust well to the Semester´s timeframe; underlines the need to increase the role and visibility of education in the European Semester exercise;
Amendment 111 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6 b. Notes that Member States will come out of the Covid19 crisis with historically high debt levels; points out that the classification of education as expenditure in national accounting has led to a sizeable cut in education budgets in previous crises; stresses that the digital transition in education will not be possible without a sizeable investment; calls for education expenditure to be reclassified as an investment in national accounts;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Welcomes the Digital Education Hubs as a first step towards a co-creation process involving key stakeholders, including civil society organisations; calls on the Commission to supervise implementation at national level and ensure fair representation and independence within the hubs, advisory services and stakeholder consultations; calls on the Commission to fully involve Parliament in creating European and national hubs, advisory services and stakeholder consultations and in nominating relevant stakeholders;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Deplores the persistent digital divide in the Union; regrets the fact that in some Member States, like Romania, efforts to provide access to quality digital education have failed, leaving more than 30 % of pupils without access to education for several months; shares the Commission’s analysis that fast and reliable internet and quality digital equipment in educational establishments, non-formal settings and the home are prerequisites for effective digital education; stresses the problematic lack of access to education for pupils due to this spring’s lockdown and recalls for the need to counter the digital divide.
Amendment 130 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. underlines the difficulties faced by VET institutions, which rely on hands-on training, in adapting to the digital environment; calls for adequate solutions and proper funding in order to ensure that VET education can be effectively delivered;
Amendment 133 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Insists that broadband should be considered a public good and its infrastructure should be adequately funded in order to be universally accessible as a critical step in closing the digital divide; calls for specific measures to enhance access for educational institutions, especially those in remote, rural and mountain areas with low connectivity and limited access to emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, blockchain, open source, new educational devices or(computer and tablets) or online and offline gamification, in the light of their growing importance and potential; calls for a newMember States to promote and facilitate access to funding schemes to provide educational institutions with such technologies and tools; calls for a new learner-centred initiative on AI and robotics for education;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9 a. Encourages the Commission and the Member States to address the gender gap in the digital ecosystem and focus on better inclusion of girls in digital education from a very young age;
Amendment 139 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 b (new)
Paragraph 9 b (new)
9 b. Underlines the importance of adapting the digital education process to an integrated pedagogical, cognitive and psychological approach taking into consideration all the dimensions of education with regards to different age groups; reiterates the importance for digital education to be based on easy-to- master mental maps, adapted cognitive workload, interleaved and spaced practices; calls on the Commission and the Member States to study and invest more resources in the initial steps, approach and training, in online and offline formats, towards the development of digital skills and digital education; underlines the need to further elaborate on the European strategy for early and childhood education focused on building an online playground for pupils;
Amendment 140 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 c (new)
Paragraph 9 c (new)
9 c. Stresses the importance of the Union taking the lead in digital education by seeking to enable an easy use of the innovations or technologies implemented, adapted to the infrastructure available and accessible to the biggest number of teachers, learners and parents;
Amendment 145 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Welcomes the plan’s focus on supporting school and university connectivity through the Connecting Europe Facility and efforts to publicise EU funding opportunities; calls on the Commission to work closely with Member States, local authorities and stakeholders to ensure that EU support dovetails with national schemes, in particular to support disadvantaged groups; calls on the Commission to target support at other educational establishments besides schools, such as vocational education centres and early childhood education centres;
Amendment 149 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10 a. Calls on the Commission to factor in differing levels of technological advancement across and within the Member States and between education sectors and institutions and to pay particular attention to harder-to-reach areas and groups when producing recommendations and guidance; underlines the need for a cross-sectoral and in-depth approach towards digital education;
Amendment 150 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10 b. Considers that the Union can play a key role in helping develop and make available high-quality educational content, building on promising schemes like e-twinning; considers the European exchange platform to have potential as a tool to ensure better cooperation between stakeholders and education actors at European level and calls on the Commission to complete its planned feasibility study with due speed; recalls the need to facilitate the rapid exchange of best practices and urges the Commission to support efforts to scale up successful initiatives;
Amendment 152 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 c (new)
Paragraph 10 c (new)
10 c. Encourages Member States to promote flexible models of education and support for distance learners using such means as e-resources, e-materials, videos, e-mentorship and free online training; insists on the need for an open and transparent digital education environment with regard to the content, devices and technologies that are being used and calls on the Commission and Member States to guarantee the independence of educational systems from any interference or interests;
Amendment 154 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 d (new)
Paragraph 10 d (new)
10 d. Calls on the Commission and Member States to initiate a quality digital education certification and credential infrastructure, applicable at European level, for digital content, digital platforms and digital infrastructures and technologies that will offer the possibility for beneficiaries to access a wide-variety of resources and that will enable an open- market educational environment and the possibility for new (European) initiatives;
Amendment 156 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 e (new)
Paragraph 10 e (new)
10 e. Welcomes the Commission’s efforts to digitise education and qualifications, including the new Europass platform and the planned Europass Digital Credential Infrastructure; draws attention, at the same time, to the need to improve the functionality of the Europass platform as regards searching for and receiving job and course offers to the need to carry out relevant updates of the information on the platform concerning current courses, training, job offers, and to the need to designate the institutions responsible for this process;
Amendment 158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 f (new)
Paragraph 10 f (new)
10 f. Calls on the Member States to promote initiatives through which businesses, civil society organisations and start-ups can present and share high-tech innovation with learners, professors, tutors and parents, including tools and instruments that facilitate digital learning;
Amendment 159 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 g (new)
Paragraph 10 g (new)
10 g. Underlines the importance of parents in digital education and calls for a special European study and initiative on digital parenting seeking to help develop a consistent and effective approach across Member States to help parents to adapt to this new digital education environment;
Amendment 160 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 h (new)
Paragraph 10 h (new)
10 h. Underlines that in a holistic approach to education, all learning that happens in and out of compulsory education needs to be valued and recognised, stresses that new learning environments go beyond the formal schooling system, particularly with respect to digital skills and competences, often learned in non-formal and informal settings; calls, therefore for support to non-formal learning providers to increase capacity and resources to be able to offer accessible quality digital education and training.
Amendment 161 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 i (new)
Paragraph 10 i (new)
10 i. Underlines the added value of mentorship in developing digital skills and the implementation of digital education methods and practices.
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 j (new)
Paragraph 10 j (new)
10 j. Welcomes the planned Council Recommendation on the enabling factors for digital education, but urges the Commission to bring forward the date of publication to 2021;
Amendment 163 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Insists that greater attention be devoted to accessible teacher training as the plan is rolled out so as to ensure that teachers and educators not only possess digital skills, but can also teach them; calls for a pan-Union initiative to develop new pedagogical methods for the digital environment; underlines the increasingly important role played by parents and tutors in distance learning and calls for them to be given special training and support mechanisms; notes that more than half of European education systems include digital skills as an interdisciplinary subject already from primary school, also providing the opportunity for these skills to become a compulsory subject in its own right including for assessment of student learning, insists, therefore, on the need to pay more attention to teacher training during the various stages of implementation of the Plan, so as to ensure that they not only possess digital skills, but can also teach them; to this end, encourages investments in specialisation courses in digital teaching skills for both teachers and IT professionals aspiring to teaching;
Amendment 171 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Notes the value of the SELFIE self-assessment tool and welcomes its extension to teachers, but calls on the Commission to boost the currently low take-up; sees the potential for teacher training support through Erasmus+, but calls on the Commission to provide a clear concept and budget for its proposed Teacher Academies;
Amendment 174 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 b (new)
Paragraph 11 b (new)
11 b. Salutes the European Digital Skills Certificate (EDCS) as a tool enabling the development of common education standards for digital skills at European level; underlines the desire of the CULT Committee in the European Parliament to play an active role in the development of the European framework;
Amendment 177 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 c (new)
Paragraph 11 c (new)
11 c. Welcomes the planned expansion of the Digital Opportunity traineeships to VET learners and to teachers, trainers and educational staff;
Amendment 178 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
Amendment 188 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12 a. Recalls that lower educational attainment in general often equates to lower digital proficiency; supports, therefore, the recommendation in the reinforced Youth Guarantee that people not in education, employment or training undergo a digital skills assessment and receive training;
Amendment 189 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 b (new)
Paragraph 12 b (new)
12 b. Warns that social and educational inequalities in early childhood have a negative impact on educational attainment and employment prospects in later life; reiterates the need for improving access to quality education and more efforts in developing digital and media skills at an early age; welcomes the announcement of the European Commission to introduce a European Child Guarantee in order to tackle child poverty; underlines that Member States should allocate at least 5 % of the European Social Fund (ESF+) resources under shared management to support activities under the European Child Guarantee and insists that a separate budget line under the ESF+ needs to be created for the European Child Guarantee, with an allocation of EUR 20 billion;
Amendment 190 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 c (new)
Paragraph 12 c (new)
12 c. Stresses the importance of lifelong learning and the responsibility of the private and public sectors to train people in order to remain competitive and relevant on the market.
Amendment 191 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 d (new)
Paragraph 12 d (new)
12 d. Stresses that the digitalisation of education systems should not lead, under any circumstance, to the current or future commercial exploitation of digital data of learners, particularly within formal education; stresses that the highest safeguards must apply to the digital data of underage students, including for research and teaching purposes;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 e (new)
Paragraph 12 e (new)
12 e. Highlights the importance of green education and education about the environment and calls for the development of specially designed curricula across Europe taking into consideration the environmental impact of digital education;
Amendment 193 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 f (new)
Paragraph 12 f (new)
12 f. Recognises the importance of in- classroom education and underlines that digital technologies should be integrated into education and training so that they enhance in-person learning;
Amendment 194 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 g (new)
Paragraph 12 g (new)
12 g. Recalls the importance of in- classroom education and underlines that digital education is complementary;
Amendment 195 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 h (new)
Paragraph 12 h (new)
12 h. Recalls the new working realities generated by the pandemic, such as telework, and encourages educational and training institutions to develop new educational methods and prepare learners and workers for this new working environment;
Amendment 210 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Recalls that special attention should be paid to digital proficiency for lower- skilled adults, persons with disabilities, persons from vulnerable or marginalised groups and older people; points out that in 2018, just 4.3 % of low-skilled adults used any form of adult learning;
Amendment 211 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14 a. Urges the Commission and Member States to identify and invest in special features for digital education designed and adapted for people with disabilities; considers that digital education offers great opportunities for students with learning difficulties as it allows for tailored pedagogical approaches to their diverse abilities; calls for more investments to ensure the support that these groups have too often been lacking;
Amendment 216 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Deplores, therefore, the continued absence of measures targeting lower- skilled adult learners and older people; stresses that this omission undermines the essential lifelong learning dimension of digital education and hampers efforts to ensure that everyone has essential life skills; calls on the Commission, therefore, to work with regional and local authorities to put further measures in place, to ensureincentivise adult education by making it available and accessible, so that these population groups can truly benefit from the digital transition;
Amendment 222 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 b (new)
Paragraph 15 b (new)
15 b. Stresses that an effective digital education policy is an inclusive digital policy that should tackle the digital dimension of citizenship education, inclusion being the most important enabling factor for digital education to successfully contribute to democracy; regrets the limited ambitions of the new Digital Education Action Plan with regard to the promotion of digital citizenship;
Amendment 224 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 c (new)
Paragraph 15 c (new)
15 c. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to work closely with civil society, teachers, pupils, students and parents' organisations, for instance as part of a structured dialogue and with respect to the design and implementation of national digital education policies to ensure that the policies meet the needs citizens needs and put learners at the centre.
Amendment 226 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 d (new)
Paragraph 15 d (new)
15 d. Underlines the need for the European Union to act as a global reference in terms of quality digital education and calls on the Commission to work closely with relevant global and regional institutions and stakeholders to boost access to quality digital education across the world.
Amendment 228 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 e (new)
Paragraph 15 e (new)
15 e. Underlines the existing gender gaps and calls on Member States to encourage gender rebalancing in STEM or STEAM curricula;
Amendment 229 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 f (new)
Paragraph 15 f (new)
15 f. Calls on the Commission to thoroughly address the issue of a lack of women participating in ICT studies and careers within the digital sector, with a special focus on the Digital Education Action Plan; calls on educational entities to encourage girls to take up mathematics, coding, ICT classes and science subjects in schools;