In Spain, the closure of schools caused by the COVID-19 crisis resulted in a sudden need for digital technologies to ensure the continuation of learning, teaching and assessing in all educational levels. For several years now, the Education Departments of the Autonomous Communities have been implementing initiatives to advance towards the digital transformation of the education system. The pandemic has accelerated this process.

Most Autonomous Communities were already relying on virtual learning environments to connect teachers, students and families. The ones that did not have this type of resources sought different solutions to establish the best conditions for an effective e-learning system. In this regard, virtual learning and communication platforms were developed, as it is the case of Aragón and Cataluña.  Further, by appealing to the autonomy of educational institutions, all the Administrations authorized the responsible use of LMS software and applications, such as Moodle, Edmodo or Microsoft Teams. Castilla La-Mancha is an example of this matter.

At the same time, certain Administrations took the decision to invest in infrastructures to improve connectivity and make possible the massive use of their services. For instance, the performance of the virtual educational platforms of Extremadura and Comunidad de Madrid was significantly improved.

In addition, in order to support both teachers and students, some Autonomous Communities made their own educational resource banks available to the entire educational community. These resources—both restricted and open-access materials, sorted out by grade, subject, recipient, keywords, etc.—made distance learning easier.  Examples are the initiatives launched by Principado de Asturias, Cantabria and País Vasco.

Moreover, the offer of online training for teachers on digital competences and the use of technologies for distance education was substantially increased.  Teachers, students and families were provided with guides and various format tutorials on the operation of educational applications and platforms too. Some examples worth mentioning are those of Canarias, Castilla y León, Región de Murcia or Comunidad Foral de Navarra.

Finaly, it is worth highlighting the efforts made to alleviate the digital divide. The Ministry of Education and Vocational Training provided additional funds and resources to support the Autonomous Communities to cope with this crisis. Education Administrations and centres—in Andalucía, Comunitat Valenciana, Illes Balears, Galicia and La Rioja, among others—provided vulnerable students with electronic devices, software licenses and/or network connectivity. The collaboration of private initiative has been decisive in this respect.

Source: Eurydice Unit Spain