how has digital technology changed the way children learn

- Remote learning normalized blended and fully online instruction, increasing reliance on video lessons, learning management systems, and digital assignments. - Greater self-directed and asynchronous learning: students manage time, access recorded lessons, and use online resources independently. - Increased use of educational apps, adaptive software, and digital assessments that personalize pacing and provide immediate feedback. - Expanded access to diverse content and global collaboration (virtual guest speakers, classmates across regions), but unequal access widened achievement gaps where devices/internet were lacking. - Changes in social and classroom skills: reduced in-person peer interaction affected social-emotional learning and classroom discourse; educators adopted new strategies for engagement and formative assessment online. - Greater parental involvement and home-based learning environments altered responsibility for learning and increased visibility of students’ home contexts. - Acceleration of teacher digital professionalization: many teachers gained skills in online pedagogy, multimedia instruction, and digital classroom management. References for further reading: UNESCO (2020) School closures and remote learning; OECD (2021) Learning remotely during COVID-19; World Bank (2020) Remote learning & EdTech guidance.

Dorn et al. (2020) was chosen because it provides clear, timely evidence about the pandemic’s measurable academic impacts and highlights inequities amplified by remote learning. The report synthesizes early empirical estimates of learning loss across grades and subjects, translates those losses into concrete trajectories (e.g., projected months of lost learning), and links outcomes to socioeconomic disparities. That combination of accessible data, policy-relevant framing, and emphasis on the need for targeted remediation makes it a useful, actionable source for understanding how COVID-driven reliance on technology affected student achievement and widened gaps. Reference: Dorn, H., Hancock, B., Sarakatsannis, J., & Viruleg, E. (2020). COVID-19 and learning loss — disparities grow and students need help. McKinsey & Company.