Whether and how Digital Pact 2.0 will come remains unclear. This was explained by the current KMK President and Minister of Education of Saarland, Christine Streichert-Clivot, during her opening speech at the Bitkom education conference that is now taking place. She cautiously but urgently appealed to the Federal Minister of Education and the federal government to finally make concrete statements about the Digital Pact 2.0 and to fulfill previous commitments.
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Continue digitization work
Streichert-Clivot (SPD) explained that there will be at least a half-year break between the first school digital pact and a digital pact 2.0 – promised in the coalition agreement. The Federal Ministry of Education had already declared this in the summer of 2023. Prof. Dr. Susanne Lin-Klitzing, who appeared in a panel discussion on the Digital Pact 2.0 following Streichert-Clivot's speech, called for interim financing for this. This, too, is now pending, along with a concrete timetable for the Digital Pact 2.0.
Education Minister Streichert-Clivot emphasized that we wanted to continue to rely on “clear statements” in the future and that the federal government stood by its promises, “because digital technology and infrastructure will have to be renewed and replaced at some point.” She explained that the first digital pact had triggered a surge in digitalization in schools. Participants in the discussion group also explained this, but some of the purchased technology is already obsolete. The cycles of innovation must be politically recognized and addressed with a Digital Pact 2.0.
Streichert-Clivot chose the following image in her speech: “It is not the blackboard that can possibly hang on the wall for centuries, but it is often digital boards and digital infrastructure that also change with the passage of time and new technical developments simply need to be replaced.”
What a Digital Pact 2.0 could look like and what needs to change compared to the Digital Pact for Schools will be discussed at the education conference. For example, there is a demand for a reduction in bureaucracy regarding the application process. It is also required that after the technology has been purchased, the focus must be placed more on the lessons to be designed – that is, depending on the school subjects, more attention should be paid to didactics in interaction with the technology. The “sustainable” purchase of hardware is also encouraged.
Digitalization is not an end in itself
The managing director of Bitkom, Dr. Bernhard Rohleder explained at the start of the conference that Bitkom has been committed to the topic of education and digitality since it was founded 25 years ago. It was directed against criticism that often hits the association. He said: “We are not interested in carrying out digitalization as an end in itself. Digitalization is always a means to an end. Digitalization must serve people and in particular serve young people, but also those who want to further develop and further their education, regardless of their age .”
Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) will deliver the closing words to the education conference on Thursday.
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