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In the digital age, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has enabled learning to happen everywhere, leading to a shift of schooling to the home field and strengthening parents' educational responsibilities. Meanwhile, it may also cause the digital divide and digital reproduction, thereby exacerbating educational inequality. Against this backdrop, this study focused on parental digital involvement in online learning and introduced an emerging concept, digital capital, to understand the differences in parental involvement across socio‐economic backgrounds at the three levels of the digital divide. Drawing from the analysis of 90 Chinese parents' self‐narrated data, this paper identified four types of parental digital involvement according to parents' digital competence and ICT acceptance, and the conversion processes of different forms of capital underlying parental digital involvement were also clarified. The findings from this study expanded the theoretical understanding of inherited cultural capital and social reproduction in online learning in the context of educational digitization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As other papers have made clear, government interest in Distance Education is high and rising. There is therefore an inevitability that it will play a much larger part in future decision-making. In writing about this subject, Séamus Ó Buachalla has the advantage of much experience and greater insight. He has been a teacher, an inspector in the Irish Government Education Service, and is now a Professor in the Department of Teacher Education of Trinity College, Dublin. In addition he has worked for the Ministry as a planner and, outside Ireland, has done consultancy work for Unesco, the Council of Europe and the European Cultural Foundation. With that sort of varied experience, who better to write an informed and well-researched .paper on this important topic. As other papers have made clear, government interest in Distance Education is high and rising. There is therefore an inevitability that it will play a much larger part in future decision-making. In writing about this subject, Séamus Ó Buachalla has the advantage of much experience and greater insight. He has been a teacher, an inspector in the Irish Government Education Service, and is now a Professor in the Department of Teacher Education of Trinity College, Dublin. In addition he has worked for the Ministry as a planner and, outside Ireland, has done consultancy work for Unesco, the Council of Europe and the European Cultural Foundation. With that sort of varied experience, who better to write an informed and well-researched .paper on this important topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It would not have been possible to have a set of papers on the subject of Distance Education without a contribution from the UK Open University. Peter Zorkoczy has worked there for many years and has a great depth of knowledge not only about the development of that institution but also about the subject of Distance Education as it has progressed in the wider European world. He has led teams of people working, first, to define the European Commission's DELTA programme and then to take part in aspects of its development. He has also played a major pan in setting up the technical and educational infrastructures of EuroPACE, the first European satellite education delivery system. Much of his paper describes real experiences in this latter organisation and acts as an excellent corollary to the paper of Jacques Bieber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To curb the spread of the COVID‐19 pandemic, the federal government and the federated entities of Belgium suspended all face‐to‐face learning starting 14 March, 2020. A continuity of learning was to be ensured by teachers through distance‐learning. However, teaching during the confinement period was complicated for teachers: the respect for policies and rules differs from one teacher to another and there has been a lack of follow‐up on online learning for some learners. The purpose of this article is to contribute to initial responses to the vast question of educational inequalities created and exacerbated during the crisis. More particularly, this article provides a situational analysis of some potential causes for inequalities in primary and secondary schools and identifies differences between the two education levels. Our analysis draws on responses from almost 500 teachers participating in a large‐scale survey in the French speaking Community of Belgium. The analysis focuses on teaching practices and observations made by teachers during the confinement period. Various factors contributing to inequalities are identified as well as differences between the two levels of education. Relevant factors include the technological equipment available to students, and the use of pedagogical practices such as differentiation and Remediation‐Consolidation‐Surpassing (RCS). After confinement, at the beginning of the 2020–2021 school year, teachers have faced more diverse classes, with learners who have experienced very different confinement situations. In light of our analysis of survey responses, we highlight the role of the technological equipment used by the teacher as a factor that increases inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internationalisation and globalisation are intertwined and complex phenomena that have attracted the interest of higher education scholars for several decades. This article offers some reflections on how research on internationalisation and globalisation has developed over the years and the perspectives that appear to have dominated these studies. A key argument is that while the field is, in many ways, booming—both in the numbers of publications and with respect to topics explored—whether substantial theoretical advances have been made is questionable. Many publications still tend to be quite descriptive with shallow observations, mostly on reporting national trends and political agendas. As internationalisation and globalisation undoubtedly continue to make an impact on higher education in the years to come, there is a need for a stronger theoretical basis, which can underpin future studies. The current article discusses potential future advancements enabling a more integrated, theoretical grounding for understanding and interpreting internationalisation and globalisation in the years to come. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Governments tend to have strong opinions about education, largely because education eats up a large proportion of their budget. They do not always, however, have the opportunity to express those opinions in reasoned terms in learned journals. Here is the exception. Nicholas Fox has been seconded from the UK Training Agency to the COMETT Technical Unit. He thus has experience both of national and international governmental operations and an almost unique insight into the ways in which government decisionmaking takes place and the reasons why certain programmes are accepted while others fail. In this paper he gives an overview of European Distance Education programmes, and uses examples in the UK and France to illustrate national strategies in that field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In asking Professor Börje Holmberg to write this keynote paper, I believe that I have found one of the most advanced thinkers and prolific writers in European Distance Education. Professor Holmberg has a wide and interesting background. He has been Director General of the prestigious Swedish Distance Education organisation, Hermods, and is currently Professor of the Methodology of Distance Education at the FernUniversität, Hagen in West Germany. He is internationally known, having consulted in most of the continents of the world, and is a Past President of the International Council for Distance Education. He has written several books on the subject, is a Knight both of the Swedish Order of Vasa and of the Finnish Order of the White Rose, and has Honorary Doctorates from the UK Open University and Deakin University in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since at least the 1990s, voices both inside and outside the academy have vigorously debated whether the university has the responsibility to educate students in ‘transferable skills’ in addition to disciplinary content. Lists of these skills often include critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and innovation, and, almost always, communication, this article's focus. I briefly review the debate on whether such skills should be a prominent part of the university curriculum, and specifically address one argument advanced by the critics—that these skills cannot be taught. I describe my experience teaching communication relying on research‐based practices and reflect on what it means to teach transferable skills in the digital age, as pedagogy changes and the university extends its reach. The article concludes with a recommendation to expand the teaching and learning of transferable skills and suggests how this can be accomplished. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents information on a study which analyzed lifelong learning in Spanish universities. Structure of higher education established by the University Reform Act in 1983; Accredited titles for students graduating from the courses; Distance education in the universities; Lifelong learning programs and courses in the universities.

Focuses on the problems associated with new learning environments in open and distance learning, based on the experience of the University of Oulu in Finland. Basic models; Concern over the use of advanced information and communication technology; Methods in creating an efficient learning environment.

Presents an historical overview of the development of university open and distance learning. Relationship between organization and the method of operation of university and the technology available for teaching and learning; Effect of technology on the future universities.

Focuses on the role of distance education in the reform of higher education in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Inherited structures of higher education; Relevance of reforms for distance education; Characteristics of higher education at different times in CEE.

Examines the implications of developments in telematics on university distance teaching in Europe. Background and growth of university open and distance learning (ODL); Applications of telematics in university distance teaching; Dichotomy of ODL and traditional teaching.