ABSTRACT
Education might seem an obvious area where digital technology can be a major enabler of sustainable development. Nevertheless, this chapter contends that while there has been a steady digitization of education since the 1980s, this has not led to substantial “transformations” or “disruptions” of education systems. Indeed, efforts to digitize education over the past few decades have been accompanied by a recurrent techno-solutionism. Critically, this chapter focuses on how this pattern is continuing into the 2020s, with a renewed faith in digital technology as a force for sustainable development in education, and meeting the SDGs. Yet, while digital technologies are being presented as a ready means of addressing key challenges in terms of social, economic, political, and environmental sustainability, this chapter contends that such techno-solutionism persists primarily as a means for governments, education authorities, and other stakeholders to be seen to respond to sustainable development imperatives. In contrast, it seems unlikely that these digital education developments will actually result in notably improved outcomes in terms of education and sustainable development. Moreover, in anticipation of increasingly climate-constrained futures, it could be argued that the application of digital technologies in education needs to be radically reconsidered along scaled-back, slowed-down, environmentally sensitive lines. Against this background, this chapter considers the need for educators to now consider alternate approaches to technology adoption and implementation, and work toward re-imagining more sustainable future forms of digital education.
