In a statement prepared for a consultation of the European Commission on the topic, CESI expressively supports the initiatve but highlights that:

1. In education, teaching in digital technologies should be further expanded – but curricula for students must not be emptied of subjects that help them become responsible citizens of tomorrow, such as history, politics and ethics. In a world were political apathy is in many places substantial and liberal democracies often increasingly threatened, the formation of socially engaged and responsible, cosmopolitan, open-minded citizenry is crucial.
2. In employment, it is vital that employers – enterprises and public service providers alike – further recognise the importance of digital skills provision for the workforce. Digital skills help employees become more productive and allow them to develop professionally, and they allow companies to successfully manage inevitable digital transitions. It is an investment that pays off. As such, training opportunities in digital skills should be further fostered and encouraged by employers, and the provision of digital skills should take place in principle during paid working time.
3. In both education and employment, up-to-date teaching and training in digital technologies requires well-trained teachers. In particular, successful digital education and training necessitates that teachers are constantly trained and upskilled in relevant digital pedagogy and teaching methods. Face-to-face teaching methods which teachers acquired during their initial formation cannot be mapped one-to-one to new digital contexts. Their effective training and further training is a prerequisite for their ability to successfully teach pupils, students, and workers. Teachers must receive high-quality basic digital training and they must have opportunities to perfect their digital skills during the course of their careers.
4. Furthermore, for digital education to function, the provision of digital equipment for students and schools is just as important to close digital gaps as is the provision of digital equipment for teachers, which should not be neglected. Too often, teachers still have to chip in digital equipment for teaching from their private resources.
5. Moreover, generally, employment and working conditions for teaching must improve in many Member States in order to attract, recruit and retain more talented young persons into this occupational field and to counter widespread teacher shortages. This is especially true for the areas of VET, lifelong learning, and the education of adults. Several Member States still see abusive uses of precarious consecutive fixed-term work contracts for teachers that expire every year during the summer vacation time so that no wages and social security coverage needs to be paid during this time.

CESI Secretary General Klaus Heeger said: “Teaching is too often still not a profession that enjoys a high social standing in the eyes of a majority of the population. Its low prestige frustrates the recruiting and retaining teachers in both rich and poor countries. Teaching is a highly valuable profession, and guaranteeing teachers decent salaries and improving their working conditions on all levels of the educational system is of central importance. With regards to this major responsibility, education professionals must enjoy high-quality working conditions. Their work and contribution to society must be adequately valued and recognised, and this notion should also be reflected in the European Commission’s very useful and timely iniative on an improved provision of digital skills and training.”

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