The great social inequalities that were formed for a number of years in our societies, were revealed during the three years of the pandemic that passed and which gave an educational lead through the Internet, mainly to the economically privileged groups of the population.
It is now clear that the new "digital age" that arose with the onset of the pandemic Covid-19, made even more urgent the need to improve and upgrade the digital abilities and skills of citizens to cope with the new demands and new data of the labor market. But this is not always self-evident.
Especially in our country, the image of great social contradictions is recorded, which reveals the parallel, with the above, need for direct political and social interventions. This picture, as well as the analysis that refers to the data concerning our country, is presented once again by a new study recently completed by the Center for Educational Policy Development of GSEE entitled "Adults and lifelong learning programs during the pandemic: the challenge of digital skills ".
As it is mentioned, the new reality formed by the pandemic crisis, was the trigger for the investigation of a series of questions such as which sections of the population were able to take advantage of the "digital classes" of the Internet, how the economically active population reacted. in the challenge of lifelong learning during the pandemic, what is the degree of active participation of the population in programs and educational activities, what are the main characteristics and what are the trends in the economic, social and cultural level.
As it emerged from the research and according to its conclusions:
- The biggest inequalities are recorded in our country between people with different levels of education. The higher the level of education, the higher the participation rate in online educational activities. Specifically, in 2020 in Greece 27% of people with a high level of education carried out some learning activity online, while the corresponding percentage of people with a medium level of education is significantly lower (6%) and those with a low level of education, almost negligible (just 1%). In fact, compared to 2019, the "gap" between people with high level of education and those with low level increased significantly, with the former recording an increase of 58,8% (from 17% in 2019) and the latter remain at the low level of 1%.
- Employees (employees, self-employed, family business assistants), in contrast to the unemployed and the non-economically active, show a higher percentage of participation in educational activities via the Internet. Specifically, the percentage of employees who carried out an online learning activity in 2020 is 16%, a rate 8 times that of the non-economically active (only 2%) but also significantly higher than that of the unemployed (9%). Compared to 2019, the category of unemployed marked a significant increase in the index (by 80%), reducing to some extent their deviation from the corresponding percentage of employed.
- The higher the household income, the higher the participation rate in online educational activities. Specifically, in 2020, 1 in 4 people belonging to the highest income category carried out an online learning activity, while the corresponding percentage in the lowest income category is only 7%. In fact, compared to 2019, the disparities between the income groups have widened, since the people of the highest income group more than doubled their percentage (increase by 136,4%), while the increase in the lower income category was 40% .
- People living in urban areas also show higher rates of participation in online educational activities. In 2020, about 1 in 5 people living in urban areas carried out some learning activity online, followed by the population of semi-urban areas with a small difference with a participation rate of 16%, while the corresponding percentage in rural areas is much lower (10%) . On the positive side, the population of rural areas of the country more than doubled its participation in online educational activities compared to 2019 (increase by 150%), helping to some extent to reduce their deviation from those living in urban areas. (increase of the category by 90%).
- The older the age group, the lower the participation rate in online educational activities, with the younger ones (25-34 years old) recording a 3fold participation rate compared to the older ones (55-64 years old), 18% and 6% respectively for in the year 2020. Compared to 2019, the highest growth rate is recorded in the age group 35-44 years, which has doubled its participation in online educational activities, from 7% in 2019 to 14% in 2020, significantly reducing the its deviation from the younger age group 25-34 years.
- Gender segregation is small, with men surpassing women by 2020 percentage point in 1 in terms of participation in online educational activities. In fact, compared to 2019, the gender gap has narrowed, especially due to the significant increase in the price index of women (by 71,4%).
However, according to the latest survey data, 92% of EU households have access to the internet from home, while only 2% of businesses in Europe do not have an internet connection.
Adult education
The GSEE survey data also record data on the participation rates of adults in education and training programs, which remain low throughout the decade 2010-2020, although the European agenda since 2010 has set a specific measurable goal for lifelong learning. Specifically, in Greece, based on the official monitoring index, the percentage of adult participation in education and training programs is around 4% in the decade 2010-20, a price that is far from the set goal but also from the European average, the which in 2020 has reached 9,2%.
A significant decrease in the European average in this area is recorded in 2020 (decrease by 14,8%), which is most likely related to the impact of the pandemic Covid-19 in the participation of adults in lifelong learning programs. In Greece, of course, no corresponding trend has been recorded, since in 2020, based on this index, the percentage of adult participation in education and training programs is around stable levels with the previous year, recording a marginal increase of 5,1%, from 3,9 , 2019% in 4,1 to XNUMX%.
However, as stated in the same report, in the EU as a whole the goal of increasing adult participation in education and training to 15% has not only not been achieved, but continues to be a factor of great differences between EU Member States. .
In this scenario, Greece occupies one of the lowest positions in the ranking: 22nd among the 27 member states in 2020, with a participation rate of 4,1%. Among the Member States that have achieved this goal, with participation rates in lifelong learning (greater than 20%), are the Nordic countries (Sweden, Finland, Denmark), but also the Netherlands, along with Estonia and Luxembourg prices are higher than 15%.
The impact of the pandemic is of course reflected in the majority of Member States, since in 2020 in 24 of them, the percentage of adult participation in lifelong learning programs decreases compared to 2019. The exception is Greece along with Lithuania and Spain , with a marginal increase in their (but otherwise low) participation rate in 2020.
Although the increase in Greece in the last reference year is the 4th largest among the 26 EU, the country still occupies a very low position (24th) in the ranking. In the EU the trend of this index is increasing from 2017 onwards, while in the last year an increase of 25% is recorded, with the percentage of participation in educational activities online reaching 25% in the whole of Europe of 27, a percentage of twice of Greece. Among the countries with the highest rates of participation in online learning programs are, as expected, countries with high rates of participation in lifelong learning as a whole (Denmark, Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Estonia).
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