Reflection

Thirty years since the launch of Estonia’s Tiger Leap programme, we now have a broad range of learning environments, digital textbooks, educational apps, digital learning materials, learning-support services, digital study information systems and repositories. Collectively, these are often referred to as the digital learning ecosystem. But can we really call it that? When these tools are managed by different owners, hosted on different platforms, used by some teachers and students but not others – when everyone builds their own system or none at all – is it still an ecosystem? In teachers’ professional standards, the educational ecosystem is defined as a network of institutions, educators, learners and other individuals and organisations within a region, the relationships between them, and the resources available to its members. In the digital world, resources exist and are created, managed and used by people, but these actors often do not form a coherent network. The different applications, services and content rarely interact with one another. In this sense, we are still some way from a genuine ecosystem.

The main obstacle to building a digital learning ecosystem lies in the use of data within an increasingly restrictive legal environment. Can we influence the international policies that, as a member of the European Union, we are obliged to follow? People are becoming more aware and more sensitive, and laws often protect us pre-emptively against almost any use of data. Yet without data, no meaningful connections can be made between the components of the network; without those connections, we cannot know what works well and what does not in the digital domain. As a result, the world of digital solutions risks becoming a confusing patchwork of isolated elements in which neither teachers nor students have confidence.

To turn this confusion into a functioning ecosystem, three things are needed.

1. Clear rules that support development and smart solutions. The use of digital learning resources can only become truly smart if researchers, developers, teachers and learners are able to collect and use data systematically about the use and effectiveness of all digital tools, services and content. Such data makes it possible to determine which learning outcomes are achieved through which approaches. Regulations should not hinder the processing of data needed for innovation – on the contrary, they should facilitate it. Data can and should be anonymised, but it must remain connected. This is essential for a new Tiger Leap: Estonia can be a true innovator only if its rules enable smart, data-informed decisions while protecting people’s rights.
2. Fair compensation for contributors to the ecosystem. We already have a vast array of components to integrate into a digital learning ecosystem – some open-access, others commercial. For the ecosystem to function organically, there must be a system that ensures fair remuneration for those who create applications, services or content. Beyond financial incentives, social impact is also crucial – the opportunity to shape how learners perceive and understand the world.
3. Personal digital devices and internet access for every learner to reduce educational inequality. A digital learning ecosystem can function only if most learning takes place within it and leaves a digital record. Many countries are moving in the opposite direction, introducing national restrictions on students’ use of digital devices. Estonia, however, has the opportunity to lead by example – to show the world how to expand students’ digital autonomy while supporting collaborative learning, self-regulation skills and the assessment of not only academic achievement but also of learners’ mental, physical, social and emotional well-being.