This article focuses on the question of how young people in different educational settings can be methodically and didactically motivated to deal with digital capitalism. To this end, theoretical perspectives on digital capitalism, the positionality of (capitalism-)critical (political media) education and its seemingly apparent self-evidence are problematised in the first step. Next, “Critical Data Literacies – a practice-based research project on digital capitalism” is outlined. Its aim was to develop educational methods for interrogating different aspects of digital capitalism by fostering critical-aesthetic data literacies. The proposed methods have been tested with youth, students and educational professionals in Germany. Empirical results from the accompanying qualitative research are presented here to generate perspectives for comparable project contexts and deepening research.

In the last decade, debates on digitalization programs and on dynamics of datafication have become increasingly influential at universities. More recently, debates on the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) have begun, although corresponding questions about changing knowledge ecologies are currently underexplored in educational research. The processes of changing knowledge production are encountering relatively entrenched structures of knowledge organization and communication at universities, which are struggling to handle these new challenges. In this paper we use the historically-shaped university organization structures in three European countries as cases of analysis. Thus, first we give an overview of the concepts of knowledge ecology and knowledge diversity, followed by, second, a critical discussion of current trends in the digitalization and datafication of scientific knowledge production in education with examples from Italy, Austria and Germany, The choice of these different and highly complex scientific systems is justified by our experiences in these diverse contexts and corresponding academic affiliations. Third, we reflect on the implications of changing knowledge ecologies and knowledge diversity for the future of higher education.

The contemporary younger generation is facing a multitude of changes and adversities stemming from prevalent political, military, and pandemic crises that have garnered substantial attention in the media. In light of these circumstances, Media Literacy and critical thinking are paramount in navigating the influx of information and discerning veracity from misinformation. The rationale behind selecting this demographic as the focal point lies in the discernible trend wherein young individuals often peruse news content on their mobile devices with minimal contemplation, relying exclusively on social media platforms devoid of journalistic filtration. As delineated by various investigations, this juncture in their lives is pivotal to cultivating critical thinking skills. Such skills empower the youth to engage in autonomous thought processes, make informed decisions, and assess the repercussions of their actions. The contribution presents the outcomes of the interviews conducted in Italy, Spain, and Portugal within the project YO-MEDIA on Media Literacy in times of crisis, addressing the attention of educators, teachers, stakeholders, and journalists.

Todays’ teacher education needs to provide pre-service teachers with readiness to integrate ICT in education. Teacher educators are expected to serve as role models for pre-service teachers, providing them with examples and meaningful experiences of learning with ICT. The aim of this study is to provide an insight into teacher educators’ and pre-service teachers’ confidence toward using ICT in education. In this study, both groups assessed their Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK). The aim was to study the possible differences between teacher educators’ and pre-service teachers’ TPK assessments, and based on their assessments, to provide insights into teacher educators’ readiness to act as role models for pre-service teachers. The participants of the study were 123 pre-service teachers and 83 teacher educators. The results indicate that the assessments of teacher educators were higher than pre-service teachers’ assessments at the sample level. The results also indicate that pre-service teachers and teacher educators can both be divided into two aligning sub-groups, with higher and lower assessments. However, the comparison of these sub-groups showed that the assessments of the pre-service teachers in the higher sub-group were higher than with the assessments of the teacher educators in the lower (modest) sub-group. This study provides evidence for variation among teacher educators and pre-service teachers in terms of their TPK. This implies a need for more tailored ways to develop TPK in teacher education.

This study investigates the relationships between students’ psychosocial needs and their preferences for online vs. offline learning in a post-pandemic environment. A mixed-methods study was conducted at a higher education institution in Norway with 240 Bachelor students. Students in a post-covid learning environment value pedagogical forms of student-centered learning, through exploration and group reflection work. Second, students report a preference for limited amounts of online learning. Third, students express a significant need for social support, in the form of non-digital interaction with peers and teachers, and campus-based activities. Finally, while students prefer receiving feedback from peers in physical form, they are also positive toward receiving feedback in a digital form. These findings indicate that higher education institutions should carefully evaluate the amount of digital teaching offered to students, as such choices influence how and to what degree students are able to socially interact with peers and teachers, and their sense of belonging. More research is needed to understand the challenges associated with psychosocial health and well-being among students, and how this relates to online/offline forms of learning.

The pandemic had a considerable impact on youth work in Flanders, as many face-to-face activities had to shift online out of necessity. For many youth organizations, this was their first encounter with digital youth work, either online or in a blended format. Despite this recent boom in digital youth work practices, the concept is not new. It was first mentioned in the 2017 conclusions on smart youth work[1] by the Council of the European Union. Digital youth work is defined as using and discussing digital media/technology in different types of youth work situations, whilst still adhering to the goals, values, and principles of general youth work (Council of the European Union, 2019). While some Flemish youth work organizations focused specifically on digital media before COVID-19, the pandemic has accelerated the uptake of digital youth work. This paper examines the effects of COVID-19 on youth work in Flanders. It explores the challenges and opportunities, using the quick-scan-method to map relevant organizations. [1] “[I]mplementing smart youth work enables young people and youth workers to, based on existing experiences and seeking new connections and means, create innovative solutions (including digital solutions) for coping with both current problems and new challenges. Smart youth work activities are based on the needs of young people and youth workers, and take into account developments in society and technology, including globalisation, networking and e-solutions” (Schlümmer, 2018).

Research methods, including those of a quantitative nature, are an important part of preservice teacher training in Finland. However, quantitative research methods are considered challenging, often feared, and even hated among preservice teachers. This may be due to previous negative experiences and emotions associated with their use, which also influence other aspects of learning such as self-regulation, self-efficacy, and orientations. Given such circumstances, new ways to teach and support the learning of quantitative methods are needed. Here, we investigate the self-regulation, self-efficacy, orientations, and emotions of preservice teachers (N = 38) enrolled in a quantitative methods online course incorporating learning analytics and a flipped learning approach. Dispositional learning analytics data from five measurement points were used, and data were analyzed via descriptive statistics, internal consistency (Cronbach alpha), bootstrapped paired sample t-test (between first and final measurement point), and profiles based on mean. The results demonstrate that in this teaching context, preservice teachers’ time management skills can be improved, and task avoidance, anxiety, and boredom towards quantitative methods decreased. The meaning of these results from the teaching context perspective are also examined, as are the limitations and implications of this study.

The use of digital technologies is now a natural part of schoolwork in many schools. The use of digital technologies and the conditions for technology-enhanced learning and school development were studied in two schools, an upper-secondary school and a compulsory school, over a period of 3 years, exploring the student, teacher, school leader, and school perspectives. In this small study, two surveys (N = 26; N = 17) were used to provide further insights into the compulsory school, by exploring the parent perspective of a 1:1 laptop initiative. Laptop use in the classroom was seen as a potential pedagogical tool for structure and support in learning activities, student responsibility for schoolwork, and issues of digital equity. Challenges included increased laptop use, difficulties regarding insight into and monitoring of schoolwork and homework, students’ focus on schoolwork in the classroom environment, and physical aspects. The results show that the parent perspective provides important insights for teachers, school leaders, and school organizers that may help support students’ learning through the use of digital technologies in the classroom.

None of the papers presented here reflects on the Pandemic situation. In due time, journals will be filled with research papers on the effects and workings of the Pandemic for academics, students and organizations in higher education. One general theme will be if the changed contexts for teaching and learning we have seen in the time span from February/March 2020 until the present situation will throw significant light into how the future will be. In a report presented by the US organization EDUCAUSE, well before the pandemic, the following trends were foreshadowed:
 In the social domain, wellbeing and mental health, demographic changes and equity and fairness will be high on the agenda. In the technological domain, AI, new digital learning environment, and leaning analytics and privacy questions will cause concern. In the economic domain, cost, adjustment to the labour market and climate change will take foreground. In the political domain, decreasing funding, estimation of value of higher education and political polarization will need attention. Finally, the dynamics of higher education itself will influence our path to the future: changes in student population, alternative pathways to education and online education.
 None of these forecasts anticipated the demands of a rapidly evolving pandemic globally. The latter points of the list provided by EDUCAUSE have been the focus of this journal over the last 17 years. We have seen trends come and pass, and watched trends oscillate with the shifts of fashion. In our experience we see that global actors take over the market: Blackboard, Moodle and Canvas. ZOOM and Webex are winning similar positions and a host of add-ons and potentially brilliant contenders try to gain the same advantages. One example comes to mind: one software – no name mentioned – cost a Norwegian institution nkr 30 000 for a license for a studentbody of 40 000 – before the pandemic. After the pandemic, the price for a smaller institution with a studentbody of 15 000, has risen to nkr. 350 000. Another example: the realization of strict GDPR regulations in Europe hampers the use of software in significant ways. The main VLE/LMS-configurations are affected by the different GDPR-arrangements in US vs. other continent and states. The global market for educational software are seriously affected by the globalization and the escalating disharmonies in international collaboration. It does not help that some providers act like profiteers at this time and age.
 In this edition of our seventeenth volume we offer five articles. In the first, Marcia Håkansson Lindqvist of Mid Sweden University, contributes with an analysis of one Swedish one-to-one laptop initiative. Her take is on how parents conceive of this phenomenon. She describes how the initiative was a mixed blessing, and one sees easily its applicability to the present condition for most student. In the second paper, Rob Miles, of the United Arab Emirates University, has written the paper: “Identifying the contradictions in the technology enhanced language classroom”. It contains an account of a theoretically sophisticated – and highly critical research project in a region not often reported from in Northern academic journals. The paper questions the positive impact of a 1:1 laptop initiative in a context quite different from the Swedish example. Tor Jørgen Schjelde and Ingrid Nilsen Lie of Tromsø University, the Arctic University, present the third paper: “The impact of emotions on learning and motivation in producing and presenting digital stories.” Digital stories have been a strong interest for this journal over the years, and their paper opens new avenues of research into the role of emotional engagement in the production – and reception of digital stories. Three authors, Reidun Lied, Hanne Maria Bingen of VID specialized University and Simen A. Steindal of Lovisenberg Diaconal University College present the paper: “Collaborative Online Learning Using a Blended Learning Design for a Physiology Course in Nursing Education”. It describes an implementation of Salmon’s model for online collaborative learning in a blended learning context for part-time nursing students. Salmon’s model is widely used and is here contesting its applicability for this group of students. Last, Brita Bjørkelo of Norwegian Police University College/University of Bergen, Aslaug Grov Almås of Western Norway University of Applied Sciences and Ingrid Helleve of the University of Bergen present their joint paper: “Perceived adequate education in ethics:A way to tap into ethical Social Networking Sites awareness?”. It provides a very good argument for applied training in ethical issues in teacher training also will prepare them for counteracting illegitimate student use of Social Network Sites.


 This study investigates the objectives and competence aims in the digital competence curricula of two Nordic countries for compulsory education and an international framework, DIGCOMP. The main aim of the study is to analyze the visions and main features of the Norwegian and Swedish national curricula, and inspect the extent to which they align with the DIGCOMP framework. The results show that the underlying visions and objectives of the frameworks largely converge. However, there are large discrepancies between the national curricula and DIGCOMP regarding the structure, the content covered (e.g., competence aims) and the instructional aspects. The findings and their implications for researchers, policy makers and curriculum developers are discussed.