127

Virtual education: employment,

citizenship and teacher autonomy

César Silva Montes1

To reference this article / Cómo citar este artículo / Para citar

este artigo: Silva-Montes, C. (2024). Virtual education: employment,

citizenship and teacher autonomy. Revista UNIMAR, 42(2), 127-137.

https://doi.org/10.31948/ru.v42i2.3725

Received: November 9, 2023

Revised: April 1, 2024

Accepted: June 12, 2024

Abstract

In the context of the pandemic that has forced online teaching, two variables

are analyzed: training for employment and citizenship, and the impact of the use

of information and communication technologies (ICT) on teachers’ autonomy

and the effectiveness of their teaching. This article reflects on how to reconcile

training for employment and citizenship in a world where jobs are disappearing

due to the automation of production and the use of educational software in

the classroom. It is therefore necessary to prevent algorithms and computer

programs from replacing content and didactics, and not to fall into technological

determinism as a means of improving teaching. Thus, the aim of this paper is

to promote citizenship education and to reflect on the use of ICT as a means

and not as an end. The method of analysis is based on ethnography, as the

researcher is part of the study and records data through participant observation

in the daily life of the school. In addition, a detailed record of the observed

events was kept in a field diary.

Keywords: digital competencies; ICT; training; autonomy

1 Research professor, Department of Humanities, Autonomous University of Ciudad Juárez; member of the National System of

Researchers, Level I since 2010. Email address: cesilva@uacj.mx

The article is based on the participation in a refresher course for teachers on digital literacy, which was intensied as a result of the

COVID-19 pandemic; it is a continuation of the line of research on educational policies in the context of the so-called Education 4.0.

Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

128

Educación virtual: empleo, ciudadanía y autonomía

docente

Resumen

En el marco de la pandemia que obligó a impartir clases en línea, se analizaron

dos variables: la formación para el empleo y la ciudadanía, así como los

efectos del uso de las tecnologías de la información y la comunicación (TIC)

en la autonomía del docente y la eficacia de su enseñanza. En este artículo,

se reflexiona sobre cómo conciliar la formación para el trabajo y la ciudadanía

en un mundo en el que desaparecen empleos debido a la automatización

de la manufactura y la utilización del software educativo en la enseñanza.

Por lo tanto, existe la necesidad de evitar que los algoritmos y programas

de cómputo sustituyan los contenidos y la didáctica, así como no caer en el

determinismo tecnológico como medio para mejorar la enseñanza. Así las

cosas, a través de este escrito, se pretende promover la formación ciudadana

y reflexionar sobre el uso de las TIC como un medio y no como un fin. En

cuanto al método de análisis, se basó en la etnografía, ya que el investigador

es parte del estudio y registra los datos desde la observación participante en

la cotidianidad escolar. Además, se llevó a cabo un registro detallado de los

acontecimientos observados en un diario de campo.

Palabras clave: competencias digitales; TIC; formación; autonomía

Educação virtual: emprego, cidadania e autonomia

do professor

Resumo

No contexto da pandemia que forçou o ensino on-line, duas variáveis são

analisadas: a formação para o emprego e a cidadania e o impacto do uso

das tecnologias de informação e comunicação (TIC) na autonomia dos

professores e na eficácia de seu ensino. Este artigo reflete sobre como

conciliar o treinamento para o emprego e a cidadania em um mundo em que

os empregos estão desaparecendo devido à automação da produção e ao uso

de software educacional na sala de aula. Portanto, é necessário evitar que

algoritmos e programas de computador substituam o conteúdo e a didática,

e não cair no determinismo tecnológico como forma de melhorar o ensino.

Assim, o objetivo deste trabalho é promover a educação para a cidadania e

refletir sobre o uso das TIC como um meio e não como um fim. O método

de análise é baseado na etnografia, pois o pesquisador faz parte do estudo e

registra os dados por meio da observação participante no cotidiano da escola.

Além disso, um registro detalhado dos eventos observados foi mantido em

um diário de campo.

Palavras-chave: competências digitais; TIC; treinamento; autonomia

Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

Virtual education: employment, citizenship and teacher autonomy

129

César Silva Montes

Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

Introduction

Due to the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic,

schools had to move to online education in

order to continue students’ education. One

of the problems identified was the limited

training of teachers in the use of information

and communication technologies (ICT) to

assume their role as facilitators in a virtual

environment. Other difficulties related to the

lack of infrastructure for Internet connection

and the equipment needed to develop lessons.

In the case of students, they mentioned the

digital divide that marginalizes them from their

education and the scarce use of software to

support their learning, even though they are

considered digital natives. In view of this

situation, the need to promote the acquisition

of digital literacy in the teaching profession was

highlighted, since teachers are still considered

fundamental to providing meaningful and

quality teaching.

In the new scenario derived from the pandemic,

the virtues of ICT, educational software and

applications such as WhatsApp and Facebook,

which speed up the teaching-learning processes,

were emphasized. In this context, universities

were faced with the challenge of training unknown

skills and abilities; therefore, pedagogical

models and didactics would have to be innovated

with a deepening of the technologies used in

education. Thus, ICTs emerged as a means to

promote in students, among other things, the

ability to work in interdisciplinary teams, to

create and share information and educational

content in interactive and dynamic formats, and

to be active participants and protagonists of

their own learning. In the background is the so-

called knowledge society, to which schools must

respond with their demands for digital literacy.

It would be a teaching focused on service-

learning, with a socially committed teaching

staff that promotes the resilience of students in

vulnerable situations (Álvarez and Varela, 2021).

In this context, there is no doubt that the

digital age has changed everyday life, social

relations and the direction of the economy.

Higher education is required to train graduate

profiles according to the essential performance

in new technological jobs; in addition, with the

pandemic, online classes have been promoted.

The literature has highlighted the challenges

for universities. Although the context is almost

unprecedented, at least two constants remain:

the shaping of the workforce, now ‘digital’,

and the predominance of media and devices

for teaching, rather than content, teaching

didactics and students’ willingness to learn.

Thus, the governments propose as a panacea

the training of teachers to transmit to new

professionals the skills and values for the labor

market and the possibility of innovating their

practice thanks to ICT.

Regarding the task of teaching, there are already

robots that read stories, teach programming

and give English lessons to save teachers

(Silva, 2018). However, the idea remains that

teachers cannot be replaced because they have

social skills, solve problems, negotiate and are

creative. But, as Benhamou (2022) argues, AI is

a threat to skilled professions that offer higher

salaries thanks to their self-improvement to take

on complex and non-routine tasks. In order to

avoid an apocalyptic or science fictional stance,

the discussion of the necessary digital literacy

for employment will only present elements that

include teaching and some activities performed

by artificial intelligence (AI) in non-teaching

education, such as administering tests, checking

assignments, and taking attendance.

However, according to Sartori (1998), it is not

the instruments that are objected to, but their

contents and effects. For example, «Squarciafico,

a man of letters, was opposed to the number of

books that could be produced with the printing

press because it weakened memory and the

mind» (p. 30). If the printing press had been

destroyed, the Encyclopedia, the foundation of

the period known as the Enlightenment, would

not have been published. Something similar

is happening with the computer, which some

call the new sovereign because it unites word,

sound, and image, creating a virtual reality.

Finally, the author criticizes that images reduce

man’s capacity for symbolic and conceptual

abstraction. Without considering Sartori’s

position as an unquestionable truth, the visual

culture in the classroom is increasing; writing

is abandoned by taking a picture of the notes

on the blackboard, and with audiobooks, the

Virtual education: employment, citizenship and teacher autonomy

130

César Silva Montes

Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

student avoids reading. Although it is not the

objective, in practice the use of the projector

and the excess of videos in the classroom

contribute to the passivity of the students.

Therefore, the purpose of this article is to explore

and discuss the future of higher education, either

by prioritizing the response to the employment

needs of the digital age or by training for

citizenship. This is followed by a reflection on the

implications of the use of ICT and software for

teaching, based on computational predictability

and AI, in the context of the pandemic. It is

argued that sometimes it is not perceived

that the didactics of teachers are increasingly

dependent on programs that work faster and

more accurately when teaching online. In the

conclusions, it is expressed the possibilities that

training for work does not obscure the civic

profile of the new professionals. It also highlights

the importance of technology to support the

work of teachers and maintain their autonomy

in the face of algorithms.

Methodology

Ethnography was used to analyze the

widespread use of software in schools. In view

of the intensification of ICT use and the forced

migration to online teaching, it is appropriate

to ask, according to Erickson (1989): what

is happening here? The aim is to observe,

from a subjective point of view, a different

way of interpreting everyday events in order

to understand the meanings of educational

practices for the research subjects. Ethnography

is appropriate for the study of schools because

the empirical data come from natural settings,

recording events in field diaries from participant

observation and interactions between subjects;

moreover, it is characterized by the prolonged

presence of the researcher (Restrepo, 2018), in

this case in a Mexican university.

For Restrepo (2018), participant observation

represents the ‘Emic perspective’, that is, from

the inside, with the actor’s own view of aspects

of his or her social life. In this case, it involves

the close observation of daily events recorded

in field diaries. This interpretive approach

does not seek absolute truth, as subjectivity

is the basis for analysis (Bertely, 2001). The

transparency, objectivity and neutrality of the

researcher, which are assumed to validate the

scientific nature of a study, are replaced by the

ethical stance and political commitment of the

researcher to the situation under study.

Thus, the empirical part was collected while

attending refresher courses and workshops such

as Personal Learning Environment and E-4.0.

In the field diaries, daily events were recorded

and interpreted from a theoretical frame of

reference (Woods, 2002). This is an instrument

that describes in detail the events in the courses

and the formative practice that describes,

evaluates and explains the educational action

and the group process. The virtual discussion

forums made it possible to know the teachers’

opinion on the use of ICT.

In terms of theoretical development, we

searched Google Scholar for texts on the use

of educational software. The interpretation

considered the particular events - general

context of teaching practice in the face of ICT

and the economic, political and social demands of

the Fourth Industrial Revolution. For the analysis

of citizenship education and employment, the

documentary review was used.

Results

In the context of the pandemic, investment in

education is fundamental to reducing poverty,

strengthening social mobility, achieving decent

work and promoting economic growth in

countries. Another objective of schooling is to

promote the exercise of citizenship to combat

poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean

(United Nations, 2020), in the context of the

inequality and poor quality of education present

in the region’s educational systems. It is

therefore necessary to recover and transform

education in line with innovations in the world

of work (United Nations, 2020). If we consider

the increasing robotization, automation

and artificial intelligence in production, the

controversy about the loss or creation of jobs,

the improvement or intensification of work, the

increase in remuneration or the precariousness

of work opens up.

Virtual education: employment, citizenship and teacher autonomy

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Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

In this scenery, there is a tension between the

social perspective of education and the use of

technology to provide the right skills for the

digital society. According to Huepe et al. (2022),

the current uncertainty in the world is partly

generated by the digital revolution and the

fourth industrial revolution: «The labor market

of the future requires skills that are easily

transferable between jobs and occupations

and that respond to uncertainty and new

technological and environmental demands» (p.

81). Similarly, digital literacy is key: «there are

still unemployed people who have not been

technologically retrained» (Laje-Terán et al.,

2022, p. 342). Consequently, even if it is an art

school, today information literacy, born in the

seventies of the twentieth century, is imperative,

understood as the ability to identify what

information needs to be managed and analyzed

critically and efficiently (Espinoza-Salazar and

Tamariz-Nunjar, 2021).

Thus, achieving compatibility between training for

employment and citizenship requires questioning

the current socio-economic and political regime,

reflecting on whether the entrepreneurial profile

of graduates is compatible with the need to

build a more caring society in order to mitigate

the material inequalities of the population, and

reflecting on how to reconcile the demands of

the technological market with personal and

community development, according to Bernard

(2006), to understand that lifelong education

does not end in school, that school systems

should only focus on cost reduction, efficiency

and flexibility, which discourages certification

and public titles. So far, training for work is

prioritized, but it is advisable to maintain the

aspiration that teachers privilege training for

participatory citizenship and, as Roose (2021)

argues, the future involves not thinking about

keeping jobs, but opposing the control of the

mind and actions.

Benhamou (2022) presents some contrasts

with AI: increased productivity, opening of new

markets and jobs, innovation and elimination

of repetitive tasks. On the other hand, he

points to the dehumanization of interpersonal

relationships, greater fragmentation of work,

control of the collective of workers by algorithms,

and increased anxiety. He emphasizes: «It would

be a mistake to see these changes as inevitable;

they are collective choices» (p. 7). According to

Roose (2021), it is managers, not algorithms,

who can measure the productivity of workers

and decide whether to replace them with robots.

Thus, during the pandemic, the automation

of production and food delivery applications

increased. Although it is argued that technology

has always created more jobs than it destroys,

for Rifkin (2020), investment in green energy

and fuel disposal through the Internet of Things

and the smartphone will create millions of jobs;

the trend is to save human labor. Roose (2021)

says that for Aristotle, automatic looms could

reduce the demand for slaves; but in the 21st

century, one candidate promised every American

a thousand dollars to mitigate unemployment

caused by automation.

Concerns about technological unemployment

are therefore old and contradict the discourse

of providing the most routine tasks. With AI,

managerial positions, real estate agents and

lawyers, among others, are already disappearing.

This is the context of the higher education that

young people are attending, and yet there is an

insistence on the desirable civic education. It is

hoped that the new professionals will not only

focus on the labor market, but also contribute

to solving social problems, especially social

inequality, through their political participation.

According to Bernate and Fonseca (2022),

the training of a competent citizen to face

technological challenges and computational

thinking is a priority issue, in line with the

workforce in the digital era.

Some effects of the technology on the

teaching practice

In terms of teaching, based on empirical

references and texts, it is possible to establish

an acceptance of the modality and success

in learning during the virtual classes in the

framework of the pandemic. In conclusion, it is

highlighted that students were able to acquire new

skills, actively participate and enjoy the classes.

Among the applications preferred by them and

that optimized the teaching, we find WhatsApp

and Facebook, (instant communication social

networks that allowed immediate responses

at any time and improved relationships with

Virtual education: employment, citizenship and teacher autonomy

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César Silva Montes

Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

teachers), Symbaloo (management service and

links), Pearltrees (organization of content, notes

and images from the network), Cmap (concept

maps) and Canva (infographics).

Those who observe the integration of ICT in the

classroom do so from a linear vision, which is

summarized in the following idea: «Education

systems around the world face the challenge

of using technology to provide their students

with the tools and knowledge necessary for

everyday life in the 21st century» (Bernate and

Fonseca, 2023, p. 227). For example, Forero-

Corba and Negre-Bennasar (2024) observe

important advances in the use of ICT in the

classroom in relation to the Fourth Industrial

Revolution, although with few nuances. Among

them, Machine Learning (ML) or automatic

machine learning stands out, which develops

tasks typical of human beings, with implications

for academic performance, school dropout and

computational thinking.

In this sense, technological strategies and their

devices, if used effectively, help reduce the

educational gap and allow students to learn at

their own pace or personalize their path with

intelligent tutoring. Automated assessment can

adapt content and didactics according to each

student’s learning profile.

In a course at a university in northern Mexico

on E-4.0, in times of pandemic, there was a

consensus that technology allows professors

to maintain constant contact with students,

accompanying them in a synchronous or

asynchronous way through WhatsApp and the

Teams platform. Teachers felt that technology

could not be stopped and that ICTs, as a

didactic support, facilitated the abandonment

of traditional teaching methods. They also

emphasized that online work favors the updating

of knowledge, since it requires consulting

several sites and sources, including YouTube.

They affirmed that through Facebook, students

respond faster and lose their fear of computers;

they recognize their technological knowledge.

On the other hand, they shared didactic practices

such as disguising themselves to achieve greater

student participation without necessarily using

technology. They argued that people are like a

copy of how computers work. No one discussed

the possible loss of some of their own decisions

when delegating certain tasks to technological

programs. For Benasayag (2015), dealing

with information stored in machines develops

the brain less; moreover, computers are built

to repeat identical signals without requiring

understanding.

Discussion

According to the documentary review,

governments and technology advocates provide

extensive training for students. The context

is inescapable: «The application of intelligent

techniques in education is gaining ground at all

levels of education» (Forero-Corba and Negre-

Bennasar, 2024, p. 235). In this context, the

idea of civic education is relegated to predicting

favorable grades for students, balancing

their current performance, their potential for

success, identifying subjects for improvement,

and deciding on their professional future. Del

Campo et al. (2023) validate the application

of technology and student preparation and

its impact on the economy. Consequently, the

teaching of mathematics, physics, programming

and business skills has focused on brain

training and learning simulations based on

virtual reality and algorithms with machines

that process and analyze information to make

decisions like humans.

It is appropriate to demystify training for work

in the context of the knowledge society and now

in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Sacristán

(2013) reflects that texts about the knowledge

economy, ICT and the Internet are observed

with overflowing optimism in developed

countries, but knowledge has always been the

basis of all human activity; for example, Cro-

Magnon man knew how to make stone axes

and develop ways of life. Today, knowledge

is oriented towards production and profit;

therefore, a policy is needed to adapt schools to

the digital age, without neglecting the education

of citizenship, understood as the development

of subjects who critically analyze and participate

in the transformation of society. And, since it

is not easy to reconcile these two objectives,

vocational training is praised.

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Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

In this debate, the literature review suggests

reflecting on whether competence and

training with digital platforms and media and

their complementarity with the pedagogical

perspective is a fallacy. Pérez-Velasco (2023)

points out that there are technologies for

empowerment and participation that aim to

increase educational skills such as autonomy,

communication and teamwork. In addition, these

technologies facilitate understanding, motivate

students and encourage critical thinking in the

context of digital literacy, which can be seen as

a cultural invasion. On the other hand, the so-

called knowledge economy has evolved into a

behavioral economy based on user information.

It is a matter of finding nuances and dimensioning

the contributions of educational technology to

the training of professionals in citizenship and

the digital field.

Finally, the willingness of students to learn is

fundamental; if there is no interest, it is not

possible to educate. In the digital age, young

people are adept at using devices and software,

but they generally do not use them for learning,

but for entertainment. Perhaps this is why

they lack critical thinking and analytical skills

(Espinoza-Salazar and Tamariz-Nunjar, 2021).

The necessary technological teacher

training

The literature consulted and the trend in

universities are oriented towards the unavoidable

training of teachers in digital competences

to optimize their communication, research,

pedagogical and management skills. However,

Silva (2022) and Bernard (2006) state that

the training itself is produced by the person,

not from the outside or only in relation to the

market. The content and development of courses

and/or workshops should be designed from

the experience and specificity of the teaching

profession. Training should not be instrumental

or oriented only to the world of work, but

should be related to global processes and their

contradictions, understanding the political and

economic processes that determine the current

situation. The social commitment of teachers

can be strengthened when they are the subject

and not the object of their training.

Regarding the contrast between successes

and obstacles in the use of ICT, the teachers’

acceptance of updating computer programs and

the importance of using ICT in the classroom is

perceived. Currently, infographics and Canva are

used more for presentations, and Kahoot is used

to elaborate multiple-choice and opinion exams,

since it is more playful and allows to review

notes as if in a contest, which is considered

motivating (Martin, 2019). Alvarez and Varela

(2021) highlight the ICT of networking, the

inverted classroom and blended learning. In

this scenario, George et al. (2022) outline that

digital competence is an asset that 21st century

teachers must have and that they must become

digital humanists to be successful in their

work. The authors also include pedagogical

and communicative aspects, but the focus is

on technology management. Faced with these

arguments, Aguerrondo et al. (2006) had warned

against the extremes of ICT use: apology for

cognitive development and new ways of learning

versus apocalypse as depersonalization.

In contrast, there was stress, loss of contact with

the student body, and problems with vigilance.

The new responsibilities and demands resulting

from the pandemic increased the amount of

time teachers had to work in order to prepare

lessons, connect adequately, and follow up with

students in different formats. In particular,

teachers perceived a decrease in the conditions

for balancing domestic and pedagogical work.

For them, working hours in the classroom,

administrative and planning tasks, in addition

to unpaid care work, were intensified (United

Nations, 2020).

The Economic Commission for Latin America

and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the United Nations

Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

(UNESCO) and the United Nations Children’s

Fund (UNICEF) studied this aspect in six Latin

American countries between 2019 and 2020,

at the secondary level, pointing out that young

people, regardless of their living conditions,

show reluctance and lack of motivation towards

distance learning. Some of the reasons for this

attitude were the loss of the father’s job, fatigue

due to excessive time in front of the screen, and

the lack of support to understand some subjects

(Huepe et al., 2022).

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Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

In the case of Mexico, unlike Maureira-Cabrera

et al. (2020) and Suárez (2018), Villalpando

(2021) shows several difficulties: barriers to

socialization due to virtuality, problems with

teamwork (not turning on the cameras and not

knowing who is being trained) and disinterest in

interaction. Other difficulties relate to barriers

to connection, distraction of the student body

with social networks, performing other activities

during class and increased work time for class

preparation and monitoring the tasks performed

by the student body.

In an attempt to move away from the

contradictions between apologists and

apocalyptics, it is also not convenient to abandon

a critical view of ICT and AI in education, both

in production and in society. Consequently,

González (2018) postulates the analysis of

technological instrumentalization for social

control and rejects the displacement of the

human being in the act of thinking, designing

and preparing messages by computers. In

education, this means that teachers should not

depend on technology and be convinced that the

medium only has content when it is elaborated

by a person. With regard to ICT, Bernard (2006)

conceives it in the immediacy and as a position

to consume free time, rather than for silence,

reflection and analysis; he even gives it a more

commercial than academic function.

Teachers do not simply resist change because of

their skepticism about the use of ICT, but rather

they observe the effects on people’s autonomy.

More than the instrument, it is interesting to

reflect on its effects. Thus, it is appropriate to

recall Fromm (1992), who alluded to humanized

technology, stating that man is not just another

cog in the machine, but an algorithm. He pointed

out that the first industrial revolution replaced

human and animal energy with mechanics,

and the second replaced human thought. He

also warned against prioritizing consumption,

production efficiency, and the certainty of

computer predictability that disregards human

judgment, emotion, and choice. More recently,

Sadin (2020) commented on new technologies,

pointing out that truths are expected from

automated interpretation, with algorithms that

diminish the ability to make judgments.

Laje-Terán et al. (2022) argue that it is up to

teachers to overcome digital illiteracy so that the

virtual classroom promotes reflective thinking,

interactivity and their work as tutors; they

believe that they should be trained to improve

their personal development, increase their

productivity and be more diligent in their work,

since students, observing these difficulties and

shortcomings in the use of ICTs, express dislike

for the didactics of teaching and lack of motivation

for online sessions; they believe that training

would help teachers to apply technological tools

and innovate in the teaching-learning process.

The pandemic has shown that online learning is

here to stay because of its strength with ICTs

(García and Ponce, 2021).

Conclusions

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which

forced schools to implement online classes,

two key aspects were discussed: the formative

demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution to

be taught by teachers, and the impact of the

use of ICT on the didactic autonomy of teachers,

where the tools seem to generate learning.

Thus, technology has been proposed as a tool

for social change and as a builder of critical

digital citizenship. There are nuances between

the two existing poles, but the option of

technological demands still prevails. It is not

denied that political and cultural challenges

underlie the impact of technologies on

knowledge, society, economy and work (Nieto,

2020). There is no opposition to training for

digital work, but rather a debate on the space

to build a subject with a critical perspective on

the world around him/her.

It is essential to understand that technology

for teaching has several dimensions: from

its support to improve learning and student

autonomy, to how to respond to the saturation of

stimuli from notifications on social networks and

video games, which cause a detrimental effect

on the capacity of comprehension and attention.

The aim is not to diminish the progress made

in university teaching, but to present nuances

and other points of view to analyze the future

of student education as a subject with a civic

mindset and digital skills.

Virtual education: employment, citizenship and teacher autonomy

135

César Silva Montes

Revista Unimar Julio-Diciembre 2024

e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar

Rev. Unimar Vol. 42 No. 2 pp. 127-137

With regard to the application of ICT in the

classroom, it is insisted that teachers must be

convinced that it is they who must maintain

their autonomy, didactic capacity and decision-

making in teaching. Animated sequences are

not enough for students to learn more. Teaching

involves affective and deliberative judgments

in uncertain situations that cannot be found in

any computer manual. The use of technology is

not opposed, but the vision of the learner as an

empty vessel is abandoned in order to fill it with

knowledge that is only repeated and memorized.

We do not deny the use of ICT by teachers to

teach, nor do we reject automated evaluation or

intelligent tutorials that replace some assigned

tasks, since they are means to increase the

autonomy and creativity of teachers in terms

of content and media, and to establish more

flexible relationships in the classroom, both in

face-to-face and virtual modalities; we argue

that ICT and virtual teaching do not define the

results of teaching, but rather the pedagogical

approaches, content and social perspective

of the teacher. It is not a matter of falling

into extremes, but of determining what, why

and for what purpose to use technology and

educational commitments. It is important to

be convinced that machines still require human

action to function, and that in the classroom,

decisions are based on moral judgments, not

on predictive computing.

Conflict of interest

The author of this article declares that he has

no conicts of interest with the work presented.

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Contribution

The author prepared, read and approved the

manuscript.