The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted global education like no other event in recent history. The sudden closure of educational institutions worldwide forced millions of students and teachers to adapt to a distance learning model that, in many cases, lacked proper planning and essential resources.
In this context, digital education emerged as an emergency solution, yet it also exposed its challenges and opportunities. In his article COVID-19 and digital distance education: pre-confinement, confinement and post-confinement, Lorenzo García Aretio offers a critical and reflective perspective on how distance education evolved throughout the different phases of the pandemic.
The author examines the pre-pandemic perceptions of distance education, which was often viewed with skepticism compared to traditional in-person learning. During confinement, remote teaching models were implemented that, while functional, were far from optimal and led to vastly different experiences among students and educators.
García Aretio highlights that this abrupt transition did not constitute a well-structured distance education system but rather an improvised response to the crisis. This led to technical, methodological, and pedagogical challenges that affected the quality of learning and reinforced pre-existing biases about the effectiveness of these models.
Finally, the article addresses the challenges of the post-pandemic era, where education will never be the same. The need for hybrid, flexible, and integrated models has become evident, as not all students will be able to return to full in-person learning. García Aretio proposes solutions centered on blended learning, technological integration, and the development of more equitable and sustainable strategies.
Through this analysis, the author not only documents an unprecedented moment in education but also invites us to rethink the future of learning in a post-pandemic world.
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How to cite: García Aretio, L. (2021). COVID-19 and digital distance education: pre-confinement, confinement and post-confinement. RIED. Revista Iberoamericana de Educación a Distancia, 24(1), 09–32. https://doi.org/10.5944/ried.24.1.28080