After 30 years on the Internet, it is quite obvious that digitization is one of the megatrends. With this world in mind, Jesuit schools are addressing the issue of digitisation to make pupils fit for the future.

It is quite obvious that digitization is one of the social megatrends today. How exactly our society will change and what the future of today's pupils will really look like remains not clear. However, it seems clear that digital networking and communication possibilities will continue to increase, that the Internet will continue to gain in importance (Internet of Things, IoT) and that in the not too distant future occupations will be needed that we do not yet know today what they are called.

With regard to this future world, some Jesuit schools are currently implementing the project "Digital Leadership Education" together with the Centre for Ignatian Pedagogy (ZIP). The aim of this project is to take up the challenges of digitalization and at the same time - in the tradition of Ignatian pedagogy - to strengthen the personality of pupils. Young people should be empowered to play an active role in social discussions about the role of digitization in our lives. In other words, it is about personal development for the digital future.

What does that mean in concrete terms? In the first workshops, school-relevant areas were identified and correspondingly three sub-projects were formulated in which the project wants to start: (1) The use of learning tools and levels of reflection, (2) the networked design of teaching situations and (3) artificial intelligence and robotics. The approaches in these subprojects will be described in more detail below.

The use of learning tools and levels of reflection

In some subjects, the use of digital learning tools can support teaching. In the "Bettermarks" programme, for example, learners are given additional tasks in the subject of mathematics, with supportive explanations of possible solutions, and the teacher can individually monitor the learning progress of individual pupils. The "Navigium" program, which can be used in Latin for vocabulary learning and grammar exercises, works according to a similar principle. The use of these programs enables, in addition to the direct benefit, various levels of reflection such as questions about motivation and independence as well as the role of an "omniscient teacher".

The networked design of teaching situations

This subproject deals with the effects of digitisation on teaching methods. Specifically, some selected subjects will be taught according to the "Flipped Classroom" method. Here the learning sequence is shifted before the actual teaching time by pupils watching learning videos or other digital materials to prepare for the lesson and editing them at their own pace. In the classical classroom, the teacher then increasingly assumes the role of a coach. The critical handling of digital content as well as the creation of such content is the focus of this subproject.

Artificial Intelligence and Robotics

The developing of robots related to artificial intelligence will change many areas of our society, such as self-controlling vehicles and care support systems, to name just two. In the discussion with Lego Mindstorms, the structure and functionality of robots should become clear and their social effects reflected.

Experiences from workshops with different teaching staffs show that digitization actually affects all subject areas of a school in very different ways. A first central question is the handling of data, which can also be addressed in a subject such as sports by means of so-called fitness apps, which comprehensively collect the performance and other personal data of a user. The second central question on which the schools want to work together across the board is how prevention work can wisely and comprehensively take up the digital challenge and enable good cooperation at schools even in the age of omnipresent smartphones.

Author: Kai Stenull

Deputy Director Education of the Heinrich Pesch House, Master of Political Science and Eastern European History, Focus: Political youth education, economic and social ethics

Picture: Christian Modemann SJ in a classroom oft he Aloisiuskolleg Bonn-Bad Godesberg.