Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Economics and Social Sciences (2024), ISSN 2704-6524, pp.

877-889

The 7th International Conference on Economics and Social Sciences

Exploring Global Perspectives:
The Future of Economics and Social Sciences
June 13-14, 2024
Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Romania

Building Digital Skills through Digitalisation of Education

Sorin NASTASIA1, Nicolae MOROIANU2 ,
Alexandra CONSTANTIN3*, Cristian STANA4
DOI: 10.24818/ICESS/2024/077
Abstract
Under the impact of today’s digitally driven world, digital skills integration into
education becomes essential for equipping learners with the competencies mandatory for
success in the 21st century. This paper investigates the transformative capability of
digitalisation in education and intends to explain its impact on the development of digital
literacy and digital skills among Gen Z. The current scientific literature highlights the crucial
role of digital skills in fostering employability, promoting innovation, and driving social
progress. However, there remains a significant gap in understanding how digitalisation
proposals within education affect skill acquisition, educational equity, and broader societal
implications. This research paper applies a powerful mixed-method research technique and
blends qualitative analysis - through study and analysis of field literature and European-
level reports - with quantitative analysis of statistical data. The research question that
governs this investigation aims at examining discrepancies in access and use of digital
resources across various demographic groups. The main results of this investigation uncover
a complicated relationship between digitalisation and skills development across EU-27.
While cyber technologies provide many opportunities for customised learning and
collaboration, gaps still persist and exacerbate already existing inequalities. Additionally,
this paper identifies the need for extensive educational methodologies that ensure a
harmonious incorporation of digital tools into educational curricula. Consequently, this
paper is instrumental to the field of knowledge because it provides a broad analysis of the
digitalisation of education and links theoretical judgements with empirical evidence. Finally,
this research is disclosing the challenges and opportunities inherent in the development of
digital skills, which present eloquent insights for policymakers, professors, and researchers
determined to channel the full potential of digital technologies in education.

Keywords: digitalisation, education, digital skills, digital literacy, Gen Z.

1 Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, Illinois, USA, [email protected].

2 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, [email protected].
3 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, [email protected].
* Corresponding author.
4 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, [email protected].

© 2024 S. Nastasia, N. Moroianu, A. Constantin, C. Stana, published by Editura ASE. This work is licensed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
 Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Economics and Social Sciences (2024), ISSN 2704-6524, pp. 877-889

JEL Classification: I24, I25, J24, O33.

1. Introduction
In order to adapt the public education sector to the growing demands of the labour
market, structured and coherent digital competencies acquisition becomes
mandatory no matter the age or the demographic area. Moreover, the progressive
shift of the majority of economic activities to virtual platforms mainly integrating
artificial intelligence solutions has become fundamental for increasing productivity,
which only highlights the growing emphasis on developing skills fundamental to
human nature, abilities that autonomous systems cannot fully replicate (Kolade &
Owoseni, 2022).
Recent findings in the field of educational sciences (Cropley, 2019; Sipică &
Toma, 2022; Akimov et al., 2023) have led to a better understanding of critical
elements of the foundational skills necessary for students to become adequately
equipped for Industry 5.0. These elements include critical thinking, the ability to
generate pertinent and original content, collaborative teamwork, effective
communication, innovation, and flexibility in integrating web-based tools into
educational practices.
Furthermore, the global closure of educational institutions forced public
education systems all over the world to suddenly embrace and make use of e-learning
platforms (Michigan, 2020; Tam & El-Azar, 2020), while students, despite being
digital natives, have had to adapt to utilising digital tools for learning instead of just
socialising (Botnariuc et al., 2020). Consequently, the recent pandemic generated the
main objective to quickly transition all learning activities to online environments,
with digital technologies having accelerated a fundamental restructuring of the
traditional educational landscape, forcing educators to adopt individualised
methodologies and strategies (Ceobanu et al., 2022).
Taking into consideration all recent technological advancements, it becomes
obvious that the incorporation of Internet-based technologies into education is not
simply advantageous but also imperative for guaranteeing the relevance and
effectiveness of educational practices in the digital era. Failure to adopt digitalisation
might leave both educators and learners poorly prepared for the rising demands of
Industry 5.0, thus compromising the education’s ability to facilitate meaningful
labour force integration and societal evolution.

2. Problem Statement
Literature review shows that most research on digital education has focused on
the effects of online learning on both teachers and students. Early findings of Prensky
(2001) led to the classification of students born after 1994 as digital natives, mainly
because these persons are surrounded from a very early age by a plethora of
electronic devices such as computers, tablets, video game consoles, and mobile
phones. According to this definition, on the opposite end are those individuals who

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have acquired the competencies necessary to use electronic devices later in their
lives, referred to as digital immigrants.
The work of several authors (Taylor & Ferrari, 2012; Schwab, 2016; Werfhorst
et al., 2022) focused on conceptualising digital competencies, and they all agreed on
a three-dimensional profile of these abilities that encompass ICT, information, and
media literacy. The rapid advancement of digital education led to a more
comprehensive perspective on the concept of digital skills, characterised by other
scholars (Cropley, 2019; Sipică & Toma, 2022; Akimov et al., 2023) as having five
dimensions more clearly defined: analytical reasoning, cooperative teamwork,
proficient communication, inventive thinking, and adaptability with online tools.
According to the European Commission’s Digital Education Action Plan
2021-2027, the digital skills are characterised by six dimensions: ICT proficiency;
information, data, and media literacies; digital learning and self-development;
communication, collaboration, and participation; digital creation, innovation, and
scholarship; and digital identity and well-being (Figure 1).
Figure 1. The six dimensions of digital skills

Source: adapted from European Commission’s Digital

Education Action Plan 2021-2027 (2020).

The focus of the European Commission’s attention is on two strategic priorities:

fostering the development of a high-performing digital education ecosystem and
enhancing digital skills and competencies for digital transformation (European
Commission, 2020).
Moreover, increased efficiency in teaching all disciplines through incorporating
technology has already been highlighted in previous studies within the field of
educational sciences (Drăgan, 2019; Ţiţan et al., 2020). Other authors (Gui et al.,
2023) emphasise the importance of integrating digital skills into instructional
activities, which have the potential to positively influence students’ behaviour by
fostering healthy digital content consumption habits.
Furthermore, other recent studies on the integration of artificial intelligence (AI)
systems into the instructional process note the significant contribution of these
artificial language models to the enhancement of deep cognitive processes,

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metacognitive processes, and collaborative learning skills (Gennari et al., 2023;

Iku-Silan et al., 2023).
Although numerous previous studies determined the positive correlation between
digital technologies use and the level of digital skills acquired, the findings of Sailer
et al. (2021) and Fütterer et al. (2023) conclude that the main factor that determines
the use of electronic equipment in the classroom is the level of digital competencies
manifested by the educators. Therefore, the integration of digital resources into
teaching can only be achieved by providing teachers with training courses and
formal instruction in order to acquire both digital skills and practical solutions for
implementing digital applications under optimal conditions (Botnariuc et al., 2020;
Zhang et al., 2023).

3. Research Questions / Aims of the Research

The main aim of this paper is to thoroughly investigate the associated disparities
in the access and use of digital technologies among diverse demographic groups,
with an accent on Gen Z. The methodology involves a complex mixed-method
approach with the purpose of accomplishing its primary objective. Consequently,
this research aims to identify and analyse the extent of inequalities in access and use
of digital resources among different European countries. In order to operationalise
the research problem, the following research question govern the present endeavour:
RQ 1: What are the disparities in accessing and using digital resources across
various demographic groups?
The answer to this research question will shed light on the disparities in digital
skills development and offer the opportunity for personalised strategies to be
implemented in order to address not only the lack of access to digital resource
accessibility but also the absence of digital skill acquisition by vulnerable
demographic segments.

4. Research Methods
The methodological approach used by this research encompasses both qualitative
and quantitative methods in order to provide a comprehensive understanding of the
phenomena of the digitalisation of education. From a qualitative point of view, this
paper scrutinises the scientific literature in the field of digitalisation of education and
examines scholarly articles and books, but also the legislative framework, having the
goal of gaining a clear picture of the complexities of digitalisation strategies and
their impact on digital skill acquisition. Additionally, the qualitative dimension of
this study is based on the analysis of documents and reports published at the
European level, offering key insights on digitalisation trends and policies across
the EU member states.
Next, the research methodology uses a quantitative perspective based on rigorous
statistical analysis, which helps providing valuable empirical evidence to support its
findings. With the means of systematic data collection and processing, this study
aims to quantify the effectiveness of digitalisation strategies in promoting digital

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skill acquisition across different demographic areas and groups. Furthermore, the use
of the quantitative analysis enables the quantification of disparities in the access to
and use of online equipment.

5. Findings: How Digitalised are the Digital Natives?

Figure 2 shows that the average percentage of adults who reported using the
Internet on a daily basis was 84%, while the share of young people increased to 96%.
Furthermore, the percentage of young people (aged 16 to 29 years) from all the
EU 27 countries who reported using the Internet every day started at 94% and many
countries almost reached 100%.

Figure 2. Young people who used the Internet on a daily basis in 2022
(aged 16-29 years, %)

Source: Eurostat database.

Not surprisingly, the share of adult population that reported using the Internet
on a daily basis is lower than the share of young people, but still jumps over 70%
(Bosnia and Herzegovina). If the average difference between these two groups is
12% among EU member states, the highest gap (21%) is in Croatia and Greece,
followed by Portugal and Bulgaria with a difference of 19 pp., and by Poland and
Romania with 18 pp.
Nonetheless, data from Figure 2 demonstrates that the most digitalised countries
with the lowest digital gap are the Netherlands (2pp) and Sweden (2pp), followed by
Denmark (5pp) and Finland (5pp).
Taking into consideration that young people’s favourite online activity was
participation in social networking in 2022, it is noteworthy to mention that on
average 84% of youngsters from EU-27 preferred to create a social media profile
and engage in chatting activities. Figure 3 provides an overview of the data from all
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EU-27 countries with regards to the share of young people versus adult population
accessing social networking sites in 2022.
On one hand, Figure 3 illustrates that the lowest social media participation
among both young people (70%) and the adult population (44%) is scored by France.
For this reason, the digital gap from France is slightly higher (26pp) than the
European average of 25 percentage points. In Eastern Europe, Romania surpasses
the average EU level for both groups, with 88% of the young people using social
networking platforms compared to 83%, and 68% of the adult population using
social media sites compared to 58%. Consequently, the digital gap in Romania
(20pp) was lower than the EU average (25pp), suggesting a decreasing trend in the
digital divide from Romania.

Figure 3. Young people who accessed social networking sites in 2022

(aged 16-29 years, %)

Source: Eurostat database.

On the other hand, Figure 3 shows that Denmark has the lowest level of digital
divide (11%) among EU-27, while other Schengen area countries such as Norway
and Iceland have almost eradicated their level of digital gap.
Next, Figure 4 illustrates the profound impact of the Internet and associated
digital competencies on our daily lives. Hence, the increasing trend of educational
activities that have transitioned to online environments in 2022 represents an evident
proof of the relevance of digitalisation of education nowadays. Throughout all
EU member states, the younger population reveals a higher likelihood for enrolling
to online courses compared to the adult age group. This gap is predominantly
pronounced with intervals as wide as 24 pp in Finland and Greece, followed by
Bulgaria with 22 pp, and Cyprus with 21 pp. In contrast, Sweden shows no
discernible gap between age groups, while Denmark and Poland mark a gap of 2 pp.

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Figure 4. Young people who used the Internet for doing an online course in 2022
(aged 16-29 years, %)

Source: Eurostat database.

As it can be observed in Figure 4, the biggest share of young people who used
the Internet for educational purposes in 2022 is scored by Finland and the
Netherlands (both 55%). On the other hand, in Romania and Poland only 11% of the
individuals aged 16-29 years old made use of the Internet for taking an online
course, compared to the EU average of 28%. While benefiting from the online
environment advantages, it is extremely important to take into account and address
online safety concerns, but also to critically assess the reliability and integrity of
sites, information, and content.
Irrespective of the major Internet usage statistics within young persons, Figure 5
proves that just one third (36%) of the European youngest population directly
engaged in validating online information in 2021 (latest data availability).
Remarkably, Figure 5 demonstrates that only five European countries indicated
rates above 50% for young persons aged 16-29 years that engaged in truth
verification of digital media content: the Netherlands, Ireland, Luxembourg,
Finland, and Sweden.
Conversely, the lowest rates were recorded in Cyprus (18%), followed by
Romania (21%), and Lithuania (22%). In addition, Romania (14%) and Lithuania
(12%) stated the lowest share of adults who verified online information.

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Figure 5. Young people who have verified the information found online in 2021
(aged 16-29 years, %)

Source: Eurostat database.

Nevertheless, young people exhibit an average 10% higher tendency than adults
to verify the accuracy of information or content encountered online (Figure 5).
The difference increased to 19% in Croatia and 18% in Ireland. On the other hand,
Norwegian and Icelandic young people adult populations exceeded EU averages in
evaluating their Internet sources. The essential role of information and
communication technology competencies in the prosperity of knowledge-based
economies and societies is widely acknowledged, and most young people regularly
engage in computer and Internet use when they complete their compulsory education
in the EU. As a result, it is necessary for young people to cultivate digital citizens
that are self-sufficient and conscientious, but also equipped with basic digital skills.

Figure 6. Young people with at least basic digital skills by gender in 2021
(aged 16-29 years, %)

Source: Eurostat database.

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Also, the rate of young individuals having basic or above basic overall skills in
2021 ranges from 46% in Bulgaria and Romania, to 92% in Malta and 93% in
Finland, while the average EU level was 71%. Figure 6 shows that in 2021 there was
no significant gender-based disparity in the reported digital skills manifested by
young people at the EU level.
However, the situation varies when examining individual member states with the
percentage of young females possessing at least basic digital skills exceeding that of
young males by at least 5 percentage points in nine countries (Figure 6).
For example, Croatia had the largest difference in favour of young women (94%),
while the proportion of young men with at least basic digital skills (84%) was
10 percentage points lower. In Romania, there is a significant gender difference of
4% between young men (48%) and young women (44%) with at least basic digital
competencies. Furthermore, the percentage of young men with at least basic digital
skills exceeds the percentage of young women in in four other European countries:
Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, and Luxembourg by more than 5 percentage points.
In addition, Figure 6 shows that both young men and women have a significant share
of at least 80% of young people with basic digital skills from ten EU-27 countries,
including Finland, Malta, Greece, Croatia, Portugal, Denmark, Spain, Iceland,
Norway, and Switzerland.

Figure 7. Individuals with basic or above basic digital skills in 2023 versus 2021 (%)

Iceland
Romania
Greece
European Union - 27 countries…
Portugal
Croatia
Malta
Spain
Denmark
Switzerland
Norway
Finland
0, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100,

2023 2021

Source: authors’ contribution using Eurostat database.

Given that by 2021 the percentage of young people between the ages of 16 and
29 with at least basic digital skills is the highest in these ten countries, it is easy to
assume that their percentage of people with basic or above basic digital skills is also
higher than the EU average. As a result, the data analysis of Figure 7 illustrates

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a trend towards acquiring basic digital skills or more, with ten countries having the
highest proportion of young people with at least basic digital skills (Finland, Malta,
Greece, Croatia, Portugal, Denmark, Spain, Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland) in
2023 compared to 2021, while Romania has the lowest proportion.
It is noteworthy that nine of these countries (Iceland, Portugal, Croatia, Malta,
Spain, Denmark, Switzerland, Norway, and Finland) have exceeded the EU average
of people with basic or advanced digital skills (5Still4% in 2021, 55% in 2023). Still,
it must be mentioned that there is no data available for Iceland in 2023 (Figure 7).
On the other hand, the share of individuals from Greece and Romania with basic
or above basic digital skills remains slightly below the EU average for both years,
with Romania scoring the lowest share among all EU-27 countries.

6. Conclusions
Under the digital age umbrella, digital connectivity represents a global landscape
for digital native people born in a world surrounded by technology. However, the
scope of their digital competence and its impact on future progress remain the subject
of discussion. This study analyses data from the official Eurostat reports on young
European digital habits, highlighting their use of the Internet, the involvement and
the acquisition of digital skills.
Findings present a very incoherent image of the digital landscape among young
Europeans, who all present a daily habit of Internet usage (Figure 2), but seem to
lack fact-checking behaviour while consuming online content. On the one hand,
social networking activities are the main reason because the majority of young
people use the Internet, but they also show higher online course enrolment rates than
adults, emphasising the transition of Gen Z to Education 4.0 paradigm. On the other
hand, the results indicate that young Europeans lack adequate fact checking
behaviour, with only a few countries (such as the Netherlands and Sweden) taking
the lead by example and actively checking online information and data sources.
Furthermore, the level of digital competence of young people remains far from
the EU 2030 target, with only ten European countries with higher digital skills than
the EU average. In addition, Figure 7 shows the gender difference between women
and men in attaining digital skills in a number of countries (Malta, Croatia, Portugal,
the Czech Republic, Spain, Sweden, France, Estonia, Latvia, Belgium, Poland, and
Cyprus). Conversely, countries such as Greece and Romania are confronted with
persistent obstacles in bridging the digital divide, and their digital literacy rates are
lower than the EU average.
A very curious case is presented by the Romanian education system which is the
only European system to assess students’ digital skills through national tests for all
pupil, but fails to deliver measurable competencies with only 48% of young males
and 44% of young females possessing at least basic digital competencies. These rates
place Romania in the last position in the hierarchy of minimal digital skills reported
by European young individuals from 36 countries, followed closely by Bulgaria
(Figure 7).

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Overall, this paper explains the complex technological dimension of young

Europeans aged 16 to 29, showing promising progress and concerning disparities.
Although the use of the Internet and online learning show a transition to Education
4.0, the inadequacy of fact-checking behaviours and the continuing gender
difference in digital skills improvement emphasise the need for targeted
interventions. The results of this research also highlight the vital role of quality
education for digital skills promotion, with countries that give priority to early digital
competence acquisition with higher success rates than the other countries.
As a result, this research article provides a detailed picture of the complex digital
landscape of European citizens, but it is critical to recognise certain limitations that
affect the interpretation and generalisation of these conclusions. First, the study’
focus mainly on young Europeans can potentially limit the extrapolation of results
to a wider demographic group or geographical region. Secondly, the findings
demonstrate the importance of quality education to promote digital competence, but
the study does not offer a more detailed image of specific educational interventions
or strategies used by different countries. Finally, even if the study identified
dissimilarities in the development of digital skills and testing practices, it did not
offer detailed recommendations to address these differences or develop assessment
strategies. Future research should try to overcome these limitations by applying more
diverse and representative research methods that address digital skills differences
effectively.

Acknowledgment
This paper was co-financed by the Bucharest University of Economic
Studies during the PhD programme.

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