Online Education: A Key Tool for Equity and Quality

During his recent visit to Chile, as part of the First Ibero-American Congress on Quality Assurance in Higher Education: Trends in Online Education organized by Universidad Andrés Bello (UNAB), Dr. Francisco Marmolejo, president of Higher Education at the Qatar Foundation, highlighted the challenges and opportunities presented by higher education in the digital era. His analysis focused on how universities can adapt to a constantly changing educational environment.

Dr. Marmolejo stressed the importance of focusing quality assurance in education on inputs as well as outcomes. «Investment in education and higher education is increasingly the norm internationally. We have to ensure that the objective is achieved, which is an education of relevance and quality. If the medium used is online education, we must have evidence that this is indeed what is being achieved,» he said.

Inequalities in Access to Higher Education

One of the main challenges Dr. Marmolejo identified is inequity in access to higher education, a problem that affects many regions, particularly in Latin America. Online education can be a powerful tool for democratizing access, allowing students from vulnerable communities to access educational opportunities that would otherwise be unattainable.

«A vast majority, especially of young people, cannot benefit from higher education. And that, of course, is a responsibility for those of us who have benefited from it,» said the expert, emphasizing that, in addition to technical knowledge, students must develop the curiosity and flexibility needed to adapt to a changing future.

Ensuring Quality in Digital Environments

Dr. Marmolejo also stressed that online education should be considered a legitimate option offering the same quality as face-to-face education. «The most important challenge for the university today, both in online and offline education, is to ensure that what we are doing is providing students with the tools that will be required for an increasingly complex world,» he explained.

He stressed the need to focus not only on digital tools or platforms but also on students’ results. «First, we see the expected results, then we have the evidence that they were achieved, and then we evaluate the means to achieve them,» he said, recalling that the focus should be on practical learning.

International Collaboration for Learning

Online education breaks down geographical barriers and fosters international collaboration, which Dr. Marmolejo considers essential to improving the quality of education in Latin America. “The great advantage of online education is that it allows you to combine resources and knowledge from different parts of the world, which enriches learning,» he noted.

The expert stressed that universities must collaborate to ensure that all students, regardless of origin, have access to quality education. «Equitable access to education remains a global goal, and online education offers us a unique opportunity to move toward that goal,» he concluded.