Digital Learning Day is a holiday observed on the last Thursday of every February. This day recognizes the need for high-quality instruction paired with integrated technology. The need for this educational approach became evident during the COVID-19 pandemic when lockdowns forced many students and teachers to rely more heavily on technology to achieve educational goals.

Of course, no one can talk about the use of technology as an educational aid without also addressing the rampant inequities that exist between those students who have access to the internet for educational purposes and those who do not. This day also attempts to address those problems, or at the very least, raise awareness about them.

The History of Digital Learning Day

This holiday was first created in 2012 to raise awareness about merging technology and classroom instruction with an eye toward driving growth, creating educational opportunities, and promoting equity—particularly among students and communities where such equity does not exist.

Digital learning allows students and teachers to connect no matter where they are in the world, and that power is transformative. That’s why everyone should take the time to learn more about this holiday and share resources to help educators make education available to more students.

Some Quick Facts About eLearning

Since we’re on the subject of online and remote education, we thought we’d take the time to list some of the statistics that we’ve learned about this subject. Below are facts that we think everyone will find germane to this conversation.

• Approximately 72% of U.S. organizations believe that the incorporation of online learning provides a competitive advantage.
• The U.S. and China are the current leading countries in online education.
• About 1 in 4 students in 2020 participated in hybrid learning during the pandemic.
• Online learning can cut training time for employees in half.
• In 2020, almost 50% of U.S. students were receiving all of their education online.
• Before the COVID-19 pandemic, universities only spent 5% of their budget on online learning.

Observing Digital Learning Day

Digital Learning Day can be observed by donating resources that educators may need to help students. These can be tablets, desktop computers, laptops, or even captioning services for online educators.

People can also host digital learning events to connect corporate sponsors with members of the community and with educators. And it’s a day for all people to learn more about digital learning. People can spread the word about this holiday using the hashtag #DigitalLearningDay on social media.