Conference Program

In the context of digital transformation, universities are increasingly seen as strategic players in promoting digital democracy and intercultural connectivity in the Mediterranean region. Educational innovation plays a strategic role in promoting inclusion, active participation and the co-construction of knowledge within university digital environments. Digital platforms represent potential “bridges” capable of connecting academic communities in different geopolitical and cultural contexts. However, the presence of digital infrastructure cannot automatically translate into participatory and democratic educational environments.

This contribution presents the results of an online survey conducted among students enrolled in Moodle-based courses across partner universities in Italy, Greece, France, Germany, Turkey, Croatia, and Lithuania, within the framework of the Virtual Auditorium project, funded by the ERASMUS+ programme under the Partnerships for Innovation – Forward-Looking Projects action. The study adopts a critical, non-deterministic perspective on digital transformation in higher education, considering platforms not as neutral tools but as environments whose effectiveness depends on how they are integrated into teaching practices. From this perspective, digital democracy is not an automatic effect of technological access, but rather the result of pedagogical choices able to activate collaborative, dialogical and reflective practices.

Preliminary findings indicate a significant process of digital normalisation within participating universities: the 624 respondents report almost universal access to digital devices and extensive use of online communication tools, while Moodle is widely integrated into teaching practices, mainly within blended learning models. At the infrastructural level, the platform contributes to the continuity of access and systematic availability of teaching materials, becoming a stable and routinised component of course delivery. At the organisational level, its use is associated with advantages in sharing materials and managing study activities and is linked to a perception of improved learning and academic performance. These benefits are mainly related to efficiency, structuring and individual study management, rather than collaborative or dialogic practices.

No similar strengthening has been observed in terms of relationships and participation. This is reflected in the reduced use of collaborative activities (co-creation, forums, simulations), limited peer-to-peer interaction and student-teacher engagement through the platform.

This ambivalence suggests a gap between digital transformation and pedagogical innovation. Although universities have extensively implemented technological infrastructures, the intentional redesign of teaching practices towards active, participatory and co-creative models still appears to be incomplete. A predominantly individual and efficiency-oriented use can contribute to dynamics of isolation and digital fatigue, highlighted in the literature on online learning, rather than encouraging participation. In the intercultural Mediterranean context, characterised by heterogeneous institutional traditions and geopolitical asymmetries, the digital transformation into relational “bridges” requires deliberate teaching strategies oriented towards the collective production of knowledge.

From a preliminary and exploratory perspective, the study also opens up a reflection on the post-human dimension of the academic experience. As human-machine interaction becomes commonplace, the question is how pedagogical choices mediate this transformation. Digital innovation is significant for democratic participation when infrastructural integration is accompanied by a pedagogical reconfiguration oriented towards collaborative action and intercultural dialogue.