DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES IN EDUCATION: RECONFIGURATION OF FUNCTIONS AND MEANINGS IN THE CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT

Abstract

This article analyzes the reconfiguration of functions and meanings attributed to digital technologies in the contemporary educational field. It starts from the recognition that such technologies go beyond the condition of mere instrumental resources and become structuring elements of pedagogical practices, teaching and learning relationships, and forms of school knowledge production. The objective is to understand how the incorporation of digital technologies has redefined the teaching role, pedagogical mediation, curricular organization, and the conception of learning in Brazilian education. A qualitative approach is adopted, with bibliographic and documentary procedures, based on consolidated authors in the field of educational technologies and on official Brazilian documents. The results show that the integration of digital technologies into school routines drives important conceptual shifts, such as the transition from the transmitting teacher to the mediating teacher, the expansion of space-time boundaries of learning, and the demand for digital literacies. However, structural inequalities of access, gaps in teacher training, and weaknesses in the articulation between technology and pedagogical project persist. The conclusion is that the effective reconfiguration of education by digital technologies depends on critical appropriation, consistent continuing education, and public policies capable of facing the asymmetries present in the Brazilian educational scenario.