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Nowadays, the main challenge in the higher education is the daunting task of transforming universities into digital era institutions. Improving HE students' competence to meet the flow of technological innovations through DT has been the focus of many countries. This task has imposed the restraint that HE institutions should implement the most effective strategies of DT. This chapter is focusing on how DT strategies play their role in making the transformation itself become germane and give its fruits. Therefore, this chapter presents the most effective DT strategies that can be implemented by HE institutions in order to prepare their students for the existing professional roles in their societies. A good DT strategy is one that connects the organization's current level of digital maturity with its future ambition. The well-known strategies in the DT field are as follows: the strategy of electronic projects, strategy of smart electronic platforms, integrated training strategy, participatory e-learning strategy, smart learning strategy, pervasive learning strategy, microlearning strategy and e-design thinking strategy, in addition to the strategy in which traditional learning methods are combined with e-learning methods. It is worth noting here that the chapter is not an attempt to favor a strategy over another or compare and contrast them to uncover their differences at any level. On the contrary, the writer will work on displaying how each strategy can be implemented in order to accomplish DT in HE instructional practices. Also, this chapter will show how complementary these strategies can be once they are utilized to reach DT.

Digital inequalities are pressing concerns, especially for students in need of special educational support. In recent years, numerous reviews have been published on the use of learning technologies (LT) in inclusive and special education. They mostly provide findings for specific groups, technologies, and countries. This systematic review aims to identify changes in the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) as LT that evolved globally in inclusive and special education over the last 12 years.

Web of Science, Scopus, and EBSCOhost were systematically searched for publications for 2012 to 2023. Only peer-reviewed English publications were included to ensure a comprehensive review. The findings of the 421 included papers were then analysed, reflecting diverse perspectives at the technology, learners, teachers, and institutional levels.

The most used devices were computers, iPads/tablets, and specifically designed apps. More studies were conducted in separate settings than in inclusive ones. The primary participant groups were students on the autism spectrum. More than half the research publications were related to technology use. Technology development was the most common research objective, with approximately 40% of test hypotheses based on standardised tests or observations.

By shifting the focus from specific disabilities to a more usability-based approach, we can envision a future in which the quality of education for all students is substantially improved.

LT have the potential to significantly contribute to creating the least restrictive learning environment for students in need of special educational support. One step for practitioners is to consider the interdependencies between the different dimensions of heterogeneity relevant to digital inclusion. In order to solve these complex pedagogical tasks appropriately, multidisciplinary cooperation is necessary, involving experts in technical, pedagogical, didactic and inclusive education in digitalised societies.

All data were meticulously collected and analysed to ensure credibility and originality.

Mentoring supports children, adolescents and young adults on their career paths and presents an important extracurricular educational format. The COVID-19 pandemic created a strong impetus for the deployment of virtual mentoring programs (VMPs), in which mentors and mentees communicate completely or predominantly through information and communication technologies (ICTs). Because it is unclear whether VMPs remain an attractive offer to mentors and mentees in post-pandemic times, this study aims to investigate the specific motivations of mentors and mentees to participate in VMPs and to draw conclusions about the effective design of VMPs.

In a qualitative study, the authors recruited 200 university students for an online survey, in which participants provided text responses regarding their motivations to participate in a youth or academic VMP as a mentor or mentee.

Potential mentors and mentees expect social components in VMPs. However, the results suggest that participants expect less psychosocial compared to career-related support from virtual mentoring, expect meaningful connections to be established only to a certain extent and do not expect role modeling from mentors. Furthermore, participants voiced mixed opinions about the virtual nature of mentoring programs, revealing a general field of tension (i.e. virtuality improves flexibility vs virtuality impairs relationship building). On this basis, design suggestions regarding VMPs are provided.

This study expands existing knowledge about VMPs by analyzing relevant factors when forming the intention to participate in a mentoring program, considering both youth and academic mentoring.