The Education Advisor, Jokin Bildarratz, has completely denied the criticisms made by EH Bildu and Elkarrekin Podemos IU with the recent agreement that the Education Department has signed with Google. The Department of Education has agreed to use Google Workspace for Education services in public facilities. In education, the Librezaleak group has also criticised the agreement.

Bildarratz has pointed out that the evolution of society requires addressing “technological, ethical and social challenges” and has framed the agreement with Google. He explains that the Digital Transformation Plan of the Basque Educational System is based on the “adaptation of education to the digital age”. Google says it will respect “privacy and ethical standards” and that the Basque Data Protection Agency has approved the agreement. It stresses that the centres are not obliged to use this service, which is a “tool” that they will have at their disposal, but that they can use other tools. It has also defended the complementarity of free and private software: “We must strive to complement the platforms from the point of view of ethical and responsible digitization, using free and private software.”

“Pegasus to schools”

Lore Martínez de EH Bildu denounces that the agreement will transfer knowledge to Google and that the multinational will do business with it. “You will take pegasus to the classes. All the privacy of the data of the teachers, students and families of the Basque education will remain in the hands of Google, with the approval of the government”. Podemos, Isabel González, has denounced that the contract signed by the Department of Education with Google clashes with point 16 of the Educational Concert, which says that the privacy of students will be guaranteed “with auditable, reusable, free and transparent technological resources”.