Different global institutions like the UN and the UNESCO make claims on a positive potential that the digitalization could have in achieving more social justice, particularly through education. This belief in the positive effects of digitalization in education will be challenged in this paper by addressing three concerns that are particularly connected with the experience of collectivity: 1) Social media is confused with a public space. 2) The isolating experience in using digital tools stands in contrast to the collectiveness of educational settings. 3) Educational responsibility is lost when digital tools are in charge of education.
These concerns will be discussed with reference to Hannah Arendt’s differentiation of disparate life spheres (the private, the political and the social), her analysis of the experience of being alone (solitude, isolation and loneliness) and her critique concerning the devaluation of the teacher’s profession. Finally, the analysis will be connected to a post-critical perspective in education that emphasizes the experience of collectivity in educational settings.