The general objective of this research was to analyze the implications of face-to-face and virtual education in the Ecuadorian context. The methodological process of the study was qualitative, bibliographic-documentary. The advantages and disadvantages of face-to-face and virtual education were analyzed, the latter focused on pandemic times. It was determined that there are limitations in face-to-face education due to traditional teaching methods and the lack of use and availability of technology. Virtuality reveals inequalities in access to education since impoverished sectors do not have the opportunity to continue with their studies, or the availability of internet access and computer equipment is limited, becoming a gap for this population group. There is a need for teacher training to develop digital competencies in both teachers and students, and for educational institutions to have access to their own technological infrastructure.

Keywords: virtual education, digital competencies, internet, virtuality.

In the last two decades, the world has experienced significant changes in the way of living, socializing, learning and teaching; therefore, the educational process is dynamic and has adapted to technological transitions according to the possibilities of educational institutions, having less development in those countries with lower GDP per capita, where socioeconomic conditions limit access to technology.

Consequently, the need for technological inclusion that contributes to the teaching and learning process of all students, overcoming socio-educational and economic barriers, promoting digital learning.

But in Ecuador, especially in rural and marginal urban sectors, where poverty emerges, there is limited access to education, especially in times of pandemic because there is no internet connectivity and access to mobile devices, computers or laptops to engage in virtual education.

In this sense, Aguilar (2020) mentions that the pandemic has caused radical transformations in the ways of life and education; there is a need for technological spaces that allow interaction between teacher and student to continue with academic training. But, it has been faced with the problem of limited technological access and lack of digital skills on the part of teachers, especially in the public sector, as well as limited access to their own virtual platforms that allow connection, in many cases having to rely on free access with limited time and resources, disposing to sudden changes in the way of operating.

The research deals with the implications of classroom and virtual education in the Ecuadorian context, taking into account that education is the basis for the development of peoples, this is the slogan of prosperity that is mentioned to children and adolescents, to maintain and continue their training process in order to have in the future professionals committed to the needs of society and the environment, so the classroom preparation has taken its leading role as the main form of education in the world.

The objective of this research is to analyze the implications of face-to-face and virtual education in the Ecuadorian context. To this end, four components are addressed: access to face-to-face education, virtual education, teachers' digital competencies and access to institutional virtual platforms. The advantages and disadvantages of face-to-face and virtual education are highlighted.

The research is based on a qualitative, descriptive methodological approach, focusing on the problems faced by virtual education in Ecuador in times of pandemic, addressing the management of virtual platforms, programs and software by teachers and students, as well as access to the Internet. The bibliographic-documentary method was applied, resorting to the analysis of secondary sources that support the current state of education, compiling statistics of the Ecuadorian reality, making an analysis of the problems that those involved in the educational process such as educational institutions, teachers, students and parents have gone through; as well as the action taken by the State to solve the needs of the population. The data collection technique was documentary analysis.

The results of this research are revealed in four components, starting with the analysis of face-to-face and virtual education, addressing the advantages and disadvantages, followed by teachers' digital competencies and ending with access to institutional virtual platforms.

In face-to-face learning is conceived in a better way due to the social interaction that exists between the actors, being these the students and teachers, having contact, the information can be transmitted with bodily, linguistic and emotional actions to influence the assimilation of knowledge. In addition, students are more open to ask questions about the contents that have not been deepened or were not clear, for this reason, face-to-face classes become more dynamic. To this end, Aguilar (2020) mentions that "the teaching-learning process in face-to-face scenarios allows knowing the different realities of the educational subjects" (p.215). The teacher can better detect the learning needs or change of strategy to reach students with a slower learning level than those of the reference group.

In face-to-face, teachers are in the ability to detect the weaknesses of students in terms of the approach to the different subjects and specific contents, that is where it can be realized according to Grisales (2018), the "demotivation on the part of students and the difficulties encountered by teachers to design a practical and effective orientation" (p. 200).

In an interview with the director of the education institute Eduser Reforma in Mexico, she mentioned that "face-to-face education has no substitutes, no video calls, no WhatsApp groups, no copies or workbooks. There is nothing better than seeing each other and working as a team, that does not compare to anything" (Ramirez, 2020, p.1). It reveals the importance of student interaction with the teacher, where they can share experiences, perform dynamic activities that allow development based on eye contact and social interaction.

On the other hand, Solovieva & Quintanar (2020), mention that face-to-face education has many more advantages than virtual education; the student learns through contact with classmates, the teacher and the environment. For this reason, the importance of humanizing education and promoting the return to the classroom. As a negative aspect of face-to-face education, we can mention the traditional teaching methods, monotony in classes and a low interest on the part of teachers and authorities in training and acquisition of digital skills to meet the new challenges of a virtual education.

According to the Ministry of Telecommunications (2020), in Ecuador there are three million students and 161 thousand teachers, of which 67% have managed to access virtual education due to the availability of internet, but 33% corresponding to 1 million have not had the opportunity to stay in the educational process in times of pandemic due to economic deprivation, social conditions and poverty.

Due to the pandemic, the teaching and learning process was drastically modified leading to virtuality, replacing social contact with interaction through screens, although not all students have the opportunity to continue participating in the acquisition of knowledge. As Aguilar (2020) states: "the relationship between educator-learner became asymmetric since educational participation did not take place under equal conditions" (p.214).

Also, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (2020), argues that "learning disruptions such as those experienced in the 2019-2020 school year and those anticipated during the 2020-2021 school year have the potential to exacerbate structural inequalities and widen differences in what groups of students experience" (p.2). The digital divides that marginalized sectors have limit students' development and acquisition of knowledge, especially in times of pandemic where conditions are more difficult.

The pandemic forced educational institutions to virtualize education, where students and teachers faced the access and management of technologies, which in developed countries are not new, but according to the Ecuadorian reality has been one of the gaps that has limited educational inclusion, especially for the poorest households and those lacking technological resources. The obstacles that students go through in virtual education are related to several factors, among which can be mentioned according to Aguilar & Del Valle (2016), are: time management, individual study, technological means and performance of the tutor teacher.

Addressing time management as a limiting factor in virtual education, each student must schedule activities to study and review the contents of the subjects, for this he/she must have a level of discipline, responsibility and awareness, which in many cases cannot be achieved due to internal and external factors that may affect the implementation of a curriculum. Individual study, in virtual education learning is autonomous, minimizing the possibility of interacting with classmates, where as in face-to-face education problems can be solved together, or in turn those students with difficulty are supported by others who have more aptitude for that subject. As for the use of technological media, there are still limitations in the use of programs, software and virtual platforms, both students and teachers are limited in expanding knowledge and obtaining meaningful learning.

In the last decade, technological advances have had an impact on teaching and learning processes, especially with the arrival of the pandemic by COVID-19 that forced educational institutions to virtualize education. Thus UNESCO (2018) argues the importance of developing competencies to handle technology. The application of technology and the development of digital competencies in the educational process allows the teacher to generate skills in the management of virtual didactic resources that affect the learning and academic performance of students.

UNESCO (2018), warns that "it is vital that all countries develop competencies with a view to anticipating the evolution of needs in digital competencies for work and life" (p.1). In this sense, virtualization has had an impact on the teaching and learning process, in terms of the role of teachers, according to Aguilar (2020), the lack of acquisition of digital competencies has been revealed due to the weak training they have had before the pandemic and for not having the resources to do so. In this way, it is mentioned that there is a digital illiteracy on the part of teachers, who have to face the learning needs of the students themselves who are in better conditions to adapt to the management of technology.

Also, the pandemic has revealed the importance of face-to-face educational institutions and the contribution of teachers through social interaction with students, since with virtualization children and adolescents are exposed to phenomena related to abuse by their parents or guardians, domestic and symbolic violence, school dropout, depression, suicide and rape; without having the opportunity to talk in educational institutions with teachers or people in charge of the social department to provide help and follow up on cases.

Aguilar (2020) states: "the lack of social contact in virtual learning is not the only difficulty faced by the educational community, it is also visible the symbolic violence caused by the inequalities at the time of accessing this type of learning" For this, it is relevant to expand the possibilities of access to technology and modes of interaction where the conditions of each student can be manifested, not only in academic terms, but related to harmonious coexistence in all its forms.

To support the importance of virtual education, Pérez & Saker (2013) mention that ICTs allow interaction between the student and the teacher, rethinking the ways of accessing knowledge. However, it is also important for the participants in the educational process to be able to face the challenges of virtualization and technology management.

Access to a technological infrastructure requires that educational institutions maintain a budget earmarked for the acquisition of programs and platforms where synchronous and asynchronous activities can be maintained, but the shortcomings and limitations make this not possible. Aguilar & Del Valle (2016) argue that "getting on the technology train requires constant updating of platforms, software and other complements, which can mean a significant investment for any institution" (p.28).

Aldas et al. (2013) mention that the Internet is a powerful tool that engages in the teaching and learning processes, overcomes distance and time barriers and links students to continue in their preparation process according to the facilities of educational institutions. It highlights the advantages of virtual education in terms of improved participation, interactivity, cognitive development and social skills, emphasizing that the programs and objectives are well designed with meaningful methodologies.

Before the beginning of the pandemic, some of the private sector educational institutions had their own technological platforms, such as iducay, meet, clasroom, Santillana, among others; this was due to the management of the authorities and the availability of economic resources to access their services. Thus, virtuality did not have the same impact on private institutions as on those in the public sector, since these institutions had an autonomous scenario in the availability and management of ICTs.

On the contrary, in the public sector, neither technological management nor teacher training to develop digital competencies was prioritized, showing a deficient use of ICT, especially in those teachers over 45 years old, since they are adapted to a traditional education, where the teacher teaches in front of a liquid chalk board. In addition, they do not have empathy for the knowledge and management of technologies, generating rejection and frustration when teaching a virtual class.

The forced replacement of learning scenarios caused imbalances for teachers and students, which is why at the beginning of the pandemic in the Ecuadorian public education system, education culminated as an experimentation that approved several ways to get the students' homework to teachers, without having a formal virtual platform to accommodate all content, subjects and allow teacher-student interaction. The students' response was through academic portfolios, delivery via WhatsApp or personal emails from teachers, phone calls and even text messages.

According to Pequeño, et al. (2020), "virtuality was experienced, both by teachers and students, as a challenge that makes teaching and learning processes more flexible, but with insecurity and stress" (p.16). In the public sector, it is not possible to speak of quality of education in times of pandemic since there is a weak management and access to virtual platforms, Pequeño, et al. (2020), mention that teachers do not have an adequate level of knowledge of technology and on the other hand students have uncertainty and stress in virtual education.

The pandemic has brought problems in all areas: economic, social, environmental, educational, technological, among others. In the case of education, students and teachers have been forced to face virtuality, making use of the available resources but have not fully covered the needs of education due to the technological gaps that exist in the environment. Therefore, in Ecuador there have been problems especially in the less favored and impoverished sectors, where the precariousness of access to a mobile device or computer has limited or prevented access to education.

This reality is not alien to Latin America, which although compared to Africa is more advanced and shows significant changes in the last 5 years; still shows a lag with respect to Western Europe, North America, Eastern Europe; in terms of education digitalization (ECLAC, 2020). In addition, Varas el al., 2020), mention that educational institutions have faced a drastic change in the modality of study, where a proactive attitude must be demanded by institutions and students to face the challenges of virtuality, although there are gaps such as inequality and poverty that prevent access to education for all. Likewise (Méndez, 2020), mentions that in Latin America much work is needed on the part of educational institutions and governments to adopt a true virtual education that generates significant knowledge to students and provides the opportunity to all, overcoming the existing gaps and limitations.

In the case of Ecuador, teachers and students, especially in the public sector, were not prepared to face the new normality in the teaching and learning process, having great difficulty especially in the first months of the pandemic, although at present there are still households that have not been able to access technology for their children to continue studying. To this end, the Ecuadorian government has established a series of strategies such as tele-education, which has been transmitted through official channels and radio programs to reach sectors where the Internet is not a possibility for families.

The Minister of Education in his strategy to reach the most remote places such as rural areas, argued that education in times of pandemic is not only done through the Internet, but also through "analog television covers 9 out of 10 Ecuadorians, and 9 out of 10 Ecuadorians have a television set..., Ecuador TV and GamaTV, taking into account that Digital Terrestrial Television already covers 5 out of 10 Ecuadorians" (Ministry of Telecommunications, 2020). It has been evidenced that Ecuador was not prepared to face changes in its educational system, presenting serious problems in the management of technological platforms and especially to the access of educational institutions, since some are paid or the free ones are available to the owner in sudden changes and restrictions, causing an imbalance in the teaching and learning process.

There are many disadvantages of virtual education, among them we can mention that the student does not exercise autonomous learning because for the completion of their tasks and evaluations they have a variety of information on the web that can easily be transcribed, which does not benefit the enrichment of knowledge. In this way, it has been demonstrated the value of the teacher in the classroom because the way of teaching in the classroom is different from the virtual one, since physically the student can learn with the different activities and gestures that the teacher performs, and even the time management, tone of voice and playful activities that can be used. On the contrary, in virtual scenarios time is limited to comply with the established schedule, one because of the free platforms, another because of the scarce access to internet or good coverage of this.

Sal Salgado (2015), highlights the disadvantages of working in virtual environments, identifying the lack of order, work overload, little content feedback, as well as little use of the contents of the virtual platform and interactive programs. Virtual education still has some difficulties, as stated by Aguilar & Del Valle (2016), in face-to-face education, deeper learning is achieved, since technological tools require support and additional literacy, thanks to the social interaction between student - teacher. On the contrary, in virtual education there is a weak knowledge on the management of ICTs, leaving the student in an autonomous learning, having to be governed only to the programming of preset activities, lacking a deeper interaction and feedback of the contents.

Traditional learning in physical and virtual classrooms has its advantages and disadvantages, in the former, the student-teacher interaction flows and is based on a traditional teaching method, which brings into play the experience of the teacher and the application of the methodology will affect the quality of learning of students, in turn these are in the possibility of asking questions to clarify concerns, you can work in group dynamics, where social contact helps the assimilation of information.

On the contrary, the negative aspects of face-to-face learning are that education is monotonous where the teacher is the transmitter of information and the student is satisfied with what he/she learns in the classroom, there is a lack of empowerment and generation of autonomous learning, the use of ICT is limited, therefore, participants are left behind compared to other groups that combine or work more frequently on virtual platforms.

On the other hand, virtual learning is given in the empowerment of roles and autonomous knowledge generation, management of digital tools, access to virtual platforms, programs and software where the contents of the subjects are addressed, the teacher takes the role of guide and tutor, leaving most of the responsibility in creating knowledge to the student, but this requires a level of maturity and responsibility on the part of students, since not all are willing to demand themselves to achieve their academic goal. It is worth mentioning that not everyone has the same access to technology due to the socioeconomic limitations existing in the environment

Virtual education tends to an autonomous learning to a more proactive role of the student, to face challenges and make decisions that lead to self-improvement in the direction of the process, the student takes a leading role, in which the teacher is only a facilitator and leads the learner to be creative and develop digital skills that contribute to the progress of their learning. On the other hand, face-to-face education encourages social interaction and takes advantage of the space to expand knowledge based on the experiences of classmates and the collaboration of the teacher's methodology.

Virtual education has caused imbalances not only for students, but also for the educational staff, teachers and parents, having to access technological equipment and services such as tablets, cell phones, computers and internet, although in some cases this has prevented them from remaining in the educational system due to scarcity of resources and limitations in access to technology, harming economically disadvantaged households.