The educational emergency in the face of the global pandemic challenge. The digital divide and the lack of equal opportunities

INTRODUCTION. The global pandemic caused by COVID-19 put countries to the test in the economic, social, health, political and educational fields. Although the confinement of society was a response almost supported by all countries, the response to education was very uneven. In this article we have tried to analyze this response in order to reflect on the need to establish preventive measures that prepare educational systems and their members for unexpected situations such as the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Situation that forced the implementation of the modality of virtual teaching in schools and universities. METHODOLOGY Following a qualitative methodology based on critical hermeneutics, the existing scientific literature on the response of educational systems to the health challenge has been analyzed. This analysis has focused on a selection of countries with a presence in the 2018 PISA report for each of the five continents. RESULTS The results indicate that governments rushed to continue classes during confinement with virtual educational platforms and web spaces with digital content. DISCUSSION Despite their efforts, in all cases it has been proven that the digital divide continues to exist and a lack of equal opportunities among students, as well as a worrying lack in teachers of digital pedagogical training and proper use and selection of technological tools. These shortcomings have occurred in countries with great economic potential and with excellent results in PISA reports.