Abstract: In order to learn, presence is necessary. If we experience a genuinely rich presence, exams, tests and other forms of evaluating knowledge are not crucial for learning. In distance learning, the concept of presence is not obvious. Presence in distance and network contexts usually means being active on social media. However, in distance and network learning, something more is needed. It is the face-to-face interaction that needs to be "digitalized". In order to investigate this, we have turned to Heidegger (1927) and the concept of Dasein. The concept of Dasein means to apprehend the existence of the world and not only the world itself. Digital Dasein means to transcend the digital medium and reveal the essence of presence for a more translucent form of e-learning. The need for an artefact mediating Digital Dasein has been identified.

In order to learn, presence is necessary. If we experience a genuinely rich presence, exams, tests and other forms of evaluating knowledge are not crucial for learning. In distance learning, the concept of presence is not obvious. Presence in distance and network contexts usually means being active on social media. However, in distance and network learning, something more is needed. It is the face-to-face interaction that needs to be “digitalized”. In order to investigate this, we have turned to Heidegger (1927) and the concept of Dasein. The concept of Dasein means to apprehend the existence of the world and not only the world itself. Digital Dasein means to transcend the digital medium and reveal the essence of presence for a more translucent form of e-learning. The need for an artefact mediating Digital Dasein has been identified. © 2017, Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education. All rights reserved.