Opening Speech at the Plenary Session of the XVI International Scientific Conference “Higher Education for the 21<sup>st</sup> Century. Digital Transformation of Society: New Opportunities and New Challenges”
In his opening speech, the rector of Moscow University for the Humanities I. M. Ilyinsky presented his reflections on the processes of digitalization in the world and in Russia, primarily digitalization in the field of education. A number of provisions of the 2016 World Development Report by the World Bank related to digital development are being criticized. Attention is drawn to the negative aspects of digitalization, which the World Bank does not mention or softens. In relation to Russia, it is concluded that the accelerated and ill-conceived digitalization of education will contradict the tasks of education in the educational process. From the author's point of view, digitalization is a good thing only if it is aimed at the benefit of the individual.