Education 4.0 is a response to industry’s needs and places student at the centre of the higher education ecosystem, says Siddharth Maheshwari

The remarkable growth of technology has for a while enthralled the world. Big data, analytics and artificial intelligence are the tiny facets that are leading to what the world refers to as the Fourth Industrial Revolution — Industry 4.0. What this revolution will entail is autonomous systems that will analyse data on their own with minimum human involvement. A solution-centric system that will ensure highly efficient manufacturing and industry processes in addition to collating information synchronically.

Effect of industrial revolution 4.0 appears to be wide reaching and reflecting in the advances taking place in various sectors, one of which is education. In a globally connected world, there are newer trends with Education 4.0 that will involve the best of both worlds in learning — traditional classroom teaching with digitised learning.The student will be placed at the very centre of the learning ecosystem where the role of the teacher will be limited to that of a facilitator.

 This is a remarkable shift from Education 1.0, now a largely defunct model where the teacher-oriented classrooms followed a pedantic format of instruction. Information flowed in the form of textbooks and class notes where students wereabsorbing information but very rarely volunteering or contributing to the sources.

Change in workflow process in industries resulted in the transition from Education 1.0 to Education 2.0. As businesses introduced new ways of performing tasks — by involving employees and consumers in engagement processes, not limited for the top management — the arena of Education witnessed something similar. The interactions between students and teachers increased, forming a more creative and connected education space with networking, cooperative learning and global learning projects.

With the advent of Education 3.0 — the kind majorly practised today — there are cross-cultural opportunities in learning where the students play a pivotal role in contributing and building a strong knowledge base. Education is flexible and much reliable on the internet and open source platforms, information flows in all directions, and there is an increased use of virtual spaces.

Education 4.0 is a response to Industry 4.0 and now places the student at the centre of the higher education ecosystem. As students are becoming aware and exposed to a more connected world than ever, it’s imperative to develop a solid digital channel of communication for engaging them, understanding their learning needs and building their trust. This is where the importance of visual and textual content comes into play, by way of online study materials, student blogs, webinars, virtual sessions and personal contact programmes. With a secure and active internet connection, the students no longer relies only on notes or textbooks.

Students can get access to an improved and constantly dynamic information which is cost-effective and affordable for everyone. The internet is benefitting not just the learners but the teachers as well, who can impart information through the use of slides, images and animation.

Even as the future looks bright with Education 4.0, it can be deemed a success only when there is an overhaul of the stale system and both learner and facilitator adapt to changing teaching methodologies.

While many major universities have adjusted with changing times and are inculcating the changes into the curriculum, there are many educators who are apprehensive about this new format, and continue to follow age-old systems in teaching.

In essence, the future will favour those who are ready to welcome the newer technologies with open hearts.

The writer is Director, Amity Future Academy