Digital Learning Shaping the Future of Higher Education
Rajesh Panda, Professor and Director, Symbiosis Institute of Business Management - Bengaluru
Not only in India but across the globe probably digital learning has not yet found its place when it comes to higher education. We have all the technology that is needed but we are not using them in the right way or I can say we have not exploited technology to the extent it could have been done. The popular online portals like Edex, Coursera or Indian online programs such as Swayam or IIMBx are using traditional methods of capturing a video and that will be used online as a forum for discussion. There is a better scope to use technology as a driver for future education. Today, we have more than 3000 B-schools across India, including the universities, deemed universities and affiliated colleges offering MBA and PGDM courses. Many of the B-schools are lacking in one or the other factors, it may either not many great faculties or no modern-day techniques used in teaching. But, there are some of the institutes that are providing quality education, have got the right type of faculty and infrastructure, also good industrial connect. Such institutions come out as the creators of employable graduates. These well-established institutions or B-schools can create an atmosphere in an online format where the students can get quality online education.
"Technology has been helpful in terms of academic administration, whether it is attendance, taking track of student's grades and various interventions that probably is needed by the institute"
Today, most of the industries use augmented reality where you can simulate models, in the same way, you can simulate a classroom. In my opinion, this concept of augmented reality probably has not been used to the full extent of providing quality education when it comes to online learning. For example, when you wake up in the morning, you can put on your VR headsets with stereo sounds. You log in to a website of any reputed Bschool and it will take you to a classroom where you can actually see the professor teaching, and you also actively participate in the discussions. Later, when the professor asks you to break into respective groups of five or six students and move to allocated rooms or library and debate on the given case study. You will go ahead with other students present in your team and start a debate, using these VR devices you can move to any part of the institution. Such online platforms can be created by making the best use of technology. I will not be surprised if Amazon, Microsoft or Google invents such as online programs and turn into the biggest university online, and this will be truly Global Online Education or Digitization of Education.
Digital Learning is Improving and Shaping the Higher Education
Today the education is in bits and pieces. There was a time when the traditional method of classroom learning and homework method was used in higher education. But today, colleges have their own learning portals, where they record videos using various software's available. Integrate them with quiz and assignments and they are interactive videos and not monologues, and later it will be uploaded on the institutions learning management system. By using this system students will exactly know which video they have to refer to the assignments and what will be the topic for next day's class. With such facilities technology is enabling students to learn from any corner of the world, they can study for any period of time using those videos and if possible be a part of meaningful discussions. Technology has been helpful in terms of academic administration, whether it is attendance, taking track of student's grades and various interventions that probably is needed by the institute. Technology is playing a big role in maintaining academic administrations, and pedagogy of learning.
Digital Learning is Important
A physical classroom and a discussion with a faculty, there is no alternative to this, it is the best way of learning. But today it is a premium product, not everybody can afford to get into the best Bschools, the method of giving quality education in a classroom is not inclusive. The popular and reputed Bschools across the country can cater only to the requirement of 10 to 15000 people, and lakhs of students interested to pursue higher education are ruled out. For such students availability of quality education is very critical. Hence, classroom education will remain in the future but that will remain as a premium product because not every individual wishing for higher education will be able to get it, neither geographically nor financially.
Digital Learning is important because education will no more be confined to the boundaries of the universities and will probably move to a portal. Technology can also be able to bring various job providers, recruiters, corporates and the students in the same portal. In future the demands and possibilities of one roof portals will be increasing, where universities can offer online courses, and students will be able to learn interesting courses and gain degrees by accumulating the number of credits through which corporates can recruit students by evaluating their credit scores.
The Factors that Needs Improvisation in the Digital Learning Platform
The online learning platforms available are following very basic forms of teaching methods. The use of technology can be done to the best level, as I mentioned about interactive classroom discussions using augmented reality or virtual reality and stimulate classrooms of universities. Also, evaluating the performance and results of the students, learning and attending exams using online portals. There are many factors that have to evolve and the portals available in the present time are only good to acquire knowledge. (As told to Tanuja Akkannavar)
"Technology has been helpful in terms of academic administration, whether it is attendance, taking track of student's grades and various interventions that probably is needed by the institute"
Today, most of the industries use augmented reality where you can simulate models, in the same way, you can simulate a classroom. In my opinion, this concept of augmented reality probably has not been used to the full extent of providing quality education when it comes to online learning. For example, when you wake up in the morning, you can put on your VR headsets with stereo sounds. You log in to a website of any reputed Bschool and it will take you to a classroom where you can actually see the professor teaching, and you also actively participate in the discussions. Later, when the professor asks you to break into respective groups of five or six students and move to allocated rooms or library and debate on the given case study. You will go ahead with other students present in your team and start a debate, using these VR devices you can move to any part of the institution. Such online platforms can be created by making the best use of technology. I will not be surprised if Amazon, Microsoft or Google invents such as online programs and turn into the biggest university online, and this will be truly Global Online Education or Digitization of Education.
Digital Learning is Improving and Shaping the Higher Education
Today the education is in bits and pieces. There was a time when the traditional method of classroom learning and homework method was used in higher education. But today, colleges have their own learning portals, where they record videos using various software's available. Integrate them with quiz and assignments and they are interactive videos and not monologues, and later it will be uploaded on the institutions learning management system. By using this system students will exactly know which video they have to refer to the assignments and what will be the topic for next day's class. With such facilities technology is enabling students to learn from any corner of the world, they can study for any period of time using those videos and if possible be a part of meaningful discussions. Technology has been helpful in terms of academic administration, whether it is attendance, taking track of student's grades and various interventions that probably is needed by the institute. Technology is playing a big role in maintaining academic administrations, and pedagogy of learning.
Digital Learning is Important
A physical classroom and a discussion with a faculty, there is no alternative to this, it is the best way of learning. But today it is a premium product, not everybody can afford to get into the best Bschools, the method of giving quality education in a classroom is not inclusive. The popular and reputed Bschools across the country can cater only to the requirement of 10 to 15000 people, and lakhs of students interested to pursue higher education are ruled out. For such students availability of quality education is very critical. Hence, classroom education will remain in the future but that will remain as a premium product because not every individual wishing for higher education will be able to get it, neither geographically nor financially.
Digital Learning is important because education will no more be confined to the boundaries of the universities and will probably move to a portal. Technology can also be able to bring various job providers, recruiters, corporates and the students in the same portal. In future the demands and possibilities of one roof portals will be increasing, where universities can offer online courses, and students will be able to learn interesting courses and gain degrees by accumulating the number of credits through which corporates can recruit students by evaluating their credit scores.
The Factors that Needs Improvisation in the Digital Learning Platform
The online learning platforms available are following very basic forms of teaching methods. The use of technology can be done to the best level, as I mentioned about interactive classroom discussions using augmented reality or virtual reality and stimulate classrooms of universities. Also, evaluating the performance and results of the students, learning and attending exams using online portals. There are many factors that have to evolve and the portals available in the present time are only good to acquire knowledge. (As told to Tanuja Akkannavar)
