Educational systems worldwide are in urgent need of reform for a digital future in which “everything that can be standardised will be automated by machines.” How can we prepare the children of today for that? DFS has asked members of the learning community worldwide. These are their impacting insights.
1. Christopher Pommerening: “Students are currently being prepared for a world that no longer exists.”
Christopher Pommerening is the Founder and Chief Empowerment Officer of Learnlife, a global team of more than 100 learning experts and thought leaders which aims to build an open ecosystem for a new lifelong learning paradigm suited to the rapid and evolving changes in our world. Learnlife launched the first Learning Hub in Barcelona and is currently in the process of building a 20.000m2 lighthouse for lifelong learning in Germany. Read the full interview.
2. Anant Agarwal : “We need to expand the options for students to gain an education. Higher education institutions are starting to innovate, creating new ways to unbundle degrees and create non-linear, modular career and education pathways.”
Anant Agarwal is a computer architecture researcher, founder and CEO of edX, the trusted platform for education and learning. Founded by Harvard and MIT, edX is home to more than 20 million learners, the majority of top-ranked universities in the world and industry-leading companies. Read his interview.
3. Cristobal Cobo: “Much of what we learn during formal education, we will unlearn and relearn it again several times throughout our life. So, flexibility, as well as curiosity, are critical aspects to keep intelligence unfolding.”
Dr. Cristóbal Cobo works in the Global Education Technology (Edtech) team at the World Bank, where technical assistance is provided to help countries find, assess and implement innovative solutions to integrate technology into education. Their main purpose is to support better, more equitable teaching and learning experiences for students in both developing and developed countries. “The future of education”, he says, “is already here (but unevenly distributed)”. Read his interview.
4. Xavi Carrera: “Selective and critical access to information is crucial. Not everything is valid and what the search engine shows us in the first place is not always relevant and truthful.”
Xavier Carrera Farràn is an expert in educational responsibility and in the development of digital teacher competence. He has a degree in Education, a BA in Philosophy and Education, and a PhD in Psicopedagogy. He is a professor at Universitat de Lleida and coordinates COMPETECS, one of Spain’s most important research groups in the field of education and technology. Find out his opinion on the future of education.