How the pandemic will shape future education

Change is an intrinsic part of human life. Accepting, adapting and acclimatising with the change is the wise approach. COVID-19 is the boon for the education system. This may be a contradictory and bold statement considering the current pandemic spread of contagious coronavirus. But the perspective in this current article is completely different. 

The COVID-19 virus will create a significant shift of stationary economic equilibrium of traditional teaching methodologies to a new balance of virtual teaching. This situation is correcting the equilibrium and setting a new path for teaching and learning mechanism. 

Shifting from traditional methodologies to technology-based learning is a classic paradigm shift in the history of the educational system. Finding the opportunities from the disrupted economic situation and creating new avenues of success is vital for surviving in the current situation.

The Indian education system will demand the following future changes which create new pedagogy of teaching:

• The era of technology has started. If the current situation persists, then teaching and learning can not be stopped. New skills, new technology, a new way of thinking, web-based teaching should be leveraged. A high-speed internet connection is a necessary investment which will democratise the teaching methodology. The world will be revolved around technologies like augmented reality, artificial intelligence and nanotechnology.
• Teaching from local to global has already taken off. The fundamental concepts of teaching will change. A student in India can join a course from Harvard without leaving India. Schools and colleges will be made to create knowledge for the whole world which will be useful not only for their family of students but for all knowledge seeker.
• The virtual classrooms will be a gamechanger for the current educational system. The current situation is a boon for the current Indian educational situation. In western countries, schools are already going virtual. Teaching should be interactive, applicative, and innovative in this new classroom. Information on anything under the sun is available on the internet with just one click. The student can learn anything from making a cake to building a robot. The teacher must explore their skills with the use of technology.
• The traditional objective of making the student use his memory skills more effectively by remembering and reproducing needs to be changed to enhancing analytical and problem-solving skills by creating projects and model. It will be the biggest challenge for teachers. My advice is, do not stress on remembering but provide them food for thought by challenging their limits, and create groups. By working in groups, the students’ social, communication and analytical skills will improve. Evaluate them on that basis. Experiment with the students. Figure out new technologies of education. Be an agent of change.
• Private learning academies are getting popular as they provide online learning platforms and modules. They have added technology to the mix, thus surpassing the traditional methods of teaching.
• Revolution is coming into the education system. All teachers need to be alert and conscious about the change heralded by the COVID-19 situation.
• Right now, we are in a war-like situation. Virtual teaching is the future of education. Dream big, chase them, and make yourself resourceful, globally competitive and strong communicator.
• (Dr Manasi Atitkar is the Head of the Department, MIT ACSC Alandi, Pune.)