Industry and private sector reports and initiatives indicate substantial readiness to return to work and are taking advantage of the digital technology opportunities which are already benefiting the economy. However, as evidenced with their panic response to COVID-19, learning institutions are yet to seriously rethink how to take advantage of the plethora of opportunities and overcome the challenges enabled by ever-increasing technological advancements.
The current teacher education system needs a substantial adjustment with more courses added into the curriculum to teach on the functionality and application of digital technologies with a clear link to how these can be best used for learning. The strategic use of this technology in other courses that form part of the curriculum as well as in personal life would emphasise it's practical relevance. It is however important for both educators to have an understanding of hot best utilise technology for educational purposes, which sometimes differs from its use for non-educational activities.
Most students have access to electronic devices already from which they can read and study. However, limited exposure to the advanced affordances of this technology hinders them to tap into the current digital technological advancements. It is vital for them to be trained on how to maximize technology for learning purposes.
The educational requirements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) call for response from education facilitating institutions in South Africa and the African continent at large to engage new models of teaching and assessing and improving the outcomes. It is no longer enough for a learner to be able to regurgitate what has been given to them, but the modern day learner needs to have a voice and contribute to the build-up of knowledge. The objective is to equip them on how to navigate through the vast knowledge available to them and how best they can use technology to achieve this. The 21st century learner must have a global framework of learning such that they can be competitive across contexts and cultures. This is impossible if both educator and learners do not have the relevant technological empowerment.
What education institutions need is a revolutionalised digital training for educators and learners alike, pushing the envelop on leadership, innovation, as well as teaching and learning methods that are result oriented to unleash their creative potential.
I am an advocate for educational technology empowerment for both higher education and basic education institutions - Both departments of education and industry should form educational technology incubators where both educators and learners are empowered in terms of learning and applying new technologies into their practices.
In conclusion, the 4IR indicates a massive disruption on the entire human system, therefore, signalling the need for entire systems in every sector to transform. This disruption, however has a great potential to drive education like never before, enabling the realisation of the 4Cs (critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and communication) thus empowering the future generations.