Abstract:

It’s become clear that COVID-19 has effectively become the “technological tipping point” for higher education. Although the current educational landscape poses significant challenges, it also offers unparalleled opportunities to develop much needed long-term digital transformation in academia. In the same way digital transformation focuses on the customer journey, learning institutions must focus on how students navigate their way from enrollment through graduation and beyond.

In this presentation, Gutenberg Technology CEO Gjergj Demiraj will discuss how the current educational landscape provides colleges and universities with the opportunity to evolve the traditional education model into one that not only addresses students’ short-term needs in the 2020-2021 school year, but also helps tackle the biggest challenges in education – including affordability, student-centric learning, and continuing education. Topics he will discuss include:

Making education more affordable: For many students, the cost of higher education prevents them from attending a traditional learning institution. With a pandemic disrupting normal operations and more online programs cropping up, college administrators should take a look at how e-Learning programs can improve accessibility for more students. Gjergj will outline how to create a successful e-Learning program, touching on how to implement infrastructure that supports the various ways students and instructors interact, as well as what features and capabilities makes for the most engaging e-Learning platforms.

Providing student-centric learning: The most pervasive barrier to a student-centered approach is the existing culture at most institutions of higher learning. Many institutions focus on what the student needs to know, not on how the student wants to learn that information. Gjergj will discuss what steps colleges and universities should take to meet student needs. For example, finding ways to optimize course schedules to make it easier for students to enroll in high-demand courses that are required for graduation, or developing a tool that can help students map out their degree program, plan out their schedules and monitor their progress towards graduation.

Bridging the gap between colleges and continuing education: Traditional four-year institutions have tried to address adult students’ needs without much success, offering credits for prior work or military experiences, developing weekend-only degree programs, and providing childcare services. Gjergj will explain how institutions can rethink how to create an environment that is more conducive to the lifestyle of working students by working with corporate partners to design learning environments that benefit both the employer and the employee. This includes strategies such as using micro-credential classes as building blocks to a more formal degree and creating an experiential learning option that builds on existing work experience and incorporates existing on-the-job opportunities.

Ultimately, attendees of this discussion will learn that no matter what platform or tools an institution chooses to use, colleges and universities need to shift their focus to how, when, and where students learn to be truly effective in today’s virtual world.

Keywords:

Technology-enhanced learning, L&D, COVID-19, digital transformation, affordability, student-centric learning, adult studies, e-learning, micro-credentials.