Curated by the Knowledge Team of ICS Career GPS
Education
How The Pandemic Has Revealed The True Value Of Education
Excerpts from article by James Krouse, published in Forbes
We’ve seen plenty of what the back-to-school “new normal” looks like, and it’s time to assess what we’ve learned so far—what’s working and what isn’t for in-person and online education, and what we’ve learnt to value about education itself. This depends, of course, on your perspective and your personal situation.
When reflecting about what we have learnt from this pandemic, there are four major lessons we have learned with regards to education:
- Online education worked as a temporary solution to respond to a crisis.
- Nothing replaces the value of in-person, in school education which goes beyond the books.
- In any education curriculum, we now know that an optimally balanced hybrid of in-person and online education should be a priority.
- A strong hybrid model of personal and remote learning will allow education to pivot quickly in the event of disruptions of COVID magnitude.
Education, in fact, is about more than education.
Beyond the books, educational institutions provide spaces for students to socialize, to build relationships, to be safe and importantly, for many younger children to have access to a hot meal. And above all they provide positive role models that can challenge and inspire their students to strive to achieve.
Instead, this year many schools have not been able to rise to the challenge of how they can deliver this experience online.
For the parents who are working from home, it becomes nearly impossible to balance their own work calls and duties with their new homeschooling responsibilities for which they have no training.
In at least one way or another, we have become acutely aware of the value of face-to-face education.
Has Online Education Delivered On The Hype and The Hope?
The predictions that online education is the inevitable endgame for learning at every level have been gathering pace for decades. Several online education programs have been available for years, so we’ve known that the tools are there to some degree.
Until we found ourselves in the middle of a pandemic and we had no other choice as schools and economies went into lock down, the model had not been put to the test.
And whilst on the face of it, the learning needs are being provided for, students are desperate in most cases to return to their schools and campuses.
College students have gone back to school and many, even though they have moved into their dorm and live on campus, are taking at least some classes online from their dorms – a situation that’s likely to continue until at least spring.
Many students and their parents are questioning the value of online education when they’re paying premium tuition to attend elite universities. Increasing numbers of lawsuits are being filed against universities as students demand refunds and prorated tuition.
What’s So Valuable About The College Experience?
There’s no doubt that face-to-face education will have to change and adapt to the post-COVID world. But institutions offering online education must consider how to deliver a better learning experience which strives to offer some of the experiences and interactions that students can gain from being in the classroom.
In terms of both experience and academics, many programs of study require hands-on education in labs and in clinical environments that cannot be sufficiently replicated in virtual environments. Be it experience of studying abroad and exploring new culture or making friends that enrich your personality and can result in strong professional associations; online teaching methods cannot provide a substitute for this.
At this point, it seems highly unlikely that online education can or should be the ultimate goal for our educational models.
Moving Toward The Development of Intelligent Hybrid Educational Models
We need flexibility in options for blending virtual and in-person education. But pricing will likely need to be tiered according to options. For example, students attending elite universities but still taking classes online from their dorms cannot justify paying the tuition for a fraction of the experience of attending and living in the campus community.
Business and industry have been embracing digital transformation by integrating intelligent solutions driven by AI, machine learning, Big Data, and the Internet of Things into their operations and processes.
This includes integrating the power of machines to enhance and complement uniquely human abilities to create organizations that are more efficient, more profitable, and more human while delivering better, more innovative products and customer experiences.
It only makes sense for education to take similar steps to continue adapting and evolving to life and economics post-COVID.
To support university students and young people whose learning has been interrupted during the pandemic, SAP has delivered a new free of charge digital learning initiative offering innovative, interactive educational content to support students, professionals and anyone wishing to continue to learn.
For older learners, course topics include automated robotic process automation, data science, machine learning, ethical artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), sustainability, Java programming and more.
For younger learners, SAP Young Thinkers provides a foundation for digital literacy, inspiring the next generation to pursue careers in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) fields.
Career
How To Use These Three Principles To Strengthen Your Career
Excerpts from article by Amy Blaschka, published in Forbes
When I work with leaders, my goal is to help them communicate and connect better with their intended audiences. While I tout the importance of sharing their unique stories, developing their emotional intelligence, and serving, not selling, I always come back to three core principles: clarity, consistency, and discipline.
By focusing on these areas, you’ll not only improve your communication, enhance your thought leadership, and bolster your personal brand, you’ll also strengthen your career. Here’s how:
CLARITY
Are you ambitious yet always seem to be spinning your wheels and not progressing professionally? You probably lack clarity.
Clarity is all about focus. And in our chaotic world, where there are endless distractions, that’s more important than ever.
When you’re clear, everything becomes easier. People understand you, what you offer, your value, what differentiates you, how you can help them, and how they can assist you. Clarity helps others know, like, and trust you.
Having clarity also enables you to align your goals with a plan to achieve them—and stay away from the things that can derail you.
The best way to gain clarity is to slow down and reflect on what you want most. Though asking yourself, “What do I want?” may seem like an easy exercise, for some, it can be surprisingly difficult.
Also, realize that you may change your answer over time. Challenge yourself to be open enough to allow new and alternative—and sometimes even better—possibilities to emerge.
But here’s the thing about clarity: it demands specificity, and there is no room for a wishy-washy answer.
Once you have clarity, make sure that your actions support your goal. Just because you’re busy doesn’t mean you’re productive. You must make a conscious decision to align your attention with your intention.
CONSISTENCY
Consistency is about aligning and maintaining your “voice” and look and feel in all your communications. It’s the way you present yourself, the way you sound, the way you write, all of the visual and verbal touchpoints. So much so that people come to expect—and anticipate—your specific point of view and unique perspective.
The strongest brands understand that consistency—in tone, look and feel, and messaging—is vital. No one would ever mistake Apple with Microsoft.
For a moment, think about your core values and competencies versus the way you promote yourself—are they in sync? Would your colleagues and clients agree?
Rather than make your consumers, customers, and clients guess who you are and what you stand for, make sure to communicate your intended message by maintaining consistency.
DISCIPLINE
It’s lovely to have many interests; it’s terrible when people aren’t clear on your strengths and how you can help them.
Discipline means that you stick with those few areas where you have expertise and avoid veering off course in your messaging, audience, or platform.It means saying no to the things that do not support your professional brand and its offerings. The danger is if you vary too much from this, you might confuse people. And worse, you might lose them.
Instead, focus on what you do best, and let the other things fade into the background. Promote those one or two areas in your wheelhouse and your expertise in helping others so that your name becomes synonymous with those skills. In this way, restraint can be your biggest ally.
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article mentioned above are those of the author(s). They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of ICS Career GPS or its staff.)
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