‘Students and employers will begin to question
the value of a university degree’
Education is set
for massive transformation as technology is ushering in a new era in the field
of learning, said T.V. Mohandas Pai, Chairman Aarin Capital. In the new
scheme of things the student would be at the core and would decide as well as
create her/his own degree at one’s own pace and medium. Mr. Pai, former Infosys
CFO, and who is also Chairman, Manipal Global Education Services, explains what
Education 4.0 is all about. Excerpts:
What
is Education 4.0 and why is it important?
Education 4.0 is putting students at
the heart of educational experience and creating individual learning
experiences. Education 1.0 was the traditional method of students going to a
Gurukul in India. Then came the universities as in Takshila and Nalanda in
India.
Then
Universities came up in Europe. Then you had the industrial revolution which
demanded a large number of people who could be trained. There, student read
books, sat down and listened to the teachers. They had a course, they had a
curriculum and then they obtained a certificate to earn a livelihood.
In Education
4.0, students can create a degree of their own, are able to do a degree in
nuclear science [combining it] with biotechnology, with dance, with music or
with fundamental physics or something like that.
The mix and
match is available and can be done offline or online. A student can sit at home
do a course online and get a degree.
So, in Education
4.0 students can design their own course, learn offline or online and they can
also make sure that they can learn at their own pace. At the end of it, they
obtain a certificate that they can carry to job interviews.
How
is it panning out?
It’s already
happening in the world. Many students will ask themselves why they need a
university degree? Why can’t they do things on their own?
Employers will
ask what the value of a university degree is? It is happening but slowly in
India because lots of people have a common education system and they still want
a degree. We see change all over the world and in next 5-10 years we see
acceleration and an increase in people taking such certification.
Will things
change in India in next 2 to 3 years?
Totally. I see
change very slowly but I see a time when many people are well settled. Then we
ask the question why I should send my child to college when I can educate him
at home and get a certification.
Will
Education 4.0 see reality by 2020?
I think around
the world it will pick up by 2020 and in India by 2025. Our problem is the
government. Our problem is the UGC. And also remember we are long behind the
curve... in America, 70% of people go to college, in Germany 80% and in Japan
88% of people go to college.
How
do you enhance the quality of education?
For that we need
to see which are the best institutes in the world and what the catalyst is. The
best institutes are Oxford, Harvard, Cambridge and they are so good because
they decide what they want to do.
They decide on
courses, examinations... No Government and no regulator interference. The U.S.
and U.K. governments just give money. We need to give full freedom to the top
100 education institutions and in the next five years we will see a change. We
also need public funding for research. The government should have a ₹5,000
crore annual fund for research and all universities should bid for it.
Has the
government brought about any reform in the education sector?
The biggest
disappointment of the NDA government is that they have not done much in the
education sector. Only now since Prakash Javdekar has come in do we see a focus
on institutions of national importance
We have not seen
many institutions like Manipal….
It is because
there is control. Government is not giving approval to private sector people.
Those who gave bribes got the approval. At one point, there were 4,500-5,000
engineering colleges in one year. How did they come up? They all gave money.
The system is rotten, it’s corrupt, and the bad people got it. Now, we are
getting good universities. Jindal has put up a University, now Manipal has been
there. And 5 to 6 people are coming up. I think Prime Minister should talk to
billionaires of this country to come and up set up a University by putting ₹2000
crore each of their own money because you are a billionaire and can afford to
spend.
Can
we have Oxford or Cambridge type institutions in India?
We can. Give our
universities research and see the magic in 5 years. Give them money for
research and ask them to compete. Create a kitty of ₹5000
crore of public money. State and Central Government spend ₹40
lakh crore in a year on education.
Source: THE HINDU-10th December,2017
