Skills
shortage or inadequacy of workforce is a global phenomenon. Today, we people
need specialized skills for particular job profiles; one that requires
generalized ability as well as pointedly specific skills to execute the current
job function. A sizeable portion of our middle and top management comprise of
people who were predominantly educated during the 70s and 80s. A lot has
changed in the world since then. It is a serious feeling that for a diverse set
of reasons the growing work force will need to be rapidly re-skilled. This will
increase employability and help organizations hire productive human resource. There
will be a demand for around 300 million skilled people by 2022 in India itself.
However,
what were lacking till recently are reliable and effective sources for
continuing education to smoothen the rough edges. In today’s world, there is
critical need for specialized selective learning at all levels – entry, middle
and senior. Based on the job profile of the moment, people need additional
education/ learning packets to cope with the demands of day – to – day world.
For example: A person is working as an
executive up with some global giant. He/ She needs to know the nuances of
globalization, about local markets, emerging economies etc, cost difference,
transfer pricing etc. These topics maybe taught to a certain extent in
management programs but this person needs very specific and realistic
understanding of the subject to discharge day-to-day responsibilities and not
just have a conceptual understanding.
Similarly, a person having responsibility of
costing cannot limit oneself with knowledge of finance. He/ she will need
in-depth understanding of the manufacturing process, cost drivers, process
flow, significance of each step, technology etc.
What we are
stressing upon in this article is not just higher graduate level education but
some serious concentrated topics for gaining exclusive and precise competence
with the changing environment.
Spirit of MOOC
Education,
learning and knowledge are required in equal portions to become skillful. In
the last 3 decades we have seen lot of improvement in higher education not only
in terms of content but accessibility and ease of learning and application.
There were quite a few distance learning programs and then came the Internet.
We started getting access to presentations and teaching notes of professors
from universities around the world. YouTube happened and video lectures and
“how-tos” came into the scenario. SlideShare presentations provide a wide range
of learning topics. At every step there has been marked improvement. And
everyday access to quality and flexible specialized courses started becoming
convenient and cost-effective. However, just a couple of years back hopes to do
even a short course from the prestigious Harvard or Stanford University were
elusive for many. Exposure to such world-class education standards was
restricted to a select few each year. Today we can imagine doing the same from
the calm confines of our home or office or even sitting in a park.
The leaps and bounds of
growth in Information Technology have now given mankind –Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC). These are platforms for
providing world class courses which are interactive, participative and most
importantly OPEN TO ALL accessible through the web. It is posed to create a
revolution of sorts.
One such
course on Introduction to Artificial Intelligence is reported by Udacity to
have received close to 160,000 enrollments from 190 countries. It is like all
the countries on this planet. This is unimaginable in a normal classroom
setting.
These
courses are available openly online with usually two options – free to learn
and paid for certification. The courses have online forums for all students to
discuss. Real-life cases are shared between students from America, Africa,
Latina America, Australia, Europe and Asia simultaneously enriching the entire
learning process. There is peer to peer review of assignments and tests to
evaluate level of learning. And a huge knowledge bank is getting created in the
process. There are few front line providers of MOOC but regional sites are also
coming up rapidly from across the world which is teaching in native language.
These
platforms are ideal for continuing education, learning in parts based on time
and need, and building competency. Most importantly this is like Spreading
Education across Borders treating the student pool as One World.
The spirit of MOOC can
be encapsulated best by Udacity’s belief – “Education is no longer a one-time
event but a lifelong experience.”
MOOC Resources
The largest
MOOC providers are: edX, Udacity and Coursera
edX promotes itself as consortium of many schools.
Coursera’s
website claims to have 300 + courses and content from 62 universities across 16
countries and still counting.
Emerging Concerns
A MOOC when
accessed by us seems so fluid and enriching but it takes lot of effort to
create the course material and videos. There are hours of recording involved on
part of the faculty and their assistants. Due to the interactive nature of the
course, the teaching staff has to engage with the students and steer the
discussions in the right direction or make valuable inputs to keep the
conversation lucid and valuable.
The student
teacher ratio is very high; there is a pressure for more feedback that is
preferably instantaneous. The structured course material like reading material
also needs to be developed simultaneously.
With all
things bright and shining in favor of MOOC, there are doubts and concern. Well
that is the case with anything new or outrageous or courageous. When you bring
out such huge chunks of knowledge and learning from the hallowed halls to the
nook and crannies of the world, causing disruptive innovation, the purists can
get jittery. There are voices suggesting that it is a passing hype and will die
down soon. Questions are also on the effectiveness of the course and about
completion percentage.
Many people
seek out these courses like gardening and take away only bits and pieces. There
is lack of seriousness. Keeping oneself motivated in a self – learning
environment is quite a challenge. I have taken up a Globalization course myself
(INFX523-01-Globalization’s Winners and Losers: Challenges for Developed and
Developing Countries) and I am seriously lagging behind. Honestly, I signed up
to get a first hand feel of a MOOC.
MOOC will Change the Future
MOOC is
still at its initial stages and as technology evolves so will MOOCs especially
the delivery part and it will invigorate lateral development. Few years back we
never thought of needing a social media expert did we? MOOCs will also spawn a
new set of opportunities for small companies to provide facilities to develop
courses (including studio facility), create supporting material, design and
develop ebooks and slides as the rage takes over the world and many
universities come forward to embrace it. Even if these local universities lack
global appeal, they will still be able to find a sizeable audience among people
in their own country.
It will
surely become a great leveler. When gifted but resource – challenged people get
access to this kind and quality of education, my mind simply quivers with joy
to think how many new Googles and Facebooks will dot this world. Entrepreneurship
for one will get a huge thrust.
It is too
early to say how MOOCs will change the education dynamics world over. Whether
MOOC is overhyped or the norm for the future, only time will tell. My view is
that MOOC will surely transform many a “Mook”
(Hindi term for Mute, Unspoken, Voiceless, Wordless) into competent,
productive and confident souls.
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