In the age of industrial revolution, the demand for competency-based hiring is on the rise, making professional education degrees appeared irrelevant in most job descriptions. That's why, many experts believed that education technology's (EdTech) potential to transform the field of education can also be useful in bridging the burgeoning skills and learning gap in the workforce industry.
As professional education continuously evolves, having a college degree seemed to have lost its importance in the society these days. In fact, only 20 percent of college degree holders are ready to work in spite of the fact that millennials are currently the most educated generation, Quartz revealed.
As smart technology and automation continue to rise, the workforce industry is needing individuals who are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to launch a career hence investing in lifelong learning could be a competitive advantage, Parent Herald previously reported. But with education technology, continuing education and the "age-old dilemma" on whether to continue on studying or stop to concentrate on landing a job can also be finally addressed.
According to The Financial Express, education technology can eliminate the "huge gap" between what is being taught in schools and what is pertinent for the industry. Just like India, other developing nations and the United States are also facing one of the major setbacks of higher education where the work-age population lacks the necessary skills and knowledge deemed worthy in the real world.
Since education technology is more affordable and accessible to students and working professionals, the need for continuous education is possible through Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and other popular interactive digital learning formats. Due to this, EdTech will not only be enhancing an individual's learning experience but also prepare them with new and useful skill-sets Business Wire noted.
Aside from the fact that education technology can provide sufficient opportunities to bridge the burgeoning skills gap, individuals can also pursue and complete an online course of their choice in a short amount of time and while still earning a living. With the combination of EdTech and other digital tools such as artificial intelligence, gamification, virtual reality, machine learning and interactive digital learning, skills gap in the workforce industry would be gradually eliminated.
In other education technology-related news, the inclusion of EdTech into the New Zealand school curriculum as a separate subject was reportedly denied, Computerworld learned. Unfortunately, the disapproval have ignited a protest from the industry sector of the nation.
"Experts participating in the review from the tech profession, industry, digital technologies teachers, researchers and other domain experts were clear that moving it into its own subject learning area was absolutely necessary, thus the decision by the minister to block this was disappointing," Institute of IT Professionals NZ (IITP) said.
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