Skip to main content

Education in a Changing World

In years past you had to have some years behind you so that you could talk about the good old days.  Conversations would start with statements like “Remember when…?”   Today when a conversation starts with those words it could be a young person talking about how they did things last year or last month vs. how they go about their day to day activities today.
   
Things are changing so fast!  How does this affect educating and training learners and what needs to be tracked and recorded?  Certainly, not the same as it was a decade ago.

 A recent solicitation stated “Use of ed tech is skyrocketing, students on campus tote several devices each, but service needs range from high tech (wifi, connected classroom) to mundane (rat in the cafeteria, dorm toilet won't flush). All those needs have to be logged, serviced, tracked, reported on - hence the high demands on the platform used”.  Opportunity for bigger, better and more technology abounds!

The tools that we use and the infrastructure that supports them are dynamic and keeping apprised of them will have an impact on the value delivered through our colleges and training organizations.  No matter how quickly activities, lifestyles, viewpoints and technologies change, there are some things that stay the same.

Inspiration and Education are required elements for true knowledge transfer.  Inspiration will always be key in education.  To inspire means to fill an individual with the urge or ability to do or feel something, especially to do something creative.  What about education? According to WIKI, “Education is the process of facilitating learning, or the acquisition of knowledge, skills, values, beliefs and habits. Educational methods include storytelling, discussion, teaching, training and directed research. Education frequently takes place under the guidance of educators, but learners may also educate themselves. Education can take place in formal or informal settings and any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts may be considered educational.” 

While Education and Inspiration might remain the cornerstone of teaching, the methodology of teaching is called pedagogy.  The methodology or the way we go about teaching and learning is changing and changing fast!  The tools used by learners, the tools used by teachers and the tools and technology to track and support them are all in a state of flux.

Knowledge transfer and educating learners when you get right down to it has many aspects that will not change.  Instruction delivered with passion and mission could trump the latest and greatest in technology when it comes to learning but the ability for educators and training organizations to keep up with the use of skyrocketing ed tech and the dynamic needs of learners will require both.
 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Four Service Characteristics

Recently I came across several articles by researchers and experts that laid out definitions and characteristics of services. ITIL provides us with a definition that can help drive the creation of value-laden services: A means of delivering value to customers by facilitating outcomes customers want to achieve without the ownership of specific costs and risks. An area that ITIL is not so clear is in terms of service characteristics. Several researchers and experts put forth that services have four basic characteristics (IHIP): Intangibility—Services are the results of actions not things. They have no physical presence and represent a logical set of elements. One way to think of service is “work done for others.”  Heterogeneity—Also known as “variability”; services are unique items because of the mechanisms used to deliver services, which is people. Because the people element adds variability, the service is variable. This holds true, especially for the value proposition—not eve...

What Is A Service Offering?

The ITIL 4 Best Practice Guidance defines a “Service Offering” as a description of one or more services designed to address the needs of a target customer or group.   As a service provider, we can’t stop there!   We must know what the contracts of our service offering are and be able to put them into context as required by the customer.     Let’s explore the three elements that comprise a Service Offering. A “Service Offering” may include:     Goods, Access to Resources, and Service Actions 1. Goods – When we think of “Goods” within a service offering these are the items where ownership is transferred to the consumer and the consumer takes responsibility for the future use of these goods.   Example of goods that are being provided in the offering – If this is a hotel service then toiletries or chocolates are yours to take with you.   You the consumer own these and they are yours to take with you.      ...

What is the difference between Process Owner, Process Manager and Process Practitioner?

This article was originally published in 2015. With the Introduction of ITIL 4, some of this best practice has changed. See  ITIL 4 and the Evolving Role of Roles . Updated Definitions in ITIL 4: Process Owner: In ITIL 4, the concept of 'processes' has expanded into broader 'practices.' Consequently, the Process Owner is now often referred to as the 'Practice Owner.' This individual is accountable for the overall design, performance, integration, and improvement of a specific practice within the organization. They ensure that the practice achieves its intended outcomes and aligns with the organization's objectives. Process Manager: Now commonly known as the 'Practice Manager' in ITIL 4, this role is responsible for the day-to-day management of the practice. The Practice Manager ensures that activities are carried out as intended, manages resources assigned to the practice, and oversees the practitioners performing the work. Process Practit...