Kala Vijayakumar, President, Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering at CII NHE Conclave delivered the inaugural address saying that when Industry 1.0 was revolutionised by the Steam Engine, Edu.1.0 was more teacher-centric, and students just received info and reproduced it but Education 4.0 is innovation-producing education which is student centric, and enables them to be creative.
Coimbatore: The 6th edition of CII's National Higher Education Conclave (NHEC) 2022 was held in Coimbatore on the theme 'Reimagining Higher Education for the Future of Work.’
Arjun Prakash, Immediate Past Chairman, CII Coimbatore Zone delivered the opening remarks.
R Nandini, Chairperson, National Higher Education Conclave 2022 addressed the gathering on the theme of the conclave 'Reimagining Higher Education for the Future of Work.’ In her address, R Nandini said that Covid pandemic has disrupted the way education is imparted in the world. "We need to ensure that the entire teaching/learning process is future proof in India to produce a workforce that is future ready. Some statistics show that India could account for 20 percent of the talent pool of the G20 countries.
Therefore it is really essential to engage them in the right way and ensure that this large prospective workforce is equipped with the right skills. Many traditional institutions struggle to provide effective vocational training to students due to various factors and it is needed for the students to gear up to the fast-changing world," she added.
Shankar Vanavarayar, Vice Chairman, CII Tamil Nadu State Council in his Special Address said that 1 in 5 or 6 youth in the world is an Indian but 52 percent of students coming out of educational institutions in our country according to India Skills Report are unemployable. Referring to data mentioned in reports, he said that while India has over 30,000 colleges and over 1000 Universities, more than 50 percent of Indian Higher Educational Institutions are not even accredited.
"India loses 17 billion USD a year as young Indian students. Our curriculum, applied knowledge and modern tech are outdated, our research spending is lower when compared to US and Israel. India needs to spend more on its research, else the Industry will have to answer for that. Innovative practices need to come into classrooms, and both the students and teachers have to be exposed to international standards," he emphasized.
Kala Vijayakumar while delivering the inaugural address stated, "When Industry 1.0 was revolutionized by Steam Engine, Edu.1.0 was more teacher-centric, and students just received info and reproduced it. In Industry 2.0, Electricity revolutionized the sector, and Edu. 2.0 had slight improvements from 1.0, but it was more hours of teaching and less hours of learning. In Industry 3.0, Electronics and Internet took the stage and education started becoming student- centric, with teachers being guides to them, around the world.
Today Internet of Things (IOT) VR, Metaverse, etc. is taking the industry by storm. Education needs to be at 4.0 phase in India, where Education is about making the students innovative and creative, but we still have to bridge the gap. For instance, the Gross Enrollment Ratio in Higher Education is just 27 percent in 2020. The target should be 50 percent by 2035. Education should become more affordable and accessible. As the coming revolutions are internet-based, internet connectivity has to be ensured for all. Till Jan 2022, 53 percent of the Indian population lacked connectivity."
S Malarvizhi, Co-Chairperson, National Higher Education Conclave delivered the closing remarks stating that she wanted the higher educational institutions to plan for a flexible multi-disciplinary education where students are taught their core subjects along with humane, ethical and moral values." She added that she wanted them to impart skill-oriented education, and make the classrooms a place of discussion rather than mere teaching. She emphasized that labs in the colleges ought to be of a high standard; "project oriented labs" so that they can apply what they learn on a daily basis.