Changing The Education Equation: How Tech Is Building A Global Learning Environment

Ninety-five percent of eighth graders, regardless of race, income or other factors, say they plan to go to college. “We know, four years later, only 37% actually graduate really ready to succeed in college.”

Or that’s what Stacey Childress has seen as CEO of  NewSchools Venture Fund, a nonprofit working to transform public education for low-income children. So what’s causing the disconnect, and how can we change it? That was a topic of discussion at the FORBES’ third annual Women’s Summit Wednesday.

Moderated by Wenda Harris HRS +1.15% Millard, president of MediaLink, Childress joined in conversation with Roya Mahboob, CEO of Digital Citizens Fund; Ramonda Pierson, CEO of Declara; and Lynda Weinman, cofounder of lynda.com.

In short, the panelists agreed a lack of innovation is a big cause. Education is a long-accepted tradition, but when compared with nearly every sector of the economy, is also one that’s lagged in adapting to the times. That’s the culprit of a big learning disconnect with the most diverse and connected generation in history.

“We’re sending them into a school built for our great, great grandparents,” Childress said.

So where are there opportunities for change? That’s what Mahboob, Pierson, Weinman and Childress have been focusing on for years.

First up: Creating a flexibility in the students. “Instead of us having prescriptive learning defined for us, we can build learning tools for all people,” said Pierson, whose company puts to work users’ data — like how they read, and search for information — to more quickly help them find what they may be looking for.

Next, tap into the hyper-connected nature of a new generation. Learning happens on a global scale, and conversations happen in real-time — not in one classroom each week. “How do we take insights in real time and get people to have conversation in real time?” Pierson asked. “We have to rethink learning and teaching styles.”

For Weinman, that means putting the classroom experience at the student’s fingertips. “Lynda.com is all about choice and freedom. If you know something, but have to sit through a long lecture, you’ll be bored.” So instead her platform, which sold to LinkedIn LNKD -0.06% in April for $1.5 billion, offers courses in business, technology and creative skills that users can take as they wish.

For Mahboob, it meant providing training and access to mobile technology to Afghan women and children. “In most of Islamic influenced areas, women should not go out. Technology is the best way women can stay at home but still do education and work for companies online.” That ropes in opportunities like accounting, website design or any other career that can be done remotely. “There are so many jobs online they can do,” she said.

Both are important examples of disrupting the traditional classroom model, allowing tech and mobile an opportunity to advance under-served markets and expanding critical learning opportunities from a classroom space to a global audience.

“Learning isn’t just about being a passive consumer of information,” Pierson said. “It means you become the expert and educate others.”

Source | http://www.forbes.com/