Tec Institute for Future of Education shares challenges with teachers

Directors from the Institute for the Future of Education (IFE) at Tec de Monterrey shared their work and the challenges for the future of education during a panel at the 2022 National Teachers’ Conference.

Michael Fung, Executive Director of the IFE, and José Escamilla, Associate Director of the institute, spoke about disruptors and the new paradigms of education.

“Accelerated growth in the education sector is expected over the next 20 years, which implies major changes to the way we teach and learn,” Fung explained.

“Our dream at the IFE is to create a future for education which will improve the lives of millions of people around the world,” shared Escamilla.

CONECTA shares the most important points concerning these educational challenges.

Transformations in the workplace and education

According to Fung, technological advances, demographic changes, career longevity, and globalization, as well as the recent global pandemic, have served as disruptors within the future employment landscape.

“We need new skills to deal with these disruptions,” said the IFE’s executive director.

While the expert emphasized that different disruptors will always be part of the norm, Fung stressed how they increasingly require a more agile, flexible, and adaptable educational model. 

“The problem we’re now facing is that our educational systems aren’t designed to deal with disruptors, so we need a new paradigm that adapts,” Fung explained.

The executive director points out that we first need a system that focuses on lifelong learning that’s capable of supporting the updating of knowledge people acquire as time goes by.

“A trend we’ll see in the future is this emphasis on active learning, placing students at the center, and giving greater importance to challenge-based learning,” added Escamilla.

Likewise, Fung points out the need for multiple pathways or routes within education that give students the ability to continue learning in different areas to remain employable.

“Employers say they’re looking for graduates with relevant skills from the very first day they join the industry,” he shared.

Similarly, the expert underlined the importance of challenge-based learning to ensure students have the necessary skills when entering the job market.

A model able to adapt to a shifting paradigm

According to Fung’s assessment, models such as Tec21 already have a skills and challenge-based learning approach that can deal with the changing employment landscape.

The Tec21 Model is based on challenge-based learning with flexibility, inspiring professors, and a memorable student experience.

“This type of approach will help us modularize our curriculum so that it can be much more flexible and responsive to the changing needs of the workforce,” he said.

That being the case, the expert believes new models should have more learning based on work and workplaces, introducing problems from industry into the classroom.
 

“Our dream at the IFE is to create a future for education which will improve the lives of millions of people around the world.” - José Escamilla

In order to do so, the executive director emphasizes lifelong learning as a way for students, professors, and alumni to have continuous development.

Similarly, he highlighted the role played by skills and governance/operations within universities within the process of new educational models.

“We need to have a forecast of the skills that’ll be required, as well as greater participation from industries,” he stressed.

As Fung sees it, learning and growth isn’t only for students, but also for teachers, since they should also receive life and career advice along with updated information about the industry to which they belong.

On a final note, Michael highlighted the need for a flexible learning environment that allows people to come and go seamlessly as needed to continue their education over the course of their lives.

The future of education will be “fair”

As part of his participation, Fung highlighted the IFE’s vision for the future of education, which is that it must be “fair” (FAIR: Fit for Purpose, Accessible, Inclusive, and Relevant/Responsive).

“The future of education must be FAIR. Education has to be fit for purpose, accessible, inclusive, and relevant,” said the director.

The first point, “Fit for Purpose”, refers to the fact that pedagogical and technological approaches must be capable of culminating in effective learning.

The second, “Accessible”, refers to accessibility in education, particularly when it comes to catering to the needs and contexts of different types of students.

In terms of inclusive and high-quality education, Fung says that both higher education and lifelong learning are opportunities that should be universally accessible to all segments of the population.

Lastly, the director emphasized the final point, ensuring that education must be relevant and responsive to the changing needs of both industries and society.

Regarding the use of technology, Escamilla recalled the importance of thinking of it as a pedagogical tool that places students and users at the center.

“In the future, technology will allow us to develop educational models that aren’t currently possible due to the limitations we have,” he explained.

According to Escamilla, artificial intelligence is first among the technologies that will be the driving forces for keeping up with these trends. 

“The important thing to remember is that technology will never be a substitute for teachers, but merely a support,” he stressed.

The Institute for the Future of Education grasps the challenge

According to Escamilla, the IFE has identified 5 challenges for the future of education, which they seek to combat from an institutional perspective.

“These challenges help us at the institute in guiding everything we do. We organize our research, innovation, and entrepreneurship on the basis of these,” shared the associate director.

Regarding the challenge of access and inclusion, he proposed developing skills for worker mobility, as well as enhancing the quality of Higher Education and learning opportunities for all population sectors. 

When talking about quality and relevance, he proposed raising learning outcomes and transforming teaching methods to make them more attractive and efficient. 

What’s more, he suggested designing effective systems for skills-based education and lifelong learning to improve learning outcomes.

Finally, concerning efficiency, he highlighted the importance of making education affordable and convenient for different student segments.

“We aren’t going to achieve the dream we have for the future of education alone. We need the support and collaboration of many people and organizations around the world to achieve it,” Escamilla concluded.

2022 National Teachers’ Conference 

From July 4 to 7, Tec de Monterrey is holding the 2022 National Teachers’ Conference, a space with messages from directors about educational advances and future plans, as well as talks from guest speakers and hybrid activities. 

This year’s main theme is “Our faculty: Impact, Closeness, and Technology in a ‘High Touch-High Tech’ environment.”

This conference is being held on-campus at 4 venues: Monterrey campus, Mexico City campus, Guadalajara campus, and Querétaro campus.

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