An intersectional approach to the future of learning | University World News

Dr Philomena Mantella, senior vice-president and CEO of Northeastern University’s Lifelong Learning Network and president-elect of Grand Valley State University says, I’m one of the many people that believe we’re living in the Golden Age of Education. I fully recognise the pressures on our colleges and universities. However, evidence suggests higher education has produced centuries of personal, economic and social mobility. 

It is true that the pace of technological advancements, the rise of artificial intelligence, the reality of socio-economic disparities and new modes of human communication create an urgency and necessity for our educational enterprises to change.

It’s also true that the education system – whether secondary or higher education – has been among the hardest of systems to move. For the most part, change itself has largely been pursued as either evolution, handicapped by its laborious pace, or revolution, which is inherently challenging because of its disruptive nature.

We need a third, more agile approach to engaging with convention; one that hones in on the intersections of opportunity and possibility...

This shift from a linear to intersectional view of education is where new opportunities lie and where we see the prospects for scaling impact, reducing cost and improving outcomes. The intersectional view can not only enlarge impact but also provide sandboxes for real, sustainable business models to develop. Our educational systems must be sustainable in order to create true intergenerational resilience.
I use a framework – extending value, creating value and alleviating burdens – to stimulate even the most conventional among us to reflect on intersections of new opportunity. Here are a few illustrative examples:
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Source: University World News