What is Education 4.0?
Education 4.0 is a desired approach to learning that aligns itself with the emerging fourth industrial revolution.
This industrial revolution focuses on smart technology, artificial intelligence, and robotics; all of which now impact our everyday lives.
For universities to continue to produce successful graduates, they must prepare their students for a world where these cyber-physical systems are prevalent across all industries.
This means teaching students about this technology as part of the curriculum, changing the approach to learning altogether, and utilizing this technology to better improve the university experience.
Preparing students for evolving industries
Cyber-physical systems are steadily becoming more integrated into various industries, inevitably affecting the skills requirements for employees.
Research by McKinsey Digital revealed that due to the fourth industrial revolution 60% of all occupations could potentially have at least a third of their activities automated.
The topic of how artificial intelligence might affect jobs in the future was explored in our previous blog: How will Artificial Intelligence Influence the Global Higher Education Sector?
However, there is much more to consider than the potential disruption to the hard skills required for various job roles.
The fourth industrial revolution will also impact the soft skills that students will need in the future.
In 2016, the World Economic Forum produced a report exploring these changes. They predicted that by 2020, “more than a third of the desired core skill sets of most occupations will be comprised of skills that are not yet considered crucial to the job today.”
