Platforms such as MOOCs can make higher education accessible for students in far-flung areas
TV Mohandas Pai and Shobha Mishra Ghosh
Digital technology started to impact the way of life in India in a significant manner in the last 5 years. In the 1970s, having a landline telephone was a luxury. Today, India ranks third amongst the top countries of smartphone users, second in mobile phones with over 1 billion connections. By 2020, India’s mobile economy will contribute $400 billion to GDP, there will be 500-million-plus broadband users and the country will have the largest Facebook population.
The Digital India initiative of prime minister Narendra Modi, for mission-mode implementation, therefore, is timely. Through digitisation, the government aims to ensure availability of government services to all citizens electronically, thereby reducing paperwork and corruption, to connect rural areas with high-speed internet networks as well as to promote digital literacy among the citizens of the country. Using Digital India for education by giving every student access to the internet, via a tablet or some other device (with rich multimedia content) will transform society in 5 years as no other government programme can, that too at a low cost.
The Indian higher education system has to undergo massive expansion to accommodate 70 million students by 2030, as per the FICCI-EY Higher Education Vision 2030 report. This expansion will be possible only through extensive use of ICT tools, or else, we will have to build 6 universities and 270 colleges every month for next 15 years to meet the demand—a feat that is near impossible given our limited resources. To remain relevant in contemporary economies and societies, our universities will need to fully embrace technology in all aspects of their operations—administration, teaching/learning and research.
Digital India is a promising opportunity to use technology to revitalise our education system and address the huge learning crisis that our country faces. Innovative technologies today are creating new forms of adaptive and peer learning, increasing access to trainers and mentors, and providing useful data in real-time. This implies that Digital India should empower every Indian, especially the youth, and give access to the web and a device, particularly to those who cannot afford it.
According to the World Bank, in 2010-14, only 15% Indians had access to internet. This situation needs to be corrected urgently and adequate bandwidth must be given to ensure fast and uninterrupted connectivity for all schools and universities/higher education institutions across the country. Every child in Class VI and above should be provided with a tablet with rich multi-media content connected to wi-fi and 3G. This will bridge the gap in quality of education to some extent, give every child access to the best global content and level the playing field across India.
The existing schemes like the National Knowledge Network (NKN) and National Mission on Education through ICT (NMEICT) should be made more effective and efficient by formulating clear policies with involvement of all stakeholders in planning and execution.
Today, there is a disruption in the process of learning and this is going to accelerate with time. Technology can create individual learning paths, make learning interactive and fun through gamification and provide numerous practice opportunities. Every student can have access to global content at a low cost, have differentiated and individualistic learning, improve quality of earning, get access to assessment, quizzes, etc, to learn at their own pace.
Personalised digital learning platforms such as Khan Academy, Mindspark, BYJU’s Classes, etc, allow students to learn and master skills at their own pace and time. These products help students to receive instant feedback. Khan Academy already receives the third-highest number of users in the world from India, indicating the latent demand for such content.
Online platforms and ICT tools have the potential to take education to millions of students at far-flung areas who would otherwise have no access to university education. Ensuring that every college, every university is connected to the internet, giving every college student a tablet with rich multimedia courses and videos of courses by globally-renowned teachers will ensure greater access to quality education.
Massive Open & Online Courses (MOOCs) have been adopted by some of the best universities abroad and in India. Reluctance to adopt this changed pedagogy by both teachers and administrators is a roadblock in introducing MOOCs or SPOCs (Small Private Online Courses). Regulations always respond to change slowly but the learning process is already disrupted. We must recognise, embrace and adopt this change. The current policy of the Centre restricting online education by a university to only within a state where it is located is an example of how bad policy is holding up development. We need our universities to offer online courses throughout the country giving students the right to make their choice and choose the best course. Just like GST will create a common market for India, online education should create a common platform for the whole of India, empowering students and giving them the ability to make choices. This will ensure a flight to quality and availability of the best courses to all students reversing the trend of declining quality.
Digital India means empowering every Indian and that means access for all. In education Digital India if implemented with vision and commitment, can transform society and give access to quality education to all students irrespective of means, location, gender and other limitations. We hope our prime minister will use Digital India to transform education rapidly.
Pai is chairman, FICCI Higher Education Committee, and Mishra Ghosh is senior director, FICCI