McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, recently published a report that describes the post-COVID world as a “world in flux.” Flux is a word that is normally attributed to a constant oscillation between one state to another. It describes change, but change that is sudden and even violent.
The pandemic indeed created so many life-altering changes that were so sudden on an individual and organizational level. So it is not surprisingly that these abrupt changes have brought out the best and the worst in all of us.
In higher education, there are three notable changes: 1.) the use of technology to enhance teaching and learning; 2.) the rise of transdisciplinary research; and, 3.) the need to go beyond societal impact.
TECHNOLOGY-ENHANCED EDUCATIONOnline teaching and learning have created opportunities for educators to understand and explore digital technologies in communicating, instructing, assessing, and interacting with learners. While this is not new, its uptake has increased dramatically as instructors find it useful in redesigning their course offerings and making them more suitable in the 21st century.
In order to maximize the achievement of learning outcomes in digitally enhanced learning spaces, behavioral and institutional barriers must be addressed. As we move forward to coming back to our physical campuses, it is worth noting that ultimately, there should be no distinction between digital and physical learning spaces because we should be able to seamlessly learn in all kinds of spaces.
In particular, universities must recognize the value of adult learners as independent and mature, where rote learning should no longer be the norm. For meaningful learning to take place, self-directed learning and social constructivism as key guiding principles should be used as bases for reimagining what institutional support mechanisms should be provided.
TRANSDISCIPLINARITYSimilarly, transdisciplinarity is nothing new. It connotes the transcendence of knowledge beyond disciplinal boundaries to create a holistic approach in understanding and solving a complex problem. This term was introduced in the 1970s and later on, formalized as a research community in 1987 when the International Center for Transdisciplinary Research and Studies (CIRET) was established. In its charter, CIRET pointed out value of transdisciplinarity: that societal problems are so complex that a single discipline will not be adequate to even sometimes formulate a good research question.
Transdisciplinarity also necessitates the inclusion of non-traditional stakeholders in the research process such as industry, civil society, and community-based organizations. This democratizes how knowledge is being produced, communicated, and eventually used for public policy purposes. There were countless examples of these during the pandemic, when the need to understand and find a cure for the virus required the participation of those who were not only in the field of life sciences and medicine, but also mathematicians, anthropologists, community health and data science among others.
While there continue to be many debates surrounding transdicplinarity, but we cannot deny its significance now as our world is in a flux.
MAKING A STANDUniversities are created to serve societal needs. As the world we live in gets more complex and unpredictable, the operationalization of this mission becomes more challenging. Often, it requires a substantial amount of resources to generate desired results and make an impact in sustainable development goals that matters most.
About a decade ago, many Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the country started to institutionalize service learning in their curriculums. This credit-bearing educational approach that combines learning objectives with community engagement and service was an effective way to develop not only critical thinking and problem-solving skills, but also co-develop solutions to complex challenges that a partner community is currently facing.
But social engagement is no longer enough in a world that is in flux. Making the world a better place demands that universities must also make a clear stand on matters that are unjust. This lens had taken a back seat, perhaps, when most universities were focused on the internationalization of the 4th Industrial Revolution five years ago.
But the fact is that our political landscape has shifted. Political responsibility must be reinstated as part of the operationalization of every university’s core mission. It is true that taking on a clear position is not cost-free, but having a vague or no position is even costlier. Ultimately, HEIs duty is to protect and promote values that necessitate everyone to live a productive and decent life; values such as human rights, dignity of labor, diversity, equity and inclusivity, etc.
NAVIGATING THE FLUXFor HEIs to navigate these changes successfully, behavioral and institutional barriers must be addressed.
First, collaborative learning should be embedded in all aspects of the university — teaching and learning, research, industry engagement, including within its own operational aspects. However, I would like to put a caveat. What we do NOT want to see is the proliferation of “collaboration” (i.e., putting people in groups to do a project). What we wish to develop is a mindset of learning through working together — whether inside the classroom, in digital spaces, in laboratories, or in the offices. A university is, in the end, a learning community. Knowledge cannot be taught; it must be developed together, even if we do not agree with each other.
Second, HEIs must ensure that the structures it provides cultivate its mission and goals. An organization cannot be in the mission of bridging inequalities if it cannot address the inequalities within its own backyard. Some of these inequalities are obvious: students’ access to technologies and other learning resources, junior researchers’ access to funding, the inadequate support to post-retirement academics, etc. But some are more discreet: mental health issues, the lack of child care facilities for young employees who are struggling to balance work and family obligations, and the lack of representation of non-teaching staff in policy tables, to name a few.
Indeed, the pressures of sudden episodes of change affect every employee and students alike. The challenge therefore is how to better navigate these nuances and ensure that the university continues to be a relevant and caring place of learning and of work.
Third, for a university to successfully navigate a world in flux, it requires leadership with a mindset of resilience as well as humility. Many have written about resiliency and how this is a necessary trait to lead the workplace today. But to be resilient also means having the courage to admit you have made a mistake and will strive to do better. There will always be failures; this is a fact. But the goal is to use these as opportunities for learning. Humility also reinforces the need to be transparent in the decision-making process, not only in the decisions leaders make. People, most especially those in the frontlines of the organization, must be able to understand and take part in this process because their personal and professional lives will be affected by these. What truly matters now, more than ever, is the assurance that there is a conscious and deliberate choice for universities to hold their leaders accountable for their actions towards their responsibilities — and that this is implemented in a structured and consistent manner.
In the end, a world in flux needs a university that espouses collaborative learning within and outside its own organization, by moving beyond disciplinal and traditional boundaries in order to holistically understand the challenges. To do this will necessitate leadership that is not afraid to admit mistakes done, that is committed to learn and be better, and make bold and decisive decisions that are not only socially relevant but also politically essential.
Anne Lan K. Candelaria, Ph.D. is the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs of the Ateneo de Manila University. She is also an Assistant Professor of the Department of Political Science.
