The post-pandemic era, the current geopolitical landscape, and the rapid development of technology in recent years have significantly transformed learning. In this sense, education must not only adapt to the present but also anticipate the future, building bridges to create more just, resilient, and humane societies.
However, this journey raises fundamental questions: How can we ensure equitable education in a world marked by growing inequalities? Are we ready to integrate technology in an inclusive and ethical manner? And, above all, how can we transform education into an action tool to address the global challenges humanity faces? These questions can be explored through three key areas.
Education 4.0
The first focus is on an emerging concept known as Education 4.0, which promotes new pedagogical frameworks for teaching and learning in an increasingly digitalized, interconnected, and dynamic world with artificial intelligence (AI), extended realities, robotics, among other technologies.
Education 4.0 is centered around developing competencies and skills that go beyond traditional knowledge, raising new questions: How can we ensure that technology does not dehumanize education? How do we guarantee that personalized learning does not lead to isolation? The key may lie in finding a balance between leveraging technological innovations and maintaining the importance of human connection and the holistic development of learners.
Democratizing Knowledge
A second focus is on the democratization of knowledge. We know that access to the internet has opened the door for people to access information that was once limited to a select group of individuals in academia, government, and the business sector. However, it has also increased the phenomenon known as the digital divide.
The digital divide refers to something broader than just access to connectivity and devices. It also involves ensuring that people can actively participate in a knowledge-based society. Today, despite having the potential to access information and engage people in various actions, there are other variables that impact different contexts, such as access to basic infrastructure services (electricity, network technology coverage), cultural barriers (working conditions, biases, communication skills), and educational barriers (digital literacy).
This educational variable—digital literacy—is not just a technical skill; it also involves developing competencies relevant in an era of complexity. This is where competencies such as complex thinking, scientific thinking, critical thinking, systemic thinking, innovative thinking, as well as computational thinking and entrepreneurial skills, become essential to adapting and addressing the challenges of education (academic sector) and lifelong learning (workforce and continuous education).
Educational Research
Finally, the third focus is from the perspective of educational research, which is characterized as a systemic process aimed at analyzing and understanding phenomena related to teaching, learning, and educational contexts.
Today, we have various methodological approaches used in educational research. However, more recently, interdisciplinary approaches that integrate technology, behavioral sciences, and data analysis have been promoted. For example, AI can now be used to identify learning patterns, adapt individual content for students, and evaluate different pedagogical strategies.
A key opportunity in this approach is that, in many cases, the data collected and analyzed does not lead to real-world impacts. There is, therefore, a significant gap between theory and practice. It is in this area that educational researchers must value collaboration with academia, government, industry, and civil society.
Teachers Are Irreplaceable
As a final reflection, although today we have algorithms that can recommend personalized content based solely on profiles in databases, the role of the teacher in academia or the instructor in other sectors remains irreplaceable. Teachers are the ones who best understand the academic context and their students or learners.
Educators do not only impart knowledge; they also inspire, guide, and create meaningful connections. In this sense, technology should be viewed as a tool to support learning, not as a replacement for the human factor. Education is not just about technology or innovative methodologies; it is a process of human transformation. If we manage to combine technological advancements with an inclusive vision focused on the holistic development of individuals, we will be one step closer to building a more equitable and hopeful future.
Author
Leonardo David Glasserman Morales is a professor-researcher at the Research Lab of the Institute for the Future of Education and an associate professor in the Department of Education at the School of Humanities and Education, Tec de Monterrey. He is also a professor in the Doctorate in Educational Innovation and the Master’s in Educational Entrepreneurship at Tec de Monterrey. He is part of the National System of Researchers, level 2, of the Mexican Council of Educational Research (COMIE), among other associations.
