The topic of ‘How teachers in 2030 will look like’ was raised at the fourth Global Education and Skills Forum (GESF), held recently in Dubai.

The session moderated by Tony Jackson, vice president of Education Asia Society in the USA, witnessed heightened debate on the impact of technology on teachers and whether the two are mutually exclusive. The verdict was unanimous: technology can only serve as an enabler while teachers, with their face-to-face interaction and counsel will be as relevant as ever.

Highlighting the need for elaborate planning and teacher preparation, William Samoei Ruto, deputy President of Kenya, said that technology must be leveraged as part of building the capacity of teachers to ensure that they can “deliver what gadgets and technology will never be able to offer.”

As part of drawing on the value of technology, Kenya is currently bringing electricity to all schools in the country this year and one million students will have access to technology gadgets, said Ruto.

Anies Basweden, minister of education and culture of Indonesia, emphasised the role of technology in delivering better teaching experience. “The biggest challenge today is that while teachers and students are 21st century, the classrooms are 19th century. There is an urgent need to improve the quality of education infrastructure,” he added.

Basweden said that teachers must be provided an environment where they are encouraged to be continuous learners. “With the rapid changes around us, and some of the current jobs set to be obsolete, it is important that teachers learn continuously to prepare our students for the future. What we need to build is a credible and creative educational ecosystem, not just focusing on technology, but with the goal of improving quality and professionalism,” he remarked.

Teachers of 2030 should have the ability to instil strong social skills in the students, observed Beatrize Cardoso, executive director, Laboratorio De Educacao of Brazil, adding that the future is one of hybrid teaching models where there is always face-to-face learning supported by the tools of technology.

GESF is convened by the Varkey Foundation and held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

With partners including Unesco, Harvard Graduate School of Education and Dubai Cares, GESF features intense debates on reconciling the relevance, excellence and inclusiveness of both public and private learning environments. GESF 2016 will culminate on March 13 with the live announcement of the second annual award of the $1 million Global Teacher Prize.

The Varkey Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation established to improve the standards of education for underprivileged children throughout the world. – TradeArabia News Service