University of Mysore Vice-Chancellor G. Hemantha Kumar on Wednesday said 1.3 billion to 1.5 billion students and youth across the globe had been affected by the closure of schools, colleges and universities over the COVID-19 pandemic.
Presiding over the inaugural function of Rashtriya Uchhathar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA)-funded video conference hall, refresher course in commerce and release of online adaption of the book “Purana Nama Chudamani” at the UGC-Human Resource Development Centre at the University of Mysore, he said most governments in the world have temporarily closed educational institutions to contain the spread of the pandemic. The nationwide closures of educational institutions had affected 72 per cent of the world’s student population.
He said the challenges for commerce and management educators post-COVID-19 are multifold as any changes in the economic order of the world directly impacts business, commerce and trade. And the business educators must revisit their approach in order to be in tune with the growing uncertainties, technological shifts in teaching and learning process and social shifts in the student population.
In the new normal situation post-COVID-19, the ongoing crisis is forcing business educators to critically question their syllabi. “The reliance on one global market, economic rationality and standardised approach to organisational governance and accountability leaves us vulnerable.”
Prof. Kumar said human strength comes from diversity – ideas, systems, economies and people – and business education syllabi will need to evolve to provide such diversity. “We need to develop and deliver courses that help decision makers deal with complex problems and uncertainty.”
The VC said virtual and remote education will continue to increase. This will ideally increase access to students while reducing some of their costs to participate. “We can shape the evolving educational landscape to help business leaders of the future make better decisions that enable the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals.”
The interconnectedness of the world economy visible in this time of crisis will probably necessitate teaching more systematically, and in greater detail about foreign economies. Business education will need to give more space to teaching about societal impacts and humanistic concerns, he opined.
