The definitive guide to Britain's success in the twenty-first century
Mooc’s (massive open online courses) have started and will continue. The cost of delivering quality education across the globe has suddenly reduced to a tiny fraction of what it was just a year ago.
Take India, currently struggling to find a way to educate its massive and growing young population. They require another 15,000 colleges and universities just to reach another 7% of their young population (to 25%).
This investment is now unlikely to be needed. With just a fraction of the costs, the infrastructure for 4G (leading to 5G) mobile wireless access can be rolled out. Add-in affordable tablets and laptops, and India would be able to reach 90% of its young population within just a few years.
This is a world changer – both India and China will be able to educate all of their growing populations within the budgets they now have – and provide much higher quality education at the same time. Within 10 to 20 years, the world can expect to have hundreds of millions of younger people educated to a high standard. This will impact the world in unknowable ways.
The latest 5 year Higher Education Plan finalised in 2012, by Earnst & Young for the Indian government’s planning commission has only a passing mention about mooc’s – that’s how quickly things can change - simply by harnessing current technology within a world interconnected online.
Imagine the spin-off’s of mooc’s across the world – already people are meeting online and discussing issues and course work, the guy who is working in an Indian factory with an interest in nano-technology meets the girl from the UK who is on the same course and looking to role-out a new mass produced item. So the Indian guy takes her on a virtual tour of his new factory, meeting the quality managers (via a skype link on his tablet). No need for expensive travel plans, the deal can be made in confidence from their personal friendships and understanding. A win, win and the world has shrunk yet again.
Young people across the world will share closer communication and ideas. Thrown together during their studies, helping each other to achieve. Seeing different points of view, improving their understanding of different cultures. We know already that young people seek opportunities and create new ideas, finding new ways and new solutions to prevailing issues. This is in their young blood – wherever they reside. Their communication will grow, it shall not be confined to education, it will be a meeting of the minds east to west.
This now seems unstoppable. Within the last few years the iphone has changed the way we work, play and inter-react. Mooc’s will change the whole world within a similar timescale. Hold onto your hat, what follows will be exciting.
MOOC's
https://courses.edx.org
www.futurelearn.com
MIT http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm
Khan Accademy https://www.khanacademy.org/
https://www.coursera.org Some Free Courses