Universities of the future need to recognize the way in which the businesses have got revolutionalized around the world by Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Apple. They need to come up with out-of-the-box ideas to teach either on an individual basis or on a mass basis. Convergence of the different disciplines is the key while societal progress is the ultimate objective. Universities need to teach what is required for the community. In order to teach the digital natives, the universities be able to teach at any time and place, they need to be consumer driven, they need to facilitate active learning, they need to be focused on learning outcome (and not on teaching), and they need to focus on Group learning (and not on individual learning). Traditional compartmentalized approach will not solve the global problems anymore. This was stated by Prof. Vistasp M. Karbhari, President, University of Texas at Arlington, US on Thursday, 6th December 2018. He was addressing the faculty of Presidency University at the University auditorium.
Prof. Karbhari was speaking on the subject, “Education and the future of the Workforce in an era of Technology Convergence”. He said that universities of the future must :
• Be diverse, innovative, and best in class;
• Focus on interdisciplinary research, enable learning through discovery & enquiry, & have both immediate & long-term impact;
• Create and support an entrepreneurial innovation ecosystem;
• Grow to meet future needs ensuring that knowledge transfer is unconstrained by time, space & location;
• Create the future of the workforce rather than just meet future workforce needs; and
• Ensure that “learning” occurs along a continuum – bundled and unbundled
Prof. Karbhari touched upon the unique features of University of Texas at Arlington, US and said how it is advancing to reach the goal of being the model 21st Century Urban Research University.
During the visit, Prof. Karbhari was accompanied by Prof Pranesh B. Aswath, Vice Provost for Academic Planning and Policy, University of Texas.
Pro Chancellor of Presidency University, Prof. Vijayan Immanuel introduced Prof. Vistasp M. Karbhari and Prof. Pranesh B. Aswath to the gathering. Vice Chancellor, Prof. Radha Padmanabhan welcomed the dignitaries and the audience. Vice Chancellor appreciated the plethora of flexibilities the University of Texas at Arlington offers. As a customary gesture, both Prof. Karbhari and Prof. Aswath were felicitated by the university authorities with the traditional Shawl, Sandalwood garland and Peta.
