258
views were to be implemented, the effects would
not be global.)
Poverty could be eased if governments set the
minimum wage, so that it would reach the level
of minimum subsistence level adjusted to the cost
of living. In order to make this really effective,
complete employment should be also achieved.
(This seems to be hard to realise because robotisation is expected to result in the opposite as
mentioned before.)
In a fair society housing should be provided
for all as well. However, for this tenement flats
should be built in much higher numbers in every
country than currently. Owning a property is
expensive and rent provides flexibility as it is
easier to find a job if people can simply move to
a different town from a tenement flat to another
tenement flat compared to selling a house/flat and
buying another one near the workplace.
Real inequity is caused by the lack of sensible
jobs especially among less qualified workers.
Thus, the task is clear: sensible jobs have to be
created in the society. However, this has to be
preceded by setting sensible targets. Handy considers that the diversity of new technologies will
induce the foundation and boom of thousands of
companies offering new jobs. (The authors of the
present book strongly doubt that such jobs would
be created for less qualified or completely
unqualified workers. As mentioned before, most
scientists believe that robotisation would rather
contribute to the increase of unemployment.)
The second curve has to appear in the field of
education as well. Related to this the opinion of
Handy is more or less the same as described
before in this book (see Sect. 6.2).
The role of universities should be reconsidered: modular approach would be useful meaning competence-based courses that could be
better adjusted to the rapidly changing world and
would be also cheaper.
The greatest fault of school systems is that
students study closed exercises having proved
answers. According to Handy, this type of school
education was personally harmful to him since all
problems in his job and in life in general were
open questions. (The authors consider the basic
concept right, but at primary level learning,
proved facts are very important because there is
nothing to think about without basic knowledge
about the world.)
Nevertheless, in order to teach students to
think, to ask open questions and to give answers,
very high standard of teachers’ training is
required. Schools should resemble current workplaces more where tasks and projects are carried
out in teams, and initiation and commitment are
rewarded. Workplaces also have to make efforts
to organise and support learning at work, and
they would send their staff to universities if the
job required higher level of knowledge. Distance
learning could reduce the time for obtaining a
degree (on-site training time at universities) significantly. Universities could devote greater
energy to postgraduate education and professional training.
6.7.4 High Standard Higher
Education as the Basis
for Progress (the Future
of Massive Open Online
Courses)
According to certain experts studying the future,
online education will result in the elimination of
the traditional forms of universities as they envision education systems without teachers. Let’s
see the available experience related to this topic.
In the opinion of Ford (2015), one of the most
subversive innovations in higher education will
be the online courses of elite institutes. He presents that experience so far has not been completely positive. Massive open online courses
(MOOC) became widespread after 2011 when
Sebastian Thrun and Peter Norvig made their
course entitled Introduction to artificial intelligence freely accessible on the internet. The number of “students” “enrolled” for the course
reached 160,000; however, “only” 23,000 of
them completed the course. Several renowned
universities in the U.S. joined the initiation with
starting new courses. Finally, two disillusioning
reports were published at the end of the year analysing the success of the training. The reports
revealed that very few students hold on till the
6 Steps Towards Realising Global Sustainable Development
views were to be implemented, the effects would
not be global.)
Poverty could be eased if governments set the
minimum wage, so that it would reach the level
of minimum subsistence level adjusted to the cost
of living. In order to make this really effective,
complete employment should be also achieved.
(This seems to be hard to realise because robotisation is expected to result in the opposite as
mentioned before.)
In a fair society housing should be provided
for all as well. However, for this tenement flats
should be built in much higher numbers in every
country than currently. Owning a property is
expensive and rent provides flexibility as it is
easier to find a job if people can simply move to
a different town from a tenement flat to another
tenement flat compared to selling a house/flat and
buying another one near the workplace.
Real inequity is caused by the lack of sensible
jobs especially among less qualified workers.
Thus, the task is clear: sensible jobs have to be
created in the society. However, this has to be
preceded by setting sensible targets. Handy considers that the diversity of new technologies will
induce the foundation and boom of thousands of
companies offering new jobs. (The authors of the
present book strongly doubt that such jobs would
be created for less qualified or completely
unqualified workers. As mentioned before, most
scientists believe that robotisation would rather
contribute to the increase of unemployment.)
The second curve has to appear in the field of
education as well. Related to this the opinion of
Handy is more or less the same as described
before in this book (see Sect. 6.2).
The role of universities should be reconsidered: modular approach would be useful meaning competence-based courses that could be
better adjusted to the rapidly changing world and
would be also cheaper.
The greatest fault of school systems is that
students study closed exercises having proved
answers. According to Handy, this type of school
education was personally harmful to him since all
problems in his job and in life in general were
open questions. (The authors consider the basic
concept right, but at primary level learning,
proved facts are very important because there is
nothing to think about without basic knowledge
about the world.)
Nevertheless, in order to teach students to
think, to ask open questions and to give answers,
very high standard of teachers’ training is
required. Schools should resemble current workplaces more where tasks and projects are carried
out in teams, and initiation and commitment are
rewarded. Workplaces also have to make efforts
to organise and support learning at work, and
they would send their staff to universities if the
job required higher level of knowledge. Distance
learning could reduce the time for obtaining a
degree (on-site training time at universities) significantly. Universities could devote greater
energy to postgraduate education and professional training.
6.7.4 High Standard Higher
Education as the Basis
for Progress (the Future
of Massive Open Online
Courses)
According to certain experts studying the future,
online education will result in the elimination of
the traditional forms of universities as they envision education systems without teachers. Let’s
see the available experience related to this topic.
In the opinion of Ford (2015), one of the most
subversive innovations in higher education will
be the online courses of elite institutes. He presents that experience so far has not been completely positive. Massive open online courses
(MOOC) became widespread after 2011 when
Sebastian Thrun and Peter Norvig made their
course entitled Introduction to artificial intelligence freely accessible on the internet. The number of “students” “enrolled” for the course
reached 160,000; however, “only” 23,000 of
them completed the course. Several renowned
universities in the U.S. joined the initiation with
starting new courses. Finally, two disillusioning
reports were published at the end of the year analysing the success of the training. The reports
revealed that very few students hold on till the
6 Steps Towards Realising Global Sustainable Development