Education 4.0 – Higher-education institutions in the digital age

Digitalization is occurring not only in the workplace, but also at higher education institutions. The term Education 4.0 refers to the digital transformation of education through technology. Education 4.0 has many benefits – students are more motivated and interested, and new learning methods can be explored. But there are also disadvantages – not every university can keep up with the fast pace of technology.

The success story of digitalization is not limited to industry and labor. Digitalization is becoming increasingly prevalent in the field of education as well. In the context of education, this development is commonly summarized by the term education 4.0. It refers to the digital transformation of educational processes through cutting-edge learning technologies. Education 4.0 affects vocational education and higher education alike. That the higher education sector is in a transformation phase is an undisputed fact. However, there is disagreement when it comes to the benefits pertaining to the digital revolution of higher education. While opponents fear that the end of the higher-education landscape as we know it will bring about a decline in education, proponents see plenty of untapped optimization potential. What is certain is that the implementation of education 4.0 not only entails opportunities but also challenges with respect to education at universities and other higher-education institutions.

Digitalization of the higher-education landscape cannot be stopped

It is true that compared to other areas of society, the digitilization process at higher-education institutions is taking place at a slow pace – taking into consideration that the infrastructure of universities is not yet substantially different from that two decades ago. Given the rapid pace at which Internet-based technologies such as smartphones, cloud computing, social media, tablet computers, apps etc. have become established, however, the digital transformation of the higher-education sector cannot be stopped, either. Exactly how this transformation will transpire is yet uncertain. Thus the future role of libraries, seminar rooms and lecture halls in terms of traditional places of learning is called into question.

Higher-education institutions‘ self-acclaimed goal is to reach as many diversified students as possible using innovative digital strategies. Evidence that initial changes have already been made is provided by the fact that an ever-increasing number of higher-education institutions offer e-learning portals to grant learners access to digital learning materials (e.g., video lectures, digital lecture notes, virtual courses). In addition to digital platforms, higher-education institutions are also making use of apps in order to provide digital support to their students. Thus, app technology is used by some institutions to guide students through the entire study process on a digital basis. Technological innovations like these pose opportunities as well as challenges.

Opportunities of digitalized higher education

Education 4.0 eliminates barriers and fosters autonomous learning

It is hard to deny that education 4.0 does have certain advantages. Not only can digital learning technologies make education more attractive and more up-to-date for students, thus enhancing their learning motivation. Also, the possibility to attend teaching events in the form of webinars or online lectures, to conduct tests online, or to perform as well as upload assignments via a learning portal makes a major contribution to eliminating learning obstacles in that time-related bottlenecks and physical distance no longer present any barriers. It also helps foster learners‘ autonomy: Students are able to decide themselves when or where to deal with learning contents.

Education 4.0 saves costs

Moreover, digital learning materials, be it PDF files or online presentations, have a cost-saving effect. There is no longer any need for scripts and course materials to be photocopied; they can be downloaded form the Internet, simply and conveniently. This also enables students to deal with teaching contents in advance in order to be well prepared for a lecture or seminar. Education 4.0’s cost-saving effect figures prominently at distance learning schools. Due to the possibility to obtain learning materials on the Internet, distance learning schools are put in the advantageous position of being able to replace study materials which previously had to be sent by mail with e-books and/or video tutorials.

Collaborative learning as a result of increased interactivity opportunities

On top of that, education 4.0 increases interactivity both between lecturers and students as well as among students. Social media and instant messaging services (e.g., chats, video conferencing tools) allow students to form networks, create learning groups and engage in direct personal exchange. This is not least beneficial in didactic terms because students, while learning at home, are given the opportunity to discuss contents and questions with their fellow students, to contribute own learning materials, and to receive useful feedback, which may facilitate or shorten the learning process.

Excellent study results due to adaptive learning

Another didactic advantage results from the benefits of big data technology. The new possibilities provided by information technology to collect, process and evaluate large amounts of data create room for adaptive learning. Adaptive learning is about taking into account learners‘ individual needs and level of knowledge in the teaching and learning process by adapting individual learning steps to learners‘ specific level of learning and motivation. The basic idea is to analyze existing data using appropriate software with the aim of providing learners with individually tailored learning contents. Such a software allows, for example, to recommend suitable courses based on a variety of offered teaching events as well as to calculate the likelihood of passing a course. Those recommendations are predicated on a comparison of already attended teaching events and examinations with the achievements and results of former students. That way, algorithms can help ensure individuals‘ learning success.

Didactics 4.0 as the biggest challenge of digitalizing higher education

Despite the manifold technical benefits education 4.0 has to offer, one of the major challenges to be addressed in relation to digitalizing (higher) education is to adapt conventional didactics to digital technology. After all, it is not sufficient to provide learning contents merely in more simple and more innovative ways. Knowledge is not a process whereby – in whatever form of media – prefabricated knowledge is passed on or transferred to another person. Rather, knowledge or learning, respectively is a constructive process that requires an active cognitive performance on the part of the learner. To be sure, it is true that interactive collaborative learning in learning groups can have a desired didactic impact. But an essential prerequisite for such learning processes to succeed is pronounced media literacy on the part of learners. Students must be capable of properly evaluating and interpreting sources of knowledge as well as dealing with digital media in a critical manner. This is all the more true given that academic teaching is becoming increasingly public and academic education increasingly privatized. What is important is to learn how to distinguish materials and contents that are appropriate in terms of quality and useful in terms of education from those that are not. The groundwork for this must be already laid during the first school years.

However, media literacy alone is not sufficient. Even university 4.0 will probably not be able to do without any educators. This is supported among other things by the high dropout rate with respect to publicly accessible online courses. The complexity and variety of digital learning offers also requires personal advice and support, i.e. something that no software is capable of doing. Hence, key factors for study success in times of digitalized education are media literacy and proper knowledge management, on the one hand, and competent mentoring and coaching, on the other. Together they can ensure that learners at the end of their studies will have the abilities necessary to succeed in their professional careers.