Istanbul summit discusses post-pandemic trends in education

Education experts from across the world, who gathered in the Turkish city of Istanbul, have discussed and debated new global educational opportunities and initiatives in the post-pandemic world.

The two-day Istanbul Education Summit under the theme, "The Future of School: The Post-Pandemic Needs of Education," concluded on Saturday.

Education ministers from seven countries and education experts and authorities from across the world attended the event. 

Academics and experts from UNESCO, Harvard University, Indiana University, and Cambridge University, as well as business entrepreneurs in the field of education, managers of world-renowned educational institutions, and curriculum experts discussed the future of education and new trends and transformations in schooling.

The conference opened with a video message by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

It was followed by speeches from education ministers from Cameroon, Zambia, Uzbekistan and Malawi.

On the second day of the summit, which the Turkish Maarif Foundation organised with Anadolu Agency and TRT as its communications partners, experts discussed topics like "Future of Covid Generation", "Differentiated Education" and "Alternative Searches in Education."

Education in post-pandemic world

EdX Business Development President John Schwartz said many institutions suddenly switched to a virtual education model during the global Covid-19 pandemic.

The positive aspect of this was that now much wider audiences could be reached online, he added.

"What would you say if I were to come to you and say that Harvard and MIT are going to offer their education content to anyone in the world for free?" Schwartz said.

"We offer the lifelong learning ecosystem to everyone, everywhere. We are closing the gap between the smart and wealthy people who can get into these elite schools and those who can't. We need to accept this, grow and use it as a tool in today's education system," he added.

Addressing the issue of whether distance education can be an alternative to face-to-face education, Schwartz said that within three weeks, millions of students pressed a button and switched to online education.

"Everyone I know around the world has received some form of online training."

Scott Shireman, Global Head of Coursera for Campus, said: "There are some benefits to learning online. Some of them are better online than face-to-face, and systems that encourage and support each other."

"We are now student-focused and using the available tools to improve both face-to-face and online learning," Shireman added. 

The sessions, with simultaneous translations in Turkish, French, and Arabic, were also live-streamed on the website, www.istanbuleducationsummit.com.

The first summit with the theme, New Trends and Transformation in Education, was virtually held last year.