“…yesterday is but today’s memory…” and the memories of the recent past, at the risk of sounding clichéd, may be remarked to have not been particularly, fond. The unanticipated pandemic caused an alarming halt, becoming the reason for global affliction, jeopardizing lives and livelihood and leaving people smarting with no or limited means. Its effect was felt across sectors and the field of education too could not insulate itself from such radical changes happening at a rapid pace. Almost instantly, it sought the virtual world for rescue.

Ushering in a pressing need to improve digital literacy, the pandemic seemed to announce a significant paradigm shift in the education system. It made the education sector leapfrog onto online platforms. The prominent claim for structural changes demanded re-imagining curriculum, schools, colleges and education as a whole. With virtual classrooms becoming a reality, a revamp in the teaching and assessment methodologies, is in order.

But delving deeper into this induced metamorphosis only unearths a number of ambiguities and contradictions to clarify - the most crucial of which is the digital divide. The sharp idea of inclusive education system in the “live with COVID” era cannot prosper keeping the disadvantaged out the exercise. It triggers inquiry into ethics and moral responsibilities. Clubbed with this comes questions on investments for potentially creative digital content and complex human interface. Topping this list of paradoxes is the students of flesh and blood being reduced to mere thumbnails on the screen!

All of this is affecting the “world’s children”. The crisis will result in eventual fallout which is certain to haunt them for the rest of their lives when they ultimately identify themselves as the “lost generations”- forever in the overcast of a global pandemic-needless to say that the stress of living in isolation may interfere with their cognitive, emotional and social development thereby making them susceptible to mental health issues. Some experts have commented that this could be a “social crisis in the making”. As much for students, it is equally distressing for teachers who need to adapt to this not so seamless yet drastic shift from traditional curriculum transaction to online blended and flipped classrooms. Adapting to the work from home model has certainly been challenging. The change has had and continues to have pronounced impact on mental health of the facilitators and the facilitated. Therefore the importance of caring for the mind is gaining momentum and perhaps now is the most propitious moment to explore the premise of mental health.

Also,the education system and the industry are not exclusive of each other. With change in education system there is bound to be alterations in the industry. The perspectives of the recruiters have also been conditioned in the wake of the pandemic. Methods of absorbing human resource into the industry are also being revisited. On the other hand, this global pandemic and lockdown have brought to the fore a number of such professions that have often been taken for granted. It is perhaps now that people are becoming aware of their value to society. Much is being contemplated on how the economy should evolve to guard against such unannounced adversity, and how skills, education, training and HR policies should be redesigned to support it.

The intent of this webinar is to therefore bring together industry experts to deliberate on the current scenario and the way ahead with respect to “The Changing Fabric of Education- its Impact on Intellect and Industry”.

This year and a half old crisis is testing our abilities to deal with sudden large scale disruptions and it is now up to us to be resolute in putting up a strong fight and to build education systems, mental health, industrious and societies that are more resilient than ever.