KOTA SAMARAHAN, 31 Oct: The current trends in education highlights the pivotal role of educational research and innovation to align to the era’s paradigm shift.
Minister for Education, Innovation and Talent Development Sarawak (MEITD) Dato Sri Roland Sagah Wee Inn affirmed that by accessing current skills trends via educational research and innovation, this will ensure both educators and learners can thrive in the ever-evolving world.
“With the evident shift of education, we must realise that education must encompass not only cognitive development but also emotional intelligence, adaptability, creativity and critical thinking, thus this is where innovative practices come in.
“This year’s focus of The International Conference on Education Research and Innovation (iCERI) 2023 would further address the gap in the shift from Education 4.0 to Education 5.0 as a key to deal with the Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA) world that we live in,” he said this in his opening speech during the launch of ICERI 2023 held at the Institute of Teacher Education (IPG) Tun Abdul Razak Campus, Kota Samarahan on Tuesday.
He further emphasised that through the educators’ role, learning experiences can be more tailored to individual learners based on a deeper understanding on their needs and differences, breeding skills that go beyond school subjects and technical knowledge.
“The understanding of each learners needs, comes from ongoing research, since every generation is different from the previous ones, but if none are completely suitable, then innovation can help us create our own tools.
“When research and innovation comes hand in hand, it can support teachers to move away from a top-down delivery mode towards a facilitative role, to help students take ownership of their learning,” Sagah added.
Themed, “Bridging the Gap : Exploring New Frontiers in Education for the 21st Century”, iCERI 2023 is a joint programme by IPG Tun Abdul Razak Campus and MEITD Sarawak, which has gathered participants from both local and international students, educators and researchers from Malaysia, Phillipines, Vietnam, India and Indonesia. -TVS