Goals of Higher Education

The revolution brought about by the internet is likened to that of printing press 500 years ago. (Crawford, 1995; Hemphill, 1995).  As a result of the widespread effects of technology throughout the world, university-level educators all over the world and in India, especially, are being challenged to rethink and revise their approaches and goals in teaching in order to effectively prepare students for what will be expected of them in the "real world".  As Black (1995) rightly says, "Students like working on computers and the use of real data is highly motivational.  It adds a relevance to their work and is a skill they will need as they move into the workplaces of the 21st century".  Memory based education is of no use in the present day world when there are machines to store data and hence the educational system of any country should prepare students for retrieving, interpreting and using information in the best possible way.

Teachers of Higher Education

If the goals of higher education are to be modified according to present day needs of the students, the teachers who offer these courses have to change. In India. both students and teachers will have to get used to working with the internet and learn from each other as well as from the Net. In many developed countries computer literacy is necessary to get the license for teaching. Karla Frizler (1995) cities the case of California.

In the stale of California, K-12 teachers are now being required to have not only technical hut pedagogical proficiency in the use of computers in the classroom, without which they will be denied teaching credentials (new teachers) or lose their jobs (currently-credentiated teachers). As described in Governor Wilson's recent report on information technology (1995), by the fall of 1997, new teachers will only be certified if they meet "rigorous standards for teacher competency in computer-based applications and their effective use in the classroom.

The teachers employed by various schools in California would have to undergo inservice training in the use of computers if they want to continue teaching beyond 2000. Then the University teachers are expected to build upon what the learners have learnt at the K-12 level. In India too. computer literacy should be part of any teacher training programme and short term courses should be offered for inservice training programmes.