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The meeting “The Futures of Higher Education”, organized by Congreso Futuro (Chile) and the International University of La Rioja (UNIR), included 10 rectors from CRUCH universities as panelists.
This Monday, November 20, the executive vice president of CRUCH and rector of the University of Tarapacá, Emilio Rodríguez, was part of the meeting “The Futures of Higher Education”, an event organized by Congreso Futuro (Chile) and the International University of La Rioja (UNIR), Spain, with the sponsorship of the Senate of the Republic, the Chamber of Deputies, the Ministry of Education and the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities (CRUCH).
At the opening of the event, which was held in a hybrid format, Rector Rodríguez valued the presence of CRUCH, through the participation of 10 rectors as panelists, who demonstrated "an openness to academic dialogue and critical thinking around central issues for the development and future of the country.".
One of the central themes of the event was digitization, regarding which Rodríguez stated that “lDigital transformation is an evident fact, which generates opportunities and risks (…) Artificial Intelligence (AI) will allow the transformation of educational processes and public policy decisions must be made to promote them, such as, for example, the recently inaugurated inter-university doctorate in AI in the Bío-Bío region.”.
The day included three round tables and a discussion panel, in which authorities from CRUCH universities and Spain addressed the challenges of digitalization in higher education systems, the accreditation and quality of online teaching, online education as an instrument to correct inequalities, and the challenges for America in the 21st century.
Digitization, quality and online education
The first panel, entitled “The challenges of digitization in higher education systems”, included the rector of the Metropolitan Technological University (UTEM), Marisol Durán; the rector of the University of the Andes, José Antonio Guzmán; the rector of the University of Magallanes (UMAG), José Maripani; and the rector of the University of Santiago de Chile (USACH), Rodrigo Vidal.
Among the challenges mentioned by the panelists were the democratization of data; improving access to digital transformation; flexibility and networking; the future needs of professionals, considering social skills; the adaptation of teachers for teaching in various modalities; the importance of institutional development plans considering digitalization while maintaining accreditation standards; among others.
The second panel, “Accreditation and quality in online teaching”, included the President of the National Accreditation Commission (CNA), Andrés Bernasconi; the rector of the University of Valparaíso (UV) and president of the Consortium of State Universities (CUECH), Osvaldo Corrales; the rector of the Catholic University of the Most Holy Conception (UCSC), Christian Mellado; the rector of the Alberto Hurtado University (UAH), Eduardo Silva; and the deputy director of International Quality of PROEDUCA, Rafael Llavori.
In this panel, the experts pointed out that a major challenge is how the quality of online education, especially at the undergraduate level, would be accredited, and how financing and tuition-free education would work in this case, which is currently restricted only to face-to-face programs.
The third panel, “Online education: an instrument to correct inequalities”, featured interventions by the rector of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (PUC), Ignacio Sánchez; the rector of the Metropolitan University of Educational Sciences (UMCE), Elisa Araya; Emilio Rodríguez, in his capacity as rector of the University of Tarapacá; and the Vice-Rector of Development and Social Impact of UNIR, Isabel Diez Vial.
During the meeting, authorities highlighted positive aspects of online learning that strengthen educational processes, such as recorded classes, asynchronous resources, and access for people who live far from educational centers and those with special educational needs. However, they cautioned that, in addition to funding barriers and accreditation risks, soft skills are still learned through interaction with diverse individuals.
Subsequently, the discussion “Challenges for the Americas of the 21st Century” was held, moderated by the executive vice president of CRUCH, Emilio Rodríguez, and in which the Mexican writer and essayist, Enrique Krauze; the rector of the Autonomous University of Madrid, Amaya Mendikoetxea; and the executive vice president of the Encuentros del Futuro Foundation, Guido Girardi, participated.
Finally, at the closing ceremony of the event, led by Rodríguez, Girardi and the academic director of International Relations at PROEDUCA, Manuel Herrera,The role of universities as centers of thought was emphasized, and the importance of the proposals they make for the development of the country was highlighted.
Text: CRUCH Communications
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