Ramon Torrent
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DEAR ALL,
AS ANNOUNCED, I’LL BE CLOSING NOW THE DISCUSSION FORUM OF THIS “WEBINAR ON DEMAND”, THE THIRD WEBINAR OF THE HAQAA NETWORK ON AFRICAN REGIONAL AND CONTINENTAL INTEGRATION ON HIGHER EDUCATION.
I have collated all the posts to the Forum, which seem to me extremely interesting and orientative for our future work. I’ll think on whether and how to bring this material, in full or summarized, to your attention and that of the whole set of HAQAA stakeholders.
We keep in close touch. Warm regards to all of you.
Ramon Torrent
I’ve read your post, Lockias, after having written my last one. Of course I agree with your argument on:
However, it’s crucial to note that advocating for learning without a teacher doesn’t dismiss the value of teacher-facilitated learning. Rather, it underscores the evolving roles of educators and emphasizes the necessity to revamp the curriculum, along with the methods of assessment.
Remember, in your direction, that my Policy Brief on the topic points to the need of focus “WHAT TEACHING FOR WHAT LEARNING?”, which could be another eay of summarizing your argument.
I’m Ramon Torrent
Hi all,
You have provided plenty of food for thought. I do not want to add to it, or try to digest and metabolize all the food you have provided. But it can be useful if I provide two ideas, seemingly contradictory at first, that can help framing your reflection.
ON THE CRITICISM OF CURRENT APPROACHES, NOT ONLY IN TEACHING PRACTICES BUT ALSO ON THE APPROACH TO THEIR DISCUSSION (THE APPROACH IN MAINSTREAM ACADEMIC AMD CONSULTANCY LITERATURE), I THINK WE MUST BE VERY RADICAL. We must abandon the idea of a necessary correspondence (what I call in one of the HAQAA Policy Briefs that I’ve authored “the biunivocal relationship”) between teaching and learning (in whatever order). You say, Basiru, “Therefore it is apparent that each process – i.e. teaching and learning- is a sine qua non to the other”. Respectfully, I disagree: Learning is something you/we must have certainly done (and continue to do) all your life in order to be a good teacher. But learners do not learn only as a result of a teaching activity; they (we !!!) learn and have learned (much more !!!) by many other ways, and mainly by our individual effort: we have learned, first of all, because we wanted to learn. The only absolutely sine qua non condition for learning is wanting to learn.
BUT, FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF HE REFORM, WE MUST BE VERY WISE AND NEVER INTEND TO FIRE A “SILVER BULLET” THAT WILL SOLVE ALL PROBLEMS AT ONCE. The HE system as it stands has not fallen out of the blue. It serves powerful interests and there are powerful entrenched interests that will fight reform. Therefore, as in many other policy areas, we must
– value each step, however small, in the right reformist direction;
– we must build a strategy that brings together and gives sense and good direction to these small steps: and
– we must build majorities as large as possible to overcome resistance to change.I WOULD SAY THAT WE MUST BE VERY RADICAL IN THE IDEOLOGICAL BATTLE WHILE BEING VERY WISE AND PATIENT IN THE REFORM PROCESS … BUT MOVING ALWAYS STEADILY FORWARD.
You’ve found in this page of the webinar all needed documentation: the videos, the written materials and the very clear questions raised by prof. Olusola Oyewole, the Secretary general of the Association of African Universities.
I’m now opening the Discussion Forum. You can intervene in it at your convenience (concerning time) and with a very large freedom of expression (concerning form and substance), but I suggest not being too long in each post: it is better to multiply your interventions and your responses to those of your colleagues than to intend to “say everything” in your first post. The idea is that the debate be lively.
You can raise any question related to the topic of the webinar. But I’d suggest framing the interventions (at least the first ones; when the debate is launched it acquires a life of its own) as specific responses to prof. Olusola’s specific questions or to a combination of them. For example, if you assume that a curricular reform is needed, how can it be brought about?
PLEASE, DON’T FORGET TO VERY BRIEFLY IDENTIFY YOURSELVES AT THE BEGGINING OF EACH OF YOUR POSTS. THE NAME (Ramon TORRENT, for example) IS SUFFICIENT.
AND PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT THE FORUM WILL REMAIN OPEN UNTIL THE 22ND OF JANUARY.
