challenges of education 4.0

Everything You Need to Know About Education 4.0

In order to prepare future graduates for work, universities must align their teaching and processes with  technological  advanc ements .   

In the new millennium, technology  began  to infiltrate the education process, and both student s  and teacher s   started  to utilize technology in basic ways ( otherwise known as  Education 2.0).  

A s  this t echnology  advanced, including the mass infiltration of a more user-generated internet,  Education 3.0 was  formed.    

Students now had their own  access to information, the option to learn virtually, and platforms to easily connect with faculty and other students.  

Education was no longer centered upon a back and forth between student s  and teacher s , but instead took on a more networked approach, with students having their own direct connection to a variety of different information sources.  

This encouraged the development of a more personalized way of learning   where the student’s independence and unique approach to study was celebrated.  

However, we ’re  now on the cusp of a new phase ;  Education 4.0.   

What is Education 4.0?  

Education 4.0 is a desired approach to learning that aligns itself with the emerging  fourth  industrial revolution .   

This industrial revolution   focuses on  smart technology, artificial intelligence, and robotics; all of which  now impact our everyday lives.   

For universities to continue to produce successful graduates, they must  prepare their students for a world where  these cyber-physical systems are prevalent across all industries.  

This means teaching students about this technology as part of the curriculum, changing the   approach to learning altogether, and utilizing this technology to better improve the university experience.  

career options; something that will be  extremely  valuable in the future.   

Alongside their degrees, they might also look for job opportunities for students to allow them to gain work experience to support themselves financially and to build their skills in teamwork and communication in readiness for the careers ahead of them.

Preparing students  for evolving industries   

Cyber-physical systems are steadily becoming more integrated into various industries, inevitably affecting the skill s  requirements  for  employees.   

Research by McKinsey Digital  revealed that due to the  fourth  industrial revolution 60% of all occupations  could potentially  have at least  a third  of their activities automated.  

The topic of how  a rtificial  i ntelligence might affect jobs in the future was explored in our previous blog :   How will Artificial Intelligence Influence the Global Higher Education Sector?  

However, there is much more to consider than the potential disruption to the  hard   skills required for various  job  roles.   

The  fourth  industrial revolution will also impact the  soft  skills that students will need in the future.  

In 2016,  the   World Economic Forum  produced a report exploring these changes. They predicted that by 2020 ,  “more than a third of the desired core skill sets of most occupations will be comprised of skills that are not yet considered crucial to the job today.”  

Some of the soft skills they claim will soon become indispensable include complex problem solving, social skills, and process skills.  

T echnology  also  allows us to be constant ly  connected, and as a result ,  job  roles  are steadily becoming more flexible and  adaptable .   

Education 4.0 is about evolving with the times, and for higher education institutions ,  this means understanding what is required of their future graduates.   

Undoubtedly, in order to produce more graduates who are prepared to take on the future state of employment, universities must evolve, and accept that  changes to  some  traditional   processes are inevitable.  

A new approach to learning    

By aligning teaching and learning methods with the skills needed in the future, universities can be sure they are successfully preparing their students for the  fourth  industrial revolution.  

One method of doing so is by encouraging a ccelerated remote learning , which i s the idea that students will learn theoretical knowledge remotely using digital means, whilst ensuring any practical skills are still learnt face-to-face.   

This is a more flexible way of learning that requires accountability and good time management; skills that will be  relied  on  due to the rise in the freelance economy.  

The move towards this way of working will also  require  students  t o learn how to adapt quickly to new situations they may face in their evolving careers.   

Project-based learning highlight s  the importance of studying a wide set of skills that can then be applied to each scenario , as opposed to sticking to a set of skills directly linked to a specific job role.   

Learning practices such as SCALE-UP are increasing in popularity, with insti t utions such as  North Carolina State University  utilizing the practice.   

A SCALE-UP way of learning  has  students s i t at round tables scattered across the room, allowing the teacher to freely walk through the space and approach students if necessary.   

With this way of learning students are also  “working out problems on laptops and whiteboards, answering real-time quiz questions ,  and helping each other learn.”  

The approach to exams and assessments will also change, moving away from t he t raditional method of  a bsorbing  and relaying  a vast amount of information; skill s  not as necessary in the future.   

We may see students assessed instead  “by analyzing their learning journey through practical and experiential learning-based projects or field works . ”  

Of course ,  the biggest change we are likely to see as part of Education 4.0 is a deeper fusion of technology into the teaching process.   

The ultimate purpose of utilizing this technology and adopt ing  new methods  is  to place students at the center of the education process,  “shifting the focus from teaching to learning.”  

Adapting  to new realities   

Higher education institutions are  moving towards a more personalized way of learning.   

By utilizing data and tracking student performance, universities will be able to  identify  struggling students and provide optimized learning strategies to suit their needs.   

The various ways data is being used by universities is explored in more detail in our white paper:  Your A-Z Guide to Data in Higher Education .  

Education 4.0 embraces this advance in analytics and uses it to treat each student as an individual ,  understanding that everyone’s learning needs and desired outcomes will be different.  

There have also been talks of entirely customizable degrees, whereby a student does n’t  have to pick just  one  or  two  subjects to study, but instead  can  select modules from multiple programs.   

There are some ,  however, who are n’t  yet convinced by this approach and  view  this move away from the traditional degree structure  as  problematic.   

For example, Oxford Professor of Higher Education ,   Simon  Marginson ,  believes that ,  “ as long as they retain fixed curricula,  flexibility makes other institutions look of lower quality.”  

Yet the new approach to program structure is likely to create more versatile, well-rounded students who can adapt themselves to various career options; something that will be  extremely  valuable in the future.   

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Education 4.0 and Teachers: Challenges, Risks and Benefits

2020, European Scientific Journal, ESJ

The aim of the present study is to investigate and capture teachers' attitudes towards the principles, benefits and risks of Education 4.0, as it is shaped in the context of the 4th Industrial Revolution. The methodology followed is the quantitative one and specifically an improvised questionnaire was structured. It was answered by a sample of 233 primary education teachers of the Region of Western Greece. Data was analyzed using the statistical software SPSS 26.0 for Windows. The results of the research show that teachers believe that students will have more opportunities to learn at different times and in different locations with tools tailored to their individual abilities and will choose the devices, programs and methods by which they will learn. In addition, the use of technology in education will improve learning outcomes, will help save material resources and improve teachers' communication with parents, students and education staff. However, participating teachers believe that the use of technology entails a greater workload for them, leads to the creation of unknown and demanding professions, leads to sharper inequalities and widens the social gap. In addition, there is a very high risk of job losses and is related to the feeling of insecurity and danger. At the same time, it raises moral issues, threatens individuality and the private sphere of life, homogenizes the views of people and polarizes societies. Finally, additional studies, employment, overall service and training in new technologies have a statistically significant effect on teachers' perceptions.

Related Papers

European Scientific Journal, ESJ

Ζoe karanikola

The aim of the present study is to investigate and capture teachers’ attitudes towards the principles, benefits and risks of Education 4.0, as it is shaped in the context of the 4th Industrial Revolution. The methodology followed is the quantitative one and specifically an improvised questionnaire was structured. It was answered by a sample of 233 primary education teachers of the Region of Western Greece. Data was analyzed using the statistical software SPSS 26.0 for Windows. The results of the research show that teachers believe that students will have more opportunities to learn at different times and in different locations with tools tailored to their individual abilities and will choose the devices, programs and methods by which they will learn. In addition, the use of technology in education will improve learning outcomes, will help save material resources and improve teachers' communication with parents, students and education staff. However, participating teachers believe that the use of technology entails a greater workload for them, leads to the creation of unknown and demanding professions, leads to sharper inequalities and widens the social gap. In addition, there is a very high risk of job losses and is related to the feeling of insecurity and danger. At the same time, it raises moral issues, threatens individuality and the private sphere of life, homogenizes the views of people and polarizes societies. Finally, additional studies, employment, overall service and training in new technologies have a statistically significant effect on teachers' perceptions.

The New Educational Review

Education and Linguistics Research

Sweder Souza

The reality of the old school is getting more and more distant from the current students. In this sense, it is essential to think about placing the school within an advanced technology process, placing the school within the world, placing itself within this contemporary context, especially within the current context, within the demands, the agenda of the world, although we know that the difficulties exist and we have many different realities in Brazil. In this sense, we seek to draw an overview of what this Education 4.0 would be, what its precepts, its socio-historical context of production, in order to weave reflections on the topic discussed here and so that it can serve as a theoretical-analytical mapping for understanding and future research on the topic.

Maria Nababan

Anggit Liana

Yeliz Yazıcı Demir

Öz Eğitim pek çok farklı katılımcısı olan çok yüzlü bir sistemdir. Bu sistemin katılımcıları sadece insanlar değil, aynı zamanda politik ve ekonomik elemanlardır. Bilgi kaynağı olarak artık öğretmenler değil akıllı teknolojiye sahip araçlar ve dijital platformlar da tercih edilmektedir. Bu tercihler teknolojik becerileri edinmeyi gerektirmektedir. Öğretmenler ve eğitim politikaları her ne kadar temel yapı taşı niteliğinde olsa da öğrenciler de bu ihtiyaçları öğrenmek ve gidermek üzere bu sistemin önemli elemanlarından biridir. İlgili veri yarı yapılandırılmış görüşmeler yoluyla toplanmıştır. Çalışmada veri toplanırken gönüllüler ve ulaşılabilirlik açısından yakın olanlar tercih edilmiştir bu sebeple çalışma fenomonolojik bir çalışma olmuştur. Teknolojinin eğitime dâhil edilmesi süreci ve eğitim sürecindeki bireylerin bu duruma bakış açısı değerlendirilmiştir. Elde edilen veriler incelendiğinde yeni başlayan öğretmenin öğrenci ihtiyaçları konusunda farkındalık sahibi oldukları sonucuna varılmıştır. Sistem içinde teknoloji kullanımı pek fazla mümkün olmamakla birlikte, ulusal giriş sınavları için öğretmen ve öğrencilerin müfredat içinde belirlenen konuları takip etmesi gerekmektedir. Pek çok öğrenci bu sistemi bir yarış olarak görmektedir ve aileleri de aynı şekilde onları iyi üniversitelerde görmek istemektedir. Sistem kendi içinde her zaman daha iyi şeyler yapılabilir fikriyle eleştirmektedir ve var olan sistemler içindeki yerini almak için sürekli güncelleştirme yapmaktadır. Anahtar Kelimeler: öğretmen ihtiyaçları, dijital çağ, 4.0 web teknolojileri Abstract Education is a multi-faced system with its varied participants. The participants of the system are not only people but also the politic and economic elements. As a source of information teachers are not the only source but now smart technological elements and digital platforms are also the source of information. Teachers and education policies are the fundamentals of the education system however the students can also be considered as the part of these fundamentals. The related data is collected via semi-instructed interviews. The ones which are easy to reach and volunteer are chosen in the process of data collection and that's why the study is designed as phenomenological study design. The data analyzed and it is seen that the novice teachers have the awareness of the needs of the students. It is not much possible to use the technological elements in the system because the students need to follow the course catalogue to be successful ın the national entrance exam. Many students consider the process as a race and families are also want them to be in good universities that is why they don't consider technology as a key matter. The system is considered to be better and the updates are being done continuously in order to keep the rhythm with the developing technologies.

EDUCATION 4.0 IN A SIMPLE WAY (Atena Editora)

Atena Editora

We are in a time when almost everyone talks about the 4th. Industrial Revolution(4RI), also known as Industry 4.0. The 4RI is transforming productive, economic and commercial relations; These changes are even seen in educational environments, forcing a review of teaching methods and the learning process. These needs and changes that education has to cover is what is known as Education 4.0. Education 4.0 is a response to the need for technological evolution that the 4RI means, where humans and technology are aligned to allow new possibilities. In the following writing the characteristics of Education 4.0 are mentioned.

e-Academia Journal

DR. YUNITA AWANG

The Industrial Revolution caused major changes in the economy and advancement in technology. Specifically, IR4.0 stimulates the development of Education 4.0, in which the use of information, internet and technology become part of the teaching and learning process allowing students to learn at any time through digital platforms. Promoting for Education 4.0 involved challenges particularly constant changes in the teaching and learning techniques, and the facilities to cater to the technology demands. This study attempts to assess perceived challenges towards Education 4.0 implementation among the academicians at a comprehensive university and to explore the relationship between gender and perceived challenges among them. Based on purposive sampling, online questionnaires were distributed via google form to a population of 352 academicians in the selected comprehensive university. Data gathered from 127 responses were analysed using SPSS. The findings indicate the majority of the respo...

Proceedings of the 8th UPI-UPSI International Conference 2018 (UPI-UPSI 2018)

Euis Kurniati

Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Education, Science, and Technology (ICEST 2019)

anas arfandi

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Towards Education 4.0

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The transformation of the labour market, in particular in relation to the expectations for skills required for the future workplace, poses a challenge to educational institutions, which is how to adapt to this dynamic environment. The directions of this transformation, linked with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), can be analysed from the perspectives of the main stakeholders of the Education 4.0 ecosystem, which in the case of higher education refers to students, the labour market, and educational institutions. In this chapter, we identify the main aspects of the transformation towards Education 4.0 and its impact on development of the new educational concepts and methods. In addition, the role of infrastructure and disruptive technologies such as extended reality and blockchain in the transition of educational institutions is discussed.

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Education 4.0: New Challenge of Learning

• Vichian Puncreobutr
• Published 31 December 2016
• Education, Computer Science
• Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

170 Citations

Factors affecting the role of state in the context of digital transformation of education in vietnam.

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Dangers and challenges of Education 4.0

This article is inspired by the research Eurospeak Limited conducted for the first project result of the EU Play project: “The Teachers’ Education 4.0 Guide”. 

As the world has worked its way to the 4th Industrial Revolution, the technological advances that were obtained in the last few decades brought in many changes for today’s society. One of the fields that have experienced massive repercussions due to technological advancement has been education. Moving on from Education 2.0 and Education 3.0 that enabled students with greater connectivity, interaction, and access to information, Education 4.0 came with a whole new perspective on how knowledge should be transferred to those learning (“Education 4.0 and Its Impact on the Educational System during the Pandemic and Post Pandemic Covid 19 in Ecuador,” 2021). Focusing on preparing students for a world where smart technology, artificial intelligence, and IoT will be a part of their everyday life (both personal and professional), teachers are expected to help students acquire diverse sets of skills, giving way to a more personalised learning experience and relying on students’ feedback (Fisk, 2017).  

Education 4.0 comes with many benefits for students such as retaining information more effectively through virtual reality and acquiring digital and soft skills essential to compete in the future labor market. However, it also raises questions as to how the deeper connectivity impacts societal structure. The new way of learning is believed to have harmful consequences in making people more disconnected from one another. (“Strengths and Weaknesses of Education 4.0 in the Higher Education Institution,” 2019). Having enabled education to be accessible from anywhere, at any time, the fear of hampering students’ social skills and pushing them into a cybernetic world is not one to disregard. In addition to this, some studies have proven that being in a classroom helps students socialise and feel safe and a part of a broader community (AspenInstitute, 2020). The unexpected arrival of Covid-19 that forced online learning has only amplified the feeling of social isolation that could inevitably lead to loneliness and withdrawal from society (DeRobertis E. M. and Saldarini R. A., 2003). A few studies express their concern about a potential increase in school dropouts in children population (Rodríguez et al., 2014; Mendoza-Rojas, 2015), and UNICEF considers the loss of contact between children and teachers to be the main reason. What is more, there is an undeniable chance of an even higher digital divide, as enormous inequality in resources and institutional infrastructure between schools creates advantage for those coming from privileged environments, the instance being popularly called the ‘Matthew effect’ (Rigney, 2010). A topic of echo chambers that has gained a lot of attention with the rise of social media is also one to consider when evaluating the perils of online education. An echo chamber is an “environment where a person only encounters information or opinions that reflect and reinforce their own ( Digital Media Literacy: What Is an Echo Chamber? , n.d.). Having the ability to learn from home using technology creates a higher potential occurrence of homeschooling that could exempt children from acquiring holistic knowledge and gaining perspective on different values.   

Having considered all of these, it is safe to say Education 4.0 is not as harmless as some may think. However, not any transformation has come without its challenges. The times are changing, and so are the needs of students. If we want to create people who’ll have a chance in a competitive labour market, education must adapt. Using technology as a tool, and “frequently enough to raise the level of understanding from both teacher and student perspectives” (“Strengths and Weaknesses of Education 4.0 in the Higher Education Institution,” 2019) means we are on the right track to overcoming the difficulties it brings along, as well as enabling students to learn in a fun, original and stimulating way.  

References 

• De Robertis E. M. and Saldarini R. A. (2003) Technology as a contributor to isolation and loneliness incontemporary culture, Community College Humanities Review, 24 (1-13) https://www.academia.edu/7281263/Technology_as_a_contributor_to_isolation_and_loneliness_in_cont emporary_culture_2003   
• Digital Media Literacy: What is an Echo Chamber? (n.d.). GCFGlobal.Org. https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/digital-media-literacy/what-is-an-echo-chamber/1/ 
• Education 4.0 and its impact on the educational system during the pandemic and post pandemic Covid 19 in Ecuador. (2021). Sinergias Educativas . https://doi.org/10.37954/se.v7i1.332  
• Peter Fisk (2017) Education 4.0 … the future of learning will be dramatically different, in school and throughout life. https://www.peterfisk.com/2017/01/future-education-young-everyone-taught-together/  
• Strengths and Weaknesses of Education 4.0 in the Higher Education Institution. (2019). International Journal of Innovative Technology and Exploring Engineering , 9 (2S3), 511–519. https://doi.org/10.35940/ijitee.b1122.1292s319 

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Amid budget challenges, CPS and the teachers union make little movement on contract negotiations

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When Chicago Public Schools students head back to class later this month, their teachers likely won’t yet have a new contract.

In the past, that was a bad omen, signaling that a strike loomed. This year, a strike does not appear to be on the horizon, and both sides have said the tone at the bargaining table has been more amicable.

But by most accounts, the district and the Chicago Teachers Union have made little headway in the high-stakes negotiations that began this past spring. The CTU is pushing for its most far-reaching package of proposals, which includes 9% annual raises, more school support staff, smaller class sizes, and efforts to address homelessness and the challenges migrant families face.

Those demands come as the district and city face budget deficits, with no clear path to securing extra funding for schools. Illinois lawmakers and Gov. J.B. Pritzker have balked at appeals to steer more dollars to Chicago schools. Meanwhile, district leaders and the school board have said they are wary of adding to the district’s already considerable debt burden after Mayor Brandon Johnson encouraged them to take out a short-term loan to cover some contract costs and ward off cuts.

After years of contentious relationships with mayors, the union is now negotiating with a district overseen by Johnson, a former CTU employee whom it helped propel into office. His critics had argued during last year’s mayoral race that he would readily sign off on the union’s demands, no matter the cost, even as he shot back that he would be best positioned to “deliver bad news” to his friends in the union.

Neither scenario has played out so far, according to sources on both sides.

The union has struck an increasingly combative tone. Tensions have spilled out at two public bargaining sessions; a third one focused on financial issues is slated for Tuesday evening.

In an interview with Chalkbeat, Board of Education President Jianan Shi, who is not involved in daily negotiations but will eventually vote to approve a deal, said he expected by now that both sides would have “made more progress.”

“I think the people of Chicago want to see us finding alignment, demonstrating that we can work together, and doubling down on things we know that improve student outcomes and the student experience,” Shi said.

Bargaining may bleed past the Nov. 5 school board elections, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the pace of negotiations. And if that happens, it could mean whatever agreement district and union leaders reach could come before the new 21-member board that will be sworn in on Jan. 15, including 11 mayoral appointees.

CPS did not respond to Chalkbeat’s questions or multiple requests for an interview. City Hall declined to comment.

A 9% raise, more support staff, and less learning time

The union is proposing hundreds of substantial edits or new additions to its current contract, from more prep time for elementary school teachers and making school buildings more environmentally-friendly to providing housing assistance for homeless students and dollars for transportation, mental health services, and academic support for immigrant families seeking asylum.

In its opening proposals, the union asked for a 9% pay increase and salaries that don’t dip below $46,500, or 150% of the federal poverty level. The average teaching assistant salary — a group represented by the CTU — is now about $44,000.

The starting salary for teachers is $61,990, according to the current contract . A Chalkbeat analysis of compensation data shows a regular teacher makes about $92,500 a year on average, up from $78,400 in 2019. Teacher pay varied significantly, with head teachers, who play key leadership roles on their campuses, making almost $115,000 on average, while high school support teachers average about $88,000.

In the recent past, CPS has agreed to raises of up to 4%, and an internal district memo obtained by Chalkbeat last month contemplated 4% for the coming year, which the district estimates would cost $120 million. Though comparing compensation across districts and states is tricky, Chicago teachers are better compensated than many others. One pandemic-era study from the National Council on Teacher Quality put CPS at No. 1 for teachers lifetime earnings among 90 large districts.

But union leaders have said their main focus is on proposals aimed at beefing up support for schools and students. Those include librarians in every school, air conditioning in all gymnasiums by 2026, in-home counseling for students who have experienced trauma, class sizes of between 20 to 25 students depending on the grade, and even smaller classes for those that include at least one child learning English.

Zeidre Foster, the union’s head of grievances and member of the district’s bargaining team, said the two sides have reached several tentative agreements on low-cost proposals that likely won’t excite members, such as around professional development. The tone at the table remains collaborative, she said.

But overall, progress has been slow.

“The most frustrating part at this point is the lack of urgency,” she said. “We are looking to transform the district, and CPS is stuck in the status quo.”

The union has gotten a small number of proposals from the district and some counter offers on CTU demands, she said; there has been no response on the union’s compensation proposal.

One major issue CPS and CTU are far apart on is providing additional preparation time for elementary school teachers, according to two sources familiar with negotiations. The union has argued that elementary school teachers need more time to plan engaging lessons. The current contract allows for an hour of preparation time a day. The district says more preparation time means less learning time for students amid ongoing pandemic recovery.

The union unsuccessfully demanded a similar proposal during 2019 contract negotiations .

In a July letter to CPS families, Martinez called negotiations “fruitful.” In the most recent public bargaining session at Roswell B. Mason Elementary School in North Lawndale, district officials also opted for an upbeat tone, highlighting additional investments they’ve made in schools, as well as average class sizes of 20 students in elementary schools and 20 students in high schools.

The 330,000-student district’s payroll has grown by roughly 8,200 full-time positions since 2019, to about 46,670 positions, according to district data.

But CTU members, a student, and union President Stacy Davis Gates, who unsuccessfully pressed the district to codify those class sizes in the teachers contract on the spot, offered a dimmer view. They highlighted some of their top issues, such as a lack of librarians at every school and the need for more early childhood classes for students with disabilities.

“I’m actually struggling right now trying to understand how we are going to come to some agreement and settlement of this contract,’” Davis Gates said during the bargaining session, adding that she wanted the district to acknowledge that there are problems in need of solutions.

Proposals such as dedicated space for social workers and nurses are reasonable to Tyrone Palmer, a social worker at Walter Payton College Prep and one of hundreds of union delegates who voted to approve the proposals. Palmer’s biggest wish is for more staff inside buildings, including librarians, paraprofessionals, and social workers.

Palmer said he supports the union wielding its power to improve problems that fall outside of teacher pay and benefits and address broader problems, such as homelessness.

“When there are societal issues, that affects our jobs and if that comes in through the schools, it’s hard to educate a student,” Palmer said.

But he noted that contract talks are going more slowly than he had expected.

“When Brandon Johnson got elected, I remember thinking, one, we’re gonna ask for a super extravagant proposal and two, we’re gonna somehow get everything we ask for,” Palmer said. “It’s a harsh reality check of, ‘No … it’s still very slow-going.’”

Unknown contract costs prompt questions of cuts, borrowing

CPS budget will need amending once contract costs are known

The question of how to pay for a new contract looms over the negotiations as the district faces budget deficits that could approach $1 billion in the coming years.

The Board of Education would have to amend its already-passed budget once the contract is settled. Both Pritzker and State Superintendent Tony Sanders have made it clear that the state won’t be providing more money this year. Without additional dollars, the district will have to make cuts in order to pay for costs related to the new contract.

CPS is providing “budgets that do not include what we need,” Davis Gates told reporters after another public bargaining session this month. “And what we need are actual bodies in classrooms, teaching our young people. We need a sports program. We need an arts program — not a smorgasbord of things that you may or may not get.”

Asked what funding options are available and if CPS will take out a loan, Board President Shi said “everything is on the table,” but declined to elaborate further. More details could be revealed during the third public bargaining session on Tuesday.

Joe Ferguson of the Civic Federation, an Illinois-based nonpartisan government research group, questioned the district’s decision to pass a 2024-25 budget without any dollars for the cost of the new teacher contract. District officials could have estimated those costs and baked them into the document for a more clear-eyed plan to navigate the rough financial waters.

But it’s not a surprise the district did not do that, given the charged politics of attempting to guess at those costs, Ferguson said. Mayor Johnson has said he will not accept significant cuts to district programs or staff.

Ferguson noted the district significantly expanded its workforce and operations during the pandemic.

“You could be reductionist and say the governor is saying no,” he said. “Or you could argue the governor is saying, ‘We won’t come to the rescue of a system that hasn’t shown it is willing to do the work of reducing some costs firsts.’”

Hal Woods of the advocacy group Kids First Chicago says the group’s leadership and parent network are supportive of higher teacher pay and really like some of the proposals to beef up student support. But they are concerned about the cost of the proposal.

They also have concerns about proposals that would give new powers to Professional Personnel Leadership Committees, advisory bodies made up of educators and other staff that campuses convene under state law. The union wants these committees to have more control over curriculum, professional development, principal evaluations, and more, in some ways, potentially sidelining local school councils and school leaders.

In 2019, contract talks led to an 11-day strike, when union leaders insisted Mayor Lori Lightfoot was squarely in the driver’s seat and lambasted her for not meeting their demands. The same was true in 2012 when CTU leadership sparred with then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel over the length of the school day and year and teacher performance evaluations.

But this time around, the union has blamed Martinez for standing in the way of an agreement, calling him a “Lightfoot holdover” who lacks vision for CPS, though he, like his predecessors, serves at the mayor’s pleasure.

“Disparaging the CEO doesn’t make state legislators or Chicagoans for that matter interested in letting more of their money go to the district,” Woods said.

The union also changed its stance on a $175 million payment from CPS to the city’s pension fund. The union had sharply criticized Lightfoot for passing the payment on to the district, but it now says that the district should cover it, empowering Johnson to pursue a progressive agenda in City Hall.

A City Hall spokesperson said Johnson’s deputy mayor of labor relations, Bridget Early, has been involved in the talks. But Johnson has largely refrained from commenting on them publicly, and union officials said direct reports to Martinez rather than Johnson administration staffers have been on the frontlines.

Brad Marianno, an education labor expert at the University of Nevada, said the CTU remains a trailblazer in promoting the kind of expansive education and social justice contract talk agenda known as “bargaining for the common good.”

The union’s latest set of proposals is the most far-reaching and voluminous Marianno has seen in Chicago or anywhere else. But he said the pushback to taking on more debt to fund recurring expenses such as salaries is understandable because doing so would be “wildly irresponsible.”

And while support for educators remains strong in urban districts such as Chicago, Marianno believes even here, there is little appetite for a teacher strike among parents and community members on the heels of extended remote learning and other COVID-era disruptions to learning.

Mila Koumpilova is Chalkbeat Chicago’s senior reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Mila at [email protected] .

Reema Amin is a reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Reema at [email protected] .

A coalition of rural school districts pooled their resources to buy state-of-the-art equipment and offer students more opportunities in their own backyard.

Tell us how much you expect to spend on your students.

The union said its proposals present opportunities for students of color, and asked the district to explore ways to raise more money.

“There's a way that you walk differently when you have certain experiences behind or within you,” said Bijoun Eric Jordan, who teaches at Frederick Douglass Academy VII High School.

Hillsdale College wants donations to ‘put the Constitution back in Tennessee schools.’ But it isn’t absent, educators say.

Gov. Phil Murphy held the bill signing in Newark, where third grade literacy rates plummeted after the COVID pandemic.

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Sky-high innovation: unveiling the future of cloud computing in industry 4.0.

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Nicola Sfondrini - Partner Digital and Cloud Strategy at PWC .

Industry 4.0, or the Fourth Industrial Revolution, introduces automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies. This includes advancements such as smart integrated systems, the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing.

These technologies allow for the interconnection of smart devices in industrial settings, supporting two-way, real-time communication in smart production environments. By connecting people, devices and industrial systems, cloud computing promotes data exchange and leverages advanced technologies to strengthen the ability to design, monitor and manage innovative, highly adaptable, automated and self-optimizing production processes.

Given the large amount of data involved in real-time automation and control, cloud computing is a key component enabling the operational economy. Cloud computing offers on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources, which can be rapidly deployed and released, providing flexibility and scalability in the management of such huge datasets, thus allowing companies to extract knowledge from raw data and respond more quickly and effectively to market requirements.

Emerging Trends In Cloud Computing

This discussion will center on three pivotal trends that are currently reshaping the industrial landscape in the digital age, as part of the evolving cloud computing paradigm.

• Edge Computing: Designed to process data near or at its point of generation, this approach can help to cut latency and reduce bandwidth requirements. For example, automotive factory assembly lines can use edge computing to conduct and process activities in real time on the plant floor without having to send large volumes of data to distant data centers. This can be critical for scenarios requiring real-time observability, such as predictive maintenance and automated quality control that call for instantaneous adjustments or actions.

• Integration With Artificial Intelligence And Machine Learning: Traditional cloud environments can be integrated with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms, so that they employ next-gen computational power to, for example, carry out sophisticated automated measurements for their overall operation.

AI algorithms not only track system behaviors and system failures but also use huge volumes of cloud data to sift for possible optimization, thus minimizing costs and carrying out proactive prevention. ML, on the other hand, learns from new data to become more efficient, possibly changing the course of process optimization and innovation.

• Quantum Cloud Computing: Still in its infancy, I believe quantum cloud computing will allow for unimaginable speed-ups to complex operating setups with large numbers of variables, surpassing what can be achieved using classical computing. For example, it would allow us to better understand the increasingly exotic states of particles, such as the electron, or allow us to solve complex logistical problems.

The beginnings of this technology are starting to emerge, with various new companies working on extending processing capabilities via the cloud (such processing is sometimes now performed in quantum hardware, kept cold enough to maintain its subatomic properties until the algorithmic tasks are completed). This technology might, in the future, enable the simulation of material properties at millions of scales, radically changing the nature of manufacturing.

Case Studies: Success Stories Of Cloud Integration

Germany is out in front of Industry 4.0 technologies, with many examples of cloud integration.

• Bosch Rexroth ActiveCockpit: This interactive communication platform represents good real-time data processing in a manufacturing setting. The ActiveCockpit collects, processes and displays production shop floor data in real time. With this system, production is operationalized more effectively.

All the critical manufacturing control variables are viewable at the manufacturing facility in an easy-to-understand manner to facilitate informed decision-making. It improves process efficiency, quickly diagnoses and remedies problems with production inefficiencies and maintains efficient machine operation. Cloud connectivity prevents downtime and conserves labor hours through predictive maintenance.

• Siemens Insights Hub: Siemens has created Insights Hub (previously MindSphere), an open cloud-based IoT operating system that connects analog infrastructure to the digital world via high-speed sensor technology. Insights Hub is particularly good at aggregating, processing, analyzing, visualizing and managing data.

Such IoT devices generate massive amounts of complex data from humble infrastructure that is hidden underneath, which the Hub can use to refine its own processes and develop new services (for example, in predictive maintenance, energy data management and so on). This system underpins Siemens' state-of-the-art Amberg plant in Germany, which is a leading automated and digitized factory globally.

Future Projections And Challenges

Cloud computing is set to lead the way to Industry 4.0. Innovations such as the distributed cloud, which merges cloud and telecommunications approaches, and the multi-access edge computing (MEC) market, which delivers services closer to the data source, will further enhance the transformative potential of cloud computing. As these innovations continue to emerge, the impact of cloud computing will only increase.

Yet, these new technologies bring new vulnerabilities, too, especially in terms of cybersecurity and data privacy. As manufacturing becomes increasingly digitized (via virtualized cloud-based platforms), the exposure to both cyberattacks and data breaches increases. Cloud-based technologies designed to strengthen critical infrastructure must also comply with increasingly stringent data protection regulation, which varies across legal jurisdictions.

The existence of these hurdles makes it easier to understand why cloud computing takes center stage in the digitalization process of Industry 4.0. As I said earlier, if any technology had the unique capacity to increase connectivity levels, process data in a smart way and analyze processes in an efficient and effective manner, that technology would be the cloud.

For these reasons and more, the adoption of cloud technology will bring numerous upgrades to the manufacturing industry over the next few years, opening up new opportunities for business models and value creation.

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Graphics explain: How has college enrollment changed in the past decade?

Rising college tuition costs, the COVID-19 pandemic, and a bungled FASFA rollout have impacted the financial circumstances of many prospective college students. After several years of declining enrollment, the numbers spiked up about 1.2% in the 2023-2024 academic year,  the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reported. Enrollment numbers remained below pre-pandemic levels of 16 million.

While it's too early to track the impact tuition costs will have on enrollment numbers for the upcoming semester, some students have already said they're opting out of college due to the financial aid fiasco .

USA TODAY identified undergraduate enrollment trends from the past decade to see who is attending college, the most common fields of study and how the pandemic impacted enrollment.

Here's what you need to know about changes in college enrollment:

College enrollment upticks in 2023

Undergraduate enrollment increased by about 176,000 students in fall 2023, according to a  report published earlier this year by the National Student Clearinghouse. That’s a spike of about 1.2% from the previous fall.

About 15.2 million undergraduate students enrolled in college for the 2023-2024 academic year. The biggest growth came at community colleges, which gained 118,000 students this fall. Private, for-profit colleges also experienced an uptick in enrollments.

The Department of Education has not yet published their data on total undergraduate enrollment for Fall 2023.

Four-year universities and two-year colleges experienced dramatic declines in enrollment since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March of 2020. Undergraduate numbers  fell by 15% between 2010 and 2021 , according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Who is most likely to enroll in college?

Women made up nearly 60% of all college students enrolling in Fall of 2022, the Education Department found, up from 56.6% eight years earlier. For several decades women have outnumbered men as college enrollees and attendees, but the gender gap has only widened.

FASFA fiasco: For low-income students, FAFSA can be a lifeline. When it didn't work, they were hardest hit.

College enrollment by major

For students graduating with an associate degree or bachelor's degree, business and health professions and related programs were the top three most common fields of study, the Education Department said.

For the past decade, business has been the most common degree granted to graduating students.

In the 2021-2022 academic year, these were the top five most common bachelor degrees granted by field of study:

• 18.2% in business
• 12.9% in health professions and related studies
• 7.7% in social sciences and history
• 6.1% in psychology
• 6.3% in biological and biomedical sciences

Graphics explain: How are college costs adding up these days and how much has tuition risen?

Why is college enrollment declining?

College tuition has become unaffordable for many prospective students. For those who do pursue higher education, many will be paying nearly two-fold what their parents paid for an undergraduate education 20 years earlier. 

According to the Education Data Initiative,  the average cost of college tuition and fees at public four-year institutions has risen 179.2% over the last two decades.

At the same time, difficulty applying for financial aid upended the college decision-making process, and disrupted the lives of many students. USA TODAY previously reported that delays and technical problems with the FASFA form left many economically disadvantaged students scrambling for financial aid, jeopardizing their college aspirations. 

Contributing: Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY

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Sustainability in Industry 4.0 Challenges and Remedies

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A large and growing number of manufacturers are realizing the substantial financial and environmental benefits of sustainable business practices. To develop more sustainable societies, industries need to better understand how to respond to environmental, economic, and social challenges and transform industrial behavior. The objective of this book is to provide the required knowledge and accelerate the transition towards a sustainable industrial system. The book will help industries to enhance operational efficiency by reducing costs and waste. It will help them increase customer response, reach new customers, and gain competitive advantage. It offers innovation, scenario planning, and strategic analysis that goes beyond compliance, as well as case studies and remedies to the industry 4.0 challenges. Professionals, as well as students, can refer to this book to add to their knowledge on Industry 4.0 and develop new ideas and solutions to the existing and future problems.

Table of Contents

Dr. Shwetank Avikal has completed his M.Tech from Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT-ALD) Allahabad, India in 2009 in Mechanical Engineering. He has also completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the same (MNNIT-ALD) University in 2016. Now a days, he is working as Assistant Professor at Mechanical Engineering Department, Graphic Era Hill University, Dehradun, India since 2013. His area of Interest is production and industrial Engineering, Operations Research, Decision Science, Soft Computing, Mathematical Modelling, Sustainability, Line Balancing etc. He has published over 40 Research articles in referred International Journals and Conferences. Dr. Amit raj Singh has completed his M.Tech from Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT-ALD) Allahabad, India in 2007 in Mechanical Engineering. He has also completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the same (MNNIT-ALD) University in 2012. Now a days, he is working as Assistant Professor at Mechanical Engineering Department, NIT Raipur, India since 2012. His area of Interest is production and industrial Engineering, Operations Research, Decision Science, Soft Computing, Mathematical Modelling, Supply Chain Management, Sustainability etc. He has published over 50 Research articles in referred International Journals and Conferences. Dr. Mangey Ram received the Ph.D. degree major in Mathematics and minor in Computer Science from G. B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, India, in 2008. He has been a Faculty Member for around ten years and has taught several core courses in pure and applied mathematics at undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctorate levels. He is currently a Professor at Graphic Era (Deemed to be University), Dehradun, India. Before joining the Graphic Era, he was a Deputy Manager (Probationary Officer) with Syndicate Bank for a short period. He is Editor-in-Chief of International Journal of Mathematical, Engineering and Management Sciences and the Guest Editor & Member of the editorial board of various journals. He is a regular Reviewer for international journals, including IEEE, Elsevier, Springer, Emerald, John Wiley, Taylor & Francis and many other publishers. He has published 125 research publications in IEEE, Taylor & Francis, Springer, Elsevier, Emerald, World Scientific and many other national and international journals of repute and also presented his works at national and international conferences. His fields of research are reliability theory and applied mathematics. Dr. Ram is a Senior Member of the IEEE, life member of Operational Research Society of India, Society for Reliability Engineering, Quality and Operations Management in India, Indian Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics, member of International Association of Engineers in Hong Kong, and Emerald Literati Network in the U.K. He has been a member of the organizing committee of a number of international and national conferences, seminars, and workshops. He has been conferred with "Young Scientist Award" by the Uttarakhand State Council for Science and Technology, Dehradun, in 2009. He has been awarded the "Best Faculty Award" in 2011 and recently Research Excellence Award in 2015 for his significant contribution in academics and research at Graphic Era.

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Education | Orange County Board of Education mounts legal…

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Education | Orange County Board of Education mounts legal challenge to California’s new gender identity law

Spearheaded by Trustee Jorge Valdes, the board unanimously approved a resolution on Wednesday, Aug. 7, iterating its opposition to the new law, AB 1955 . And it also kicks off a lawsuit to challenge it.

The law, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last month , requires the California Department of Education to develop or streamline resources that schools can use to support LGBTQ+ students and their families, including affinity clubs, safe spaces, antibullying and harassment policies and counseling services.

But it also targets parental notification policies, which dictate how school employees may disclose information related to a student’s sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression without the student’s consent. Multiple districts across Southern California , including in Orange County, have enacted some forms of parental notification policies .

The new law prohibits school districts and charter schools from enacting policies that require staff to “disclose any information related to a pupil’s sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression” to another person without their consent, according to AB 1955 .

“LGBTQ+ pupils have the right to express themselves freely at school without fear, punishment or retaliation, including that teachers or administrators might ‘out’ them without their permission,” the legislation said.

The OC Board of Education will join Chino Valley Unified, a San Bernardino school district, in its lawsuit against Newsom over the gender identity law filed last month , Valdes said.

Liberty Justice Center, a Texas-based nonprofit firm, filed the lawsuit on behalf of Chino Valley Unified. Valdes said the firm is doing the work pro bono, meaning taxpayers will not be funding the lawsuit.

In a press release, Liberty Justice Center said the lawsuit has already been amended to include OCBE and Anderson Union High School District in Shasta County. Aside from Newsom, the lawsuit also names Attorney General Rob Bonta and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond.

“The passage of this resolution is part of my pledge, and this board’s pledge, to protect Orange County children and parents,” Valdes said.

Many people spoke about the resolution during Wednesday night’s board meeting, including several who decried the law, often citing religious beliefs and the view that parents should be involved in important decisions about their children’s lives.

“I do not believe an underage child has the capacity of making a life-changing decision such as gender identity on their own,” Valdes said in an interview ahead of Wednesday’s meeting. “Parental involvement is absolutely necessary.”

“There is a trust placed with the school by parents when we send our kids to school,” said Valdes. “That trust, in my view, is irreparably harmed (by the law). School employees are forced to keep important information from parents about their children.”

A spokesperson for Newsom said the law keeps children safe while protecting the critical role of parents. The governor’s office noted that California law mandates that minors cannot legally change their name or gender without parental consent and guarantees parents’ right to access their student’s educational records.

“It protects the child-parent relationship by preventing politicians, teachers and school staff from inappropriately intervening in family matters and attempting to control if, when and how families have deeply personal conversations,” said Brandon Richards, a spokesperson for Newsom.

Thurmond, an educator and social worker, defended the law during a recent television debate , saying it “protects young people from being forcibly outed,” which could help prevent suicide.

“It’s a misnomer for those who have said that this takes away parents’ rights. This actually reaffirms the rights that parents and their families have to work on these issues together,” Thurmond, who is running for governor in 2026 , said.

The legislation, introduced by Assemblymember Chris Ward, D-San Diego, will go into effect on Jan. 1 .

“AB 1955: The SAFETY Act is debated and settled law protecting students and teachers across the whole state,” Ward said in a statement Thursday. “With careful attention to court precedent on underlying constitutional issues and the purview of our legislative process to govern the state’s education code, I am confident that we will prevail against wasteful, spiteful and misguided legal challenges.”

Huntington Beach has already launched a challenge to the law . Earlier this week, the City Council drafted an ordinance to establish it as a “Parents Right to Know City” and to see if the city attorney’s office could assist residents who wish to challenge the law in court.

While the OC Board of Education doesn’t regulate school districts’ curriculum or policies, it does oversee special education and alternative programs in the county, including the Alternative, Community and Correctional Education Schools and Services program, which caters to students who face academic and social challenges in traditional classrooms. The ACCESS program, which Valdes said serves around 4,600 students, also helps adults get their high school diplomas.

The OCBE has a parental rights policy that applies only to the ACCESS program, according to Valdes, which states that parents have the right to be notified of their children’s preferred use of gender pronouns and whether they are seeking psychological counseling and the content of that counseling, including gender-affirming therapies.

“The Orange County Board of Education recognizes that parents/guardians are their children’s first and most influential teachers and that active parent involvement in the education of their children contributes greatly to student achievement and a positive school environment,”  the policy states .

OCBE is also responsible for approving the Department of Education’s budget and considers appeals regarding expulsions, charter school applications and inter-district transfers.

Staff writer Michael Slaten contributed to this report.

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