Part Three
A policy shift in education is needed
One of the most important factors in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) is inclusivity. Oxford defines it as an intention or policy of including people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized, such as those who are handicapped or learning-disabled or racial and sexual minorities. In other developing countries like the Philippines, that includes the impoverished.
Mahar Mangahas, president of research firm Social Weather Stations (SWS), properly illustrated it recently in his Inquirer column, thus: “in the phrase ‘inclusive growth’, the key word is ‘inclusive’, not ‘growth’. Unless economic growth is inclusive, meaning that it benefits the lower classes, let us not make so much propaganda about it.”
“When only the upper classes [definitely] and the middle classes [possibly] are getting better off, it is inconsiderate, if not outright cruel, to be boasting about how fast the Gross National Product grows,” he said.
While he is exclusively talking about economics, the same concept may be transferred to technological advances. In today’s fast-changing world, how can slow-progressing societies such as the Philippines keep up?
Electroencephalograms (EEGs) are often used in the medical field to diagnose epilepsy, sleep disorders, coma, encephalopathies and brain death, typically through noninvasive methods, such as placing electrodes along the scalp.
Progressive countries, such as the US, are already using EEGs to further understand and access the human brain and a leading scholar and lawyer on the field, Nita A. Farahany, is at the forefront of studying the implications of neuroscience and behavioral genetics particularly in US criminal law, among others.
While other countries and its individuals are busy studying the bioethics of accessing the human brain and how it affects legal issues, our country, sad to note, can’t even conjure up a sound cybercrime law.
Insofar as the Philippines is concerned, a major policy shift should happen in order to start keeping up to the fast-changing world. To channel national hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal’s famous words—“ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan”—it is indeed up to the succeeding generations to help reduce the widening gap of inequality in this 4IR.
For instance, the government must encourage educational programs in the fields of information and communications technology (ICT), science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem), which enable the younger generation of students to understand the various concepts that shaped the three previous industrial
revolutions.
“It is misleading to compare ICT with ‘computer studies’,” according to British writer and founder of ictineducation.org, Terry Freedman.
In an article he wrote for The Guardian, Freedman said that, in ICT, the technology aspect is the least important because it is an element that changes over time.
“But the concepts of handling data and converting data into information are fairly constant and this is reflected in the terminology of the program of study. Terms like ‘e-mail’ and ‘database’ appear only as examples—the main headings are ‘finding things out’, ‘developing ideas and making things happen’, ‘exchanging and sharing information’ and ‘reviewing, modifying and evaluating work as it progresses’,” he explained.
In this way, the Philippines will produce more and more technology-oriented professionals and less dependence on the already massive number of technical-skilled domestic and overseas workers, threatened by the impending of job losses due to further technological advancements in progressive countries.
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab mentioned in his 4IR book that an underlying theme in his many conversations with global CEOs and senior business executives is that the acceleration of innovation and the velocity of disruption are hard to comprehend or anticipate and that these drivers constitute a source of constant surprise, even for the best connected and most well informed.
“Indeed, across all industries, there is clear evidence that the technologies that underpin the 4IR are having a major impact on businesses,” he said.
“Major shifts on the demand side are also occurring, as growing transparency, consumer engagement and new patterns of consumer behavior (increasingly built upon access to mobile networks and data) force companies to adapt the way they design, market and deliver products and services,” Schwab pointed out.
He said a key trend is the development of technology-enabled platforms that combine both demand and supply to disrupt existing industry structures, such as those we see within the “sharing” or “on demand” economy. These technology platforms, rendered easy to use by the smartphone, convene people, assets and data—thus, creating entirely new ways of consuming goods and services in the process.
“In addition, they lower the barriers for businesses and individuals to create wealth, altering the personal and professional environments of workers. These new platform businesses are rapidly multiplying into many new services, ranging from laundry to shopping, from chores to parking, from massages to travel,” Schwab said.
A good example of what he’s saying is the ride-sharing services, such as Uber or Grab, which is essentially a company without its own fleet of cars but eventually became a major player in the transportation industry, so much so that it competed and disrupted the current existing network of taxi franchises and operations worldwide.
Another one is the proliferation of online shopping malls, such as Zalora, Lazada and Shopee, that practically have no inventory of their own but became major players in the retail sector. Zalora essentially sealed its legitimate contender status when local conglomerate Ayala Group bought a 43.3-percent stake in the e-commerce web site.
The country is brimming with potential to become a major market and player in the 4IR. But without a massive policy shift to empower the upcoming generations with the ability to ride the wave, we will end up endlessly pondering “what could have been”.
To be continued
To reach the writer, e-mail cecilio.arillo@gmail.com.