高等教育如何应对工作世界的变革

Changes in the World of Work and Their Implications for Higher Education

自动化和人工智能技术加速发展所造成的科技性失业使高等教育与工作世界的关系面临中断。以学历或证书作为就业凭证的教育社会契约也面临失效的风险。受经济优绩主义的影响,工作世界的不平等不断加剧社会不平等。在充满不确定的未来,仅有在高等教育阶段学习的知识和技能可能不足以保障我们个人的生活以及职业生涯。为应对工作和生活世界的可能变化,受高等教育者还需要培养自己学会学习以及终身学习的能力,并不断增强自身的未来素养和前瞻能力。基于此,高等教育的改革和发展必须既能满足当下经济社会发展对于人力资本的现实需求,又要能为未来工作岗位稀缺的世界提前做好准备。

It is generally believed that rapidly developing artificial intelligence(AI)technologies would automate large sectors of the workforce and lead to so-called“technological unemployment”.That means,college degrees we earned,which used to make us qualified for certain jobs,would become insufficient or even useless in the age of AI.On the other hand,due to the prevailing ideology of meritocracy in our society,which rewards the best performers,higher education has become no longer“the great equalizer”but an engine of economic as well as social inequality.The income gap between college graduates and non-graduates has been widening,so does the gap between graduates from elite universities and other institutions.Since a college education would no longer translate into higher earnings and better job security,students should prioritize the development of their learning skills over the acquisition of academic qualifications,so that they would be able to adapt to future challenges.In addition,our higher education also needs to be transformed to keep up with the social-economic development and prepare students for the future world of work,where they need to not just find jobs,but create more jobs.