Dialogue and Universalism

Volume 19, Issue 1/2, 2009

Web-Based Technology and the New University

The Role of e-Learning in Paradigmatic Transformation

There are few opinions as soundly rooted and commonly acknowledged as the notion of usefulness of education. There is a deep belief, proved right by the experience of mankind, that an educated person has the advantage over a simpleton. It is considered (rightly) that educated individuals understand themselves and the world around them better. Therefore, they are more a homo rationalis than uneducated ones. In the world changing as in a kaleidoscope an educated person must have the skill to absorb incoming information easily and quickly, to select it and then process into substantial knowledge about the world. At the same time, they need to be reliable and highly efficient in its particular applications. In a word, an educated person needs to know how to develop their individual capital of knowledge. The average age of starting a career increases. Keeping up with fast occurring civilisation changes requires some outside assistance, and so the tasks for higher education are expanding to include theneed to organise lifelong learning. I think that the more effectively will an educational system deliver the abovementioned objectives-acquiring knowledge as such, understood as acquiring the truth about the world and as increasing the intellectual potential of the society-the ’better’ it will be. This leads to perceiving also the system’s effectiveness as a value in itself, and achieving this value becomes the system’s priority. However, are the values and goals of the higher education mentioned above exclusive? What tradition is backing the priorities of universities nowadays? What should be changed to make the education in universities more efficient in the changing world? I am asking those difficult questions while not quite convinced that my opinion is the best and the only one possible, but I would like to make a small contribution to the discussion on values of education.