SHAPING MINDS, SHAPING FUTURES: HIGHLIGHTS FROM SUC’S GUEST SEMINAR SERIES ON HIGHER EDUCATION

On February 9, SALT University College (SUC) kicked off its virtual 2024 Guest Seminar Series with a stimulating discussion on the topic, “Making Your Higher Education Count.” A distinguished panel, made up of Mrs. Felicia Nkrumah Kuagbedzi, Senior Communications and Publications Officer for the Association of African Universities, Dr. Mwirigi Kiula, Director of ICT and Innovation at the Kenyatta University Teaching Referral and Research Hospital in Kenya, and Professor Benjamin Ghansah, Senior Lecturer of ICT Education at the University of Education, Winneba, Ghana, addressed the audience.

Though they each tackled different aspects of “making one’s higher education count,” all three speakers were unanimous on the need to pursue continuous learning due to the invaluable benefits for lifelong personal and career development.

Professor Ghansah, who spoke on “The Transformative Power of Higher Education,” defined higher education as post-secondary university-based learning, where students acquire hard skills such as technical, hands-on quantifiable skills like accounting, engineering, medicine, etc., and qualitative soft skills such as leadership, communications, problem-solving, compassion, and ethics. Soft skills, which tend to be more intrinsic to one’s personality, can be learned and are just as important for personal and professional development as hard skills. Analytical, evaluation, and critical thinking skills are other premium abilities that come with higher education, which, as Prof. Ghansah pointed out, should allow a person to make rational judgement calls to avoid being defrauded by unscrupulous scammers. He pointed out that higher education “transcends traditional notions of knowledge acquisition and fosters holistic development,” serving as a “catalyst for personal and professional growth.” In essence, the transformation one gains from exposure to higher education is multi-faceted and shapes us socially, culturally, professionally, and leadership-wise. Prof. Ghansah further illustrated his points by sharing his own career development story of how he leveraged opportunities that came his way due to his university training for his profession as an academician. No doubt, Prof. Ghansah’s example aptly illustrated the transformative power of higher education.

In her turn, Mrs. Felicia Nkrumah Kuagbedzi shed light on “Shaping the Future: Higher Education in Africa.” She spoke of the changing landscape of the social, curriculum, and technological trends in Africa, highlighting the new modes of higher and lifelong education that span a wide variety of forms, from virtual, in-person, adaptive, and the advent of AI and Chat-Box to personalised learning. Globalisation and internationalisation of education allow Africans to obtain higher degrees from overseas learning institutions within the comfort of their borders.

Mrs. Kuagbedzi explained that the African Union has been examining the relevance of higher education to society through four blueprint paradigms: Sustainable Development Goals, Agenda 2063, Continental Education Strategy for Africa 2025 (with 50% achievement), and STISSA (Science and Technology Innovation for Africa). She pointed out that in Africa, where 60% of the population is under 25 years of age, of which 40 are under 15, the Global Environment Ratio for tertiary education is generally under 20%. Another challenge for higher education in Africa is how best to leverage technology to improve access and quality of education, given the changing dynamics. She insisted that though AI and robotics are a challenge for the African environment due to their many inadequacies, “humans and robots have to work side by side to result in higher-quality products.” She added that we must reconsider the modern-day African university's purpose, originally designed to produce civil servants for the post-colonial era. The continent now requires a pedagogical shift to provide opportunities for real-world application, with an emphasis on collaborative social learning. Higher education must, therefore, address the need for analytical, problem-solving, active learning, critical thinking, and leadership skills, since such qualitative social skills are crucial for long-term personal and professional development. At the end of her presentation, Mrs. Kuagbedzi shared important resources for employment and doctoral programmes with the audience, stating that there are many opportunities for jobs that African graduates are often unaware of.

Dr. Kiula, who incidentally was promoted on the same day of the seminar, deliberated on “Leveraging Higher Education for Career Success.” With the many benefits of higher education, such as higher remuneration, career and personal advancement, success, financial satisfaction, and security, it is important that one also contribute to society. He pointed to the convergence between higher education, career success, and the call of God upon one’s life as the recipe for lasting success. Using Moses from the Scriptures as an example, Dr. Kuila spoke of how Moses came to his life’s assignment with brain and brawn after 40 years in Pharaoh’s palace, and another 40 long years in the school of life (wilderness), before embarking on the journey of fulfilling his divine mission. Moses’s example illustrates the convergence between his preparation in the school of wilderness experience and the divine calling upon his life as the chosen one to lead the deliverance of Israel from slavery into the promised land. Likewise, our higher education and life experiences must converge with our divine purpose for us to successfully fulfil our life’s calling.

In the Q&A session, a member of the audience, which was comprised of students, faculty, and members of the public, raised a crucial point on why Africa’s higher education system fails to prepare our politicians to work with integrity, good ethics, and freedom from the spectre of corruption. Dr. Kuila responded that it is incumbent upon each individual to set standards for themselves that allow them to consistently make the right choices, leading to desirable outcomes.

To buttress the panellists’ point on the need for continuous learning, Mrs. Kudagbedzi quoted Alvin Toffler, who remarked that “the illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” In response to a question on what to tell students who accumulate degrees without using them to better their lives professionally, all the panellists advised that they pursue mentorship and career advice from their schools, join industry associations, do volunteer work and internships that would invariably generate positive leads for lucrative job opportunities.

The Guest Seminar Series at SUC aims to foster engaging discussions among members of the SUC community and the general public on current national or global issues of interest. Seasoned academicians and industry players come together during the seminars to offer relevant perspectives on the subjects taught in our classrooms.

To view the entire seminar on Making Your Higher Education Count, please click here.

By University Communications Unit