Professor Peter Smith, from the University’s Malaysia Campus, has been meeting leaders from EduCity to discuss whether our students are ready for the changes that will accompany increased automation in the workplace.
The EduCity development is home to the University’s Campus, as well as other institutes of higher education, businesses and research and development centres.
The idea of automation can be very worrying for many people. A report by the McKinsey Global Institute predicts that about 800 million jobs could be lost worldwide to automation and artificial intelligence.
The filmed roundtable discussion focused on disruptive technology, in other words a product or service which eventually replaces established technology, and whether students are being trained to be ready for this in the future.
Professor Smith said skills in numeracy, critical thinking, communication and data analysis are crucial in dealing with structural changes such as disruptive technologies and this forms the basis of the education we are already giving our students.
He added that developing a disruption ready workforce is not a challenge for universities, provided that the students work alongside the staff who are carrying out active research.
You can watch the video of the discussion on Youtube here.
