What permanent changes Corona-parents will leave behind

Future is about what “will” happen, not about what we think “should” happen. At this moment we are still in Corona-times. What is then reasonable to imagine will happen post Covid? By looking at “different” kind of parents interesting perspectives becomes visible. The thing is; they are to be found all over. And they matter.

It’s reasonable to imagine the educational industry to change in different ways depending on what level we analyze. But lets try a different angle…parents.

Children-Parents

What happen with young children at this moment? No kindergarten. Well, it looks like small local Facebook-groups are growing at this moment. Neighboors, parents, getting together. Not like a school, but still; why not?

What will that lead to post covid?

Working-parents

To a 30-year-old businessman/woman a different solution appear. One is; no education at all. Skip it. Taking a course later in time. That is, at least, what a lot of companies do at this moment.

In the long run that is, of course, not so smart. But on the other hand: When a ship is about to go under you concentrate on saving the ship, not on long-term strategy. Corporate education have hard times at this moment – a sign of what I just said?

What will that lead to post covid?

This does not happen everywhere in industry, of course. Some companies that do good at this moment, or even great, might leverage at this moment – even increase their efforts on developing their employees. Good companies are getting better at this moment. Bad companies are getting worse. Industry dived. As always during times of crises.

What will that lead to post covid?

Gig-parents

But then, imagine instead you are a gig-economy-worker, self-employed, what is then a solution? Taking a MOOC, use the opportunity of not having a customer, upgrade yourself. A lot of self-employed people now suddenly have realized that the world of MOOCs actually exists – a sign of all this?

-> Try this Mooc on Digital Transformation

What will that lead to post covid?

Not-as-their-own-parents parents

An interesting effect from all this is for instance this one: Now, suddenly, a lot of parents on the globe can tell their own children that just was about to head for a university-education, not to do it. Because now, they for themselves, have stumbled on a different solution than the one they themselves ones took.

Are these self-employed parents a strong force? Well, in USA about 30 % of the work-force is self-employed. Knowledge-workers. We easily forget but industry in well-developed economies are not only related to big, old, industry, employing thousands of people.

So yes, these kinds of parents are rather important. Children that think about taking a university degree have a tendency of having rather highly educated parents.

Parents with a bit older children

What is then happening to the university-student that is already enrolled at a Master education at this very moment? The one that at this moment is sittning back home, jointly with the parents, doing online education.

Well, if we think about the kind of student that still take a university education – the ones that now have not postponed it already. What is reasonable to imagine that person to experience at this moment?

That student can experience three different kinds of digital education at this moment: 1. An education the student finds terrible. 2. Digital education that is perceived as fairly ok. 3. Digital education that the student finds unexpectedly good.

How much is of each category? Well, who am I to know? But, is it not reasonable to assume that there is more of category 1 than category 3? We have to remember; it was a whole world that just recently changed.

What does this mean in total? Same thing as in industry; things get divided.

So, at this moment we have some students that have become unusually pro digital education, while others have become unusually anti digital education. And then, some do not even care of course, but just go with the flow – what “is”, is just what “is”, to them.

People that are satisfied with something often wants more of it. People that are dis-satisfied with something often wants less of it.

Badly digitalized education will not get students in the long run. Good digitalized education will. Great digitalized education will get even more.

Teaching-parents

Then what have all teachers done during this shut-down-period? Developed these digital courses. Some have made great stuff, some average stuff, and some bad stuff – of course. Teachers that have made great stuff, get great feedback. Teachers that have made bad stuff, get bad feedback.

Is it then likely that anyone of us could be able to convince these great teachers, and these very satisfied students, in specific, to go back to physical education, ones the Corona-time is over … when also their own parents feel the same? Well, we might try. But I would be really surprised if they would accept it.

Summing up

What I am trying to say is actually just this: Corona have forced the whole world of education several years into the future, just over night, and the consequences are to be found on so many more levels than we are aware of. Post Covid: Education will just not go back to square one.

And realizing that, is important. It matters when we decide how to act tomorrow.

Share this post.