Foreseeing the Future: Transformation and Sustainability of Educational Equity in a Digital Society in the Age of VUCA

• In Event: Philosophical, ethical, and practical questions for education

Proposal

The VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) era was initially used to describe the multilateral world situation, then extended to describe the unpredictable business environment, and over time, the concept of the VUCA era was gradually expanded to extend to the field of education. The beginning of the digital society is a relatively broad concept, and the digital society in the VUCA era also faces the challenges of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity.In the digital society in the VUCA era, educational equity faces new challenges and concerns. challenges and concerns. In the past, initiatives that sought to achieve equity in education tended to prioritize procedural equity, whereby external forces provided disadvantaged groups with some of the conditions for bridging the educational divide, but tended to ignore structural and individualized equity. The development of digital society provides us with an opportunity to realize the transformation of educational equity in the VUCA era. Therefore, this paper focuses its research attention on the following three research questions.
First, why do we need to realize the transformation of educational equity in the digital society in the VUCA era? First, at a time of changing global labor market demands, it is urgent to promote the transformation of educational equity in the digital society in the VUCA era. The second is that digital technological change, as a driving force for educational equity transformation, provides more selectivity and possibilities for educational equity transformation. Third, in the digital society in the VUCA era, many international organizations and national education policies or initiatives imply the expectation of educational equity transformation.
Secondly, what are the possible paths to realize the transformation of educational equity?The VUCA era is full of changes, and the interconnectedness and complexity of things are especially prominent, and the digital society increases its uncertainty, so it is not easy to realize the transformation of educational equity in such a volatile and complex environment, let alone doing it arbitrarily. Based on the characteristics of the times and the development trend of society, this paper proposes four possible ways to realize the structural and personalized transformation of educational equity. First, an educational crisis response mechanism can help the education system maintain stability in the VUCA era, ensure the continuity of educational services, and minimize the negative impact of the crisis on educational equity. Second, the Education as a Service (EaaS) model is being implemented. In the EaaS model, education services are designed as a flexibly accessible and on-demand online service, which provides customized learning experiences through a digital platform to make education more flexible and personalized, helping to improve the efficiency of learning and the quality of education, and realizing a personalized transformation of educational equity. Third, international education cooperation and collaborative governance of education. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Alliance for Digital Education and others have already made many efforts in this regard. Fourthly, transnational assessment of education equity indices should be carried out. The cross-national assessment of the Education Equity Index provides an open and transparent platform for countries to demonstrate and compare the performance of education systems. This helps to increase the accountability of education systems and motivate Governments to take measures to improve equity in education.
The final research question discussed in this paper is what does educational equity look like when it is transformed? For this, we envision a new type of educational equity in a digital society in the VUCA era, which presents a look that is inclusive and shared, digitally driven, and constantly creating and delivering educational equity. Inclusive shared educational equity means that education systems will be more inclusive, providing equal opportunities for all students, regardless of their backgrounds, abilities and needs. There will be closer international cooperation in education, with joint development and sharing of educational resources to reduce educational disparities between different countries and regions. Educational equity driven by digitization refers to the fact that through the collection and analysis of educational data, educational decision-making will be more scientific and precise, ensuring fairness and efficiency in the allocation of resources. Educational equity will rely on advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality to personalize learning pathways and ensure that all students have access to educational resources tailored to their needs and abilities. Educational equity being continuously created and transmitted refers to the continuous renewal and development of a range of policies, measures, practices and concepts to ensure that equality of educational opportunities and fairness in the educational process are continuously realized and transmitted.
In the current era of increasingly distinctive VUCA features, it is imperative that we take swift and strategic measures to respond to the urgent need for transforming educational equity in a digital society. Failure to do so may further widen inequality in education, which in turn poses a threat to the harmonious and sustainable development of society. On the contrary, if we can successfully promote educational equity and sustainable development in education, it will help to decipher the fog of the VUCA era.

Authors

• zelin zheng, Northeast Normal University

• Gang Li, Northeast Normal University