Ashley Fernandes, chairman-joint board of XAVIER-EMLYON Business School shares his views on opportunities and challenges of the Indian education system with FE Education Online.
What is the best thing about today’s education system?
The Indian education system has undergone significant changes in recent years, with a renewed focus on skill development and industry-oriented education. Its globalised and quality offers are flourishing, moreover there seems to be a consensus around hybrid approaches.
In the field of sports management education, there has been a significant increase in the number of institutions offering specialised programmes, reflecting the growing demand for professionals in this field.
One of the best things about the current Indian education system for sports management is the emphasis on practical training and industry exposure. Institutions like XEBS, which offer hands-on experience through internships and industry collaborations, are filling the gap between education and employment. This approach is helping students to acquire the necessary skill set and practical knowledge that are in high demand in the sports industry.
According to a report by KPMG, the Indian sports industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.3% to reach Rs 10,000 billion by 2025. The report also states that the sports management education industry in India is expected to see significant growth as the industry expands. The global sports management education industry is also expected to grow at a CAGR of 9.3% from 2021 to 2028.
What is the one thing you would like to change in the system?
Would like to see changes in the cost of quality education and an enhanced focus on the planet and people. There should be an enabling curriculum to educate responsible actors that find meaningful and impactful professions.
Specifically, one thing that could be improved in the sports management education system is the integration of emerging technologies, such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), into the curriculum. AR and VR technologies have the potential to revolutionise the sports industry, providing immersive experiences for fans and new opportunities for athletes and teams to improve their performance. However, many professionals in the industry lack the necessary skills and knowledge to fully leverage these technologies.
Hybrid education is probably a good stepping stone on the way to full immersive and interactive user experience. AI, AR, VR, are going to be largely integrated in future educational offers.
What is the role digital has played in the evolution of the education system?
From apps for coaches to fine tune athletic performance, to checking their personalised daily diets and fitness levels via tech platforms, the sports industry has changed manifold in the last few years. This creates the need for sports management professionals to educate and upgrade themselves as well.
Digitisation has Increased accessibility and could lead to affordable, quality education. Digitisation of education is a means in its own rights and as such has very specific drivers to enable and enhance the students’/viewers’ experience. The end game is engagement and the goal of digital education should be to give the students/viewer an active environment and challenge him perhaps even more than in a physical class.
What has been the disadvantage of digital in education?
Digital as per se is not the problem but it’s the way some institutions use it that is. Quality control is the paramount caveat, when one has faster and broader means of disseminating knowledge, content and pedagogy should not be neglected.
What is the career advice you would like to give to students?
Remain lifelong students in order to stay current in terms of knowledge and skills in the wake of fast pace innovation. Your mindset is also going to help you navigate the volatile, complex, ambiguous, brittle, and incomprehensible world we are all facing. Think of education not as a given stock (degree) that you have for life but as a flow (knowledge) that you need to tap throughout. It’s about how you learn to learn, adapt to and impact your environment that will make you relevant. The sports management education industry is witnessing significant growth in India and globally.