Students' Future Competencies and the Experience of the Pandemic. This was the theme of a webinar organized on December 2nd by the Warsaw Institute of Banking in cooperation with the Student Parliament of the Republic of Poland as part of the "Active Student" project. The event, held under the patronage of the Conference of Rectors of Academic Schools in Poland, focused on the challenges posed to higher education by the pandemic and the ongoing digital transformation.
Competencies of the future are a topic that key institutions and individuals from the worlds of academia, business, and politics are exploring. The main goal of the webinar was to conduct a constructive discussion on the impact of the pandemic and the remote learning it has forced on students and graduates of Polish universities and their competitiveness in the labor market, emphasized Michał Polak, Vice President of the Warsaw Institute of Banking, during the opening of the event. He also emphasized the banking sector's continued commitment to educational activities despite the pandemic, which has been ongoing for 20 months. "This year, we are celebrating the fifth anniversary of the Bankers for Education program, one of the largest educational programs in Europe. We are pleased that this webinar, where we discuss the future of education, is part of the celebration," said Michał Polak.
Kinga Pasternak, representing the GovTech Polska Center, pointed out that building future competencies, which include the ability to cooperate, solve problems and be creative, begins at an early age, which is why the Ministry of Education is developing the "Laboratories of the Future" program, which provides primary schools with modern equipment worth nearly one billion zlotys.
Mateusz Grochowski, President of the Students' Parliament of the Republic of Poland, also spoke about the importance of earlier stages of education. He stated that universities should focus on honing skills acquired in secondary and primary school. "At this event, it's worth considering how to teach future competencies not only theoretically but also practically, so that students can apply them in everyday life," Grochowski said. He also emphasized the importance of extracurricular activities undertaken during studies for acquiring competencies and appealed for the voice of the student community to be taken into account when implementing changes at Polish universities.
Prof. Dr. hab. Marcin Pałys, Member of the Board of the European University Association and Chair of the European University Networks Committee at CRASP, noted that the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated changes in the economy and higher education. He emphasized that, due to the deluge of information in today's world, the role of universities and academics is changing. Instead of being merely a source of information, they should teach students a critical approach to information and shape the appropriate attitude towards life's challenges. During his presentation, Prof. Pałys also presented research results on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on higher education in European countries. Among the most important changes, he cited increased flexibility in course offerings and greater student involvement in shaping their educational path.
Mariola Szymańska, facilitator of the Sectoral Council for Financial Sector Competencies, addressed the topic of students entering the job market. She highlighted the challenges posed by the divergent expectations of young people and employers. She emphasized that 80% of employers believe that most graduates do not possess sufficient job skills after completing their education, both in terms of soft skills and strictly professional ones. Furthermore, many students consider working in the financial sector boring. Therefore, she identified breaking stereotypes about working in finance as a key challenge for employers, and for universities, supporting the development of young people's professional skills.
Krzysztof Pietraszkiewicz, President of the Polish Academic-Business Forum, noted in his presentation that due to climate and socio-economic challenges, Poland must change its economic model. This requires, among other things, increasing spending on research and development and strengthening the research workforce. Among the greatest challenges, he cited increasing the level of innovation among small and medium-sized enterprises.
The culminating point of the webinar was the debate of the rectors of Polish universities under the slogan "Educating students in a world of constant change for the needs of science, economy and society".
Prof. Elżbieta Żądzińska, Rector of the University of Lodz and Chair of the CRASP Committee for Science, highlighted the diversity of experiences during the pandemic at traditional universities. In her opinion, social sciences, humanities, science, and engineering disciplines faced different challenges. She also emphasized that, in these times, openness, stress resistance, teamwork, and the consistent pursuit of goals are particularly important among both students and academics.
The need to strengthen student interactions and recreate the master-student relationship was highlighted by the Rector of the Warsaw University of Technology and Chairman of the CRASP Education Committee, Prof. Krzysztof Zaremba, PhD, DSc, Eng. He emphasized that remote learning poses significant challenges due to the lack of group work and direct knowledge transfer. "It's hard to imagine an engineer who has never conducted an experiment," said Prof. Zaremba.
The importance of integrating the entire academic community was emphasized by Dr. hab. Piotr Wachowiak, professor at the Warsaw School of Economics and rector of the Warsaw School of Economics. He argued that mutual support between academics, administrators, and students provides the best response to contemporary challenges. He also emphasized the importance of cooperation between universities and businesses.
Prof. Grzegorz Mazurek, Rector of Kozminski University in Warsaw, pointed out that if universities and the Polish state fail to adapt to the demands of modern times, students may bypass the education system and acquire the necessary knowledge and certifications directly through employer-provided training. "For universities, there is no guarantee that we will still exist in 10 years. We are not in a comfortable situation as a sector," said Prof. Mazurek.
The webinar also featured debates on pandemic experiences from the perspectives of academic lecturers and students. Participating lecturers: Dr. Piotr Majewski from the Toruń School of Banking, Dr. Mateusz Folwarski from the Kraków University of Economics, and Dr. Tatiana Kożak-Siara from the Jarosław State University of Technology and Economics, highlighted several positive aspects of remote learning. In their opinion, students' digital literacy has increased during the pandemic, as have their time management and work organization skills. A significant advantage of remote learning is the removal of time and space barriers that limit access to in-person classes. Among the negative effects of remote learning, they cited reduced development of students' interpersonal skills, a weakening of relationships between students and lecturers, and a negative impact on student well-being, including the growing problem of depression.
Student organization representatives Aleksandra Pepłowska, Ewa Staruch, Mateusz Saniewski, Jakub Stefaniak, and Jakub Hinca discussed whether the COVID generation is being disadvantaged in terms of the quality of education. They particularly highlighted the lack of opportunities for practical classes, which, for example, in medical and physical education programs, makes it particularly difficult to pursue an education. Students also called for universities to place greater emphasis on communication and partnerships with students, as well as dialogue with businesses.
The event partners included the Modern Business Management Program, the Polish Academic-Economic Forum, and the Sectoral Council for Financial Sector Competencies. The event was organized as part of the 5th anniversary celebrations of the Bankers for Education program. The webinar was co-financed by the Ministry of Education and Science as part of the mandate "Organizing and animating activities for the academic community.".
