Online Education Prospects
The COVID-19, suspended academic work, and shifted to online instruction. Tina Tsomaia, professor at the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs (GIPA), has comprehensively analyzed these issues for the Business Partner TV program.
Online education is an important tool for the students of tomorrow. GIPA has fulfilled a huge intellectual gap in this regard, and today it successfully overcame the existing challenges, Tsomaia noted.
The Georgian Education Minister has met with principals from high schools, and suggested the launch of online education platforms amid the raging pandemic. GIPA moved to an online learning system on March 14.
As explained by Tina Tsomaia, online education is a very familiar format for GIPA. For many years, GIPA has accepted international students and participates in international projects. Naturally, this process requires an online education format, she said.
In addition to the existing experience, the institute has introduced a newly licensed platform, ZOOM, that enables to hold lectures online, she noted.
“We have bought the licensing for ZOOM, as one of the appreciated and highly praised products among our teachers. This licensed program enables the program coordinator to connect students and teachers in an online classroom; and lectures are held in this online room.
Naturally, the teachers will have to adapt to this platform, prepare these tasks, record lectures and adjust them to this platform. The nature and essence of the whole academic process has changed. We should efficiently transmit the knowledge to our students through this platform, which will enable us to share a presentation with our computers, connect several people simultaneously, and arrange discussions or a forum in an interactive format”, Tsomaia noted.
It is the current crisis that has made us move to a long distance education format, but, in reality, this is the teaching platform of tomorrow, she added.
“This reform was carried out in a rush, amid the current crisis, but we know that this very online education is a very important criterion for future students. We have performed a huge intellectual task in this regard, and we believe we are able to successfully fulfill this mission”, Tsomaia noted.
Giorgi Abashishvili, a PhD in Business Administration and the Business Partner’s co-presenter, analyzed general problems that the coronavirus has generated in the global economy, and noted that Georgia, as an inseparable part of the global economy, is facing the same risks as other economies across the world do.
Maintaining jobs is one of our key objectives amid declining economic performance. To this end, both the business sector and employees should demonstrate mutual understanding, in the same way as the government and the business sector ensure constructive partnership in this regard, Abashishvili noted.
“These serious times have come, and there are no simple solutions, but the key thing I see, and want to see, will continue in this period, as a close partnership between the business and the government. We have a full mutual understanding, in practice. The authorities are trying to satisfy every issue that the business sector raises. I know of no problems that remain unresolved, at this stage. Naturally, it is impossible to solve every issue 100%, but I say that both parties should stay coordinated. Now, we should maintain this procedure. As for relations between the business sector and employees, naturally, corporate social responsibility should be prioritized, and we have to weather this test.
The business sector and employees should interact in the same way as the authorities and the business sector do. A mutual understanding is required in this case, too. Business should take cues from how the state treats it, and employees should realize how businesses make concessions to the government”, Abashishvili noted.
There are no grounds for panic, and it depends on every citizen how the country overcomes this crisis, he explained.
“A lot depends on each of us, each citizen. I would like to reiterate that we have no grounds for panic. Georgia shows exceptional stability amid this crisis, and we have only to prove solidarity and devotion to each other. This means that we should encourage each other, and avoid panic. I do believe that in the short term, we will talk about how bravely we can overcome this crisis”, Giorgi Abashishvili noted.