Dr Sumedha Weerasekara

It’s official. Torrens University Australia has been named by CEO Magazine as one of the world’s top online MBA schools for the third year running! The accolade is a testament to the enormous value our industry-connected programs deliver to students globally, and confirms our uncompromising commitment to quality.

https://loom.ly/Du1J5bE

The best thing for your nervous system is another human and the worst thing for your nervous system is another human: People’s words and actions can actually shape your brain

Some brains are more attentive to the people around them and others less so, but everybody has somebody.

When you’re with someone you care about, your breathing can synchronize, as can the beating of your hearts — whether you’re in casual conversation or a heated argument. This sort of physical connection happens between infants and caregivers, therapists and clients, even people taking a yoga class or singing in a choir together.

We also adjust each other’s body budgets by our actions. If you raise your voice or just your eyebrow, you can affect what goes on inside other people’s bodies, such as their heart rate or the chemicals carried in their bloodstream. If a loved one is in pain, you can lessen their suffering merely by holding their hand.

The power of words over your biology can span great distances. I can text the words “I love you” from Australia to a close friend in Antarctica, and even though she cannot hear my voice or see my face, I will change her heart rate, her breathing and her metabolism.

But if you’re exposed to verbal aggression continually for months or if you live in an environment that relentlessly taxes your body budget, words can physically injure your brain.

Extracted from Lisa Feldman Barrett PhD

A true hero isn’t measured by the size of his strength, but my the strength of his ♥️

Congratulations Dylan Alcott

Massive congratulations to 2022 Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott!

Sport changed everything for Dylan. It was his lifeline. He in turn has become a beacon for so many. His sporting prowess is phenomenal and his efforts off the court lead the way to eliminate barriers for all people with disabilities.

“The reason I get out of bed every day is to even in a very small way try and change those perceptions, and break those stigmas so people with disability can live the lives they deserve to live - and the best way to do that is to lift expectations of what we think people with disability can do.”

Torrens University Australia is committed to championing everything Dylan fights for.

Enjoy our conversation from our Speaker Series with Dylan Alcott back in 2020, and congratulations again to 2022’s Australian of the Year!

https://loom.ly/TmFTilo

*Video content is king to educate generation alpha

Generation Alpha – born since 2010 – they are younger than smartphones, the iPad, 3D television, Instagram, and music streaming apps like Spotify. This is the first generation likely to see in the 22nd century in large numbers.

We’ve all heard the expression, “Content is king.” For Generation Alpha, it’s a bit more specific: video content reigns supreme. This generation is viewing a lot more video. They are used to that. They are more impacted by video and they are pushing their parents to buy through video.

It would be advisable to implement a lot of video content. Nano content on a video basis. Little chunks of courses in their curriculum, instead of a push on sales, that has added value, on an experience level.

Just keep in mind that the focus is not sales, but brand awareness. Universities should start impacting Generation Alpha with meaningful content.

While much of Generation Alpha is still in diapers, the fact remains that this young generation already wields significant power, and will continue to do so moving forward. The more universities endeavor to understand them now, the better prepared they’ll be to meet the future educational wants, needs and goals of Generation Alpha.

*Joanna Hughes | 2020

Getting to Know Generation Alpha: 1 of 10 Takeaways for Higher Ed
1. They will require a “super education,” but not necessarily degrees.

Generation Z and Millennials may claim the lion’s share of media attention, but another generation is nipping at their heels. We’re talking about Generation Alpha, AKA the iGeneration. Born between 2010 and 2025, Generation Alpha are the children of millennials and successors of Generation Z. And while the majority of them aren’t even born yet, they’re already shaping the future.

Given Generation Alpha’s ability to quickly and easily find information on their own, it begs the question: Will they even need college degrees? EEA says, “By the time generation Alpha reaches the job market, a Bachelor in business administration will be as unique as having an Instagram account. Generation Alpha will spend more years learning than any generation before as technology will move even faster. All-purpose diplomas that were very popular with the millennials will have a zero-face-value on the job market.”

This isn’t a death sentence for universities. Rather, it’s an opportunity for higher education to evolve in order to deliver the skills and knowledge tomorrow’s students and workers will want and need, how they want and need it -- with technology, online learning and real world learning taking on central roles.
Some universities already have a running start. Take a new engineering university in the UK which will offer students three-hour learning modules, 10-week terms, and a heavy focus on industry partnerships. Judy R***r, founding Dean of PLuS Engineering, which is developing a new university, told Nature Index, “We will expose students to problem-solving in industry, which is often way ahead of us.”

* Joanna Hughes | 2020

*A 21ST CENTURY EDUCATION is about giving students the skills they need to succeed in this new world, and helping them grow the confidence to practice those skills.

With so much information readily available to them, 21st century skills focus more on making sense of that information, sharing and using it in smart ways.
The coalition P21 (Partnership for 21st Century Learning) has identified four ‘Skills for Today’:

* Creativity
* Critical thinking
* Communication
* Collaboration

These four themes are not to be understood as units or even subjects, but as themes that should be overlaid across all curriculum mapping and strategic planning. They should be part of every lesson in the same way as literacy and numeracy.

Creativity is about thinking through information in new ways, making new connections and coming up with innovative solutions to problems. Critical thinking is about analysing information and critiquing claims. Communication is understanding things well enough to share them clearly with other people. Collaboration is about teamwork and the collective genius of a group that is more than the sum of its parts.

There are other skills that are important, which fall within these four areas. Entrepreneurship can be considered a skill of its own. Inquiry and problem solving are key. Emotional intelligence (EQ) is one of the most important keys to successful work and relationships. The bottom line? Education needs to be all about empowering students with transferable skills that will hold up to a rapidly changing world, not prescribed content that has been chosen for its past relevance.

*thinkstrategicforschools.com,2020

* SCHOOL DURING THE PANDEMIC: MENTAL HEALTH IMPACTS ON STUDENTS

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented many challenges to students, educators, and parents. Children already coping with mental health conditions have been especially vulnerable to the changes, and now we are learning about the broad impacts on students as a result of schools being closed, physically distancing guidelines and isolation, and other unexpected changes to their lives.

* Three in 10 parents say child's emotional, mental health suffering now
* 33% can wait "as long as necessary" before child's mental health suffers

Some parents are already concerned for the emotional and mental health of their children in the midst of pandemic response measures. School closures not only upended most students' learning mode, it deeply disrupted students' social networks and interactions with classmates and teachers.

The challenge will be amplified because schools will be experimenting with new processes intended to stave off the persistent threat that the coronavirus poses to public health.
Collaboration between schools, families, community leaders and health officials will be even more critical to support children's needs in and out of school.

* Gallup.com, 2020

* University students at significant risk for mental health effects of COVID-19 lockdown

University students who experienced lockdowns due to COVID-19 exhibited a high prevalence of mental health issues, according to results of a survey study published in JAMA Network Open.

Wathelet and colleagues conducted a study to determine the prevalence of self-reported mental health symptoms and associated factors, as well as to assess care seeking among 69,054 university students, most of whom were women (72.8%) and first-year students (47%), during France’s COVID-19 quarantine between April 17 and May 4. They asked all French universities to send an email to their students regarding completing an online questionnaire. Main outcomes and measures included rates of self-reported suicidal ideation, severe distress, stress, anxiety and depression.

Results showed the following prevalence rates for mental health outcomes:
* suicidal thoughts = 11.4%;
* severe distress = 22.4%;
* high level of perceived stress = 24.7%;
* severe depression = 16.1%; and
* high level of anxiety = 27.5%.

Protecting the mental health of students is a public health issue that appears even more critical in the context of a pandemic. The results suggest that special attention must be paid to women and nonbinary students as well as students with a history of psychiatric follow-up. It also appears important to maintain contact with students, to ensure they have good quality housing conditions, to provide for their basic needs, to allow them to maintain physical activity and social ties and to give them adequate information. Measures promoting access to care should be encouraged.

* Joe Gramigna,2021

*Empathy, the 21st century skill
“A mind without a heart is nothing”

Researchers believe empathy helps children unlock other skills they need for future success, such as critical thinking, effective collaboration, and problem solving. Learn more!

So what does empathy have to do with 21st century skills? Think about the work environment our children will inherit. As the world becomes smaller through technological advances, future workers will need a more varied and complex set of skills than ever before. Not only do they need to be tech savvy, but they must be able to think critically, collaborate effectively, and approach problems creatively.

In education, we have begun to embrace the importance of such critical skills as creativity, collaboration, and communication. Empathy should be included on that list if we are to create the global citizens we hope our students will become. Global awareness and the ability for technology to bring the world into our classrooms is important, but only if we can use these tools to better understand ourselves and others.

Empathy enables students to integrate other people's perspectives with their own. It is the ability to identify with others and will become a crucial skill as the world merges into a global community. It builds bonds, develops leadership skills, and brings self-awareness to seek out meaning and purpose in our lives.

* Brighthorizons.com,2020

* Learning loss is global—and significant

While the education response to the COVID-19 pandemic has varied widely, teachers agree on the high cost of remote learning, especially for vulnerable students.

Although teachers around the world have different styles and standards for learning, there is one thing on which they seem to agree: a computer is no match for a classroom as a place for kids to learn. While many continue to teach students online because of the COVID-19 pandemic—and may be understandably reluctant to return to in-person instruction until they feel safe—the majority of those polled in a new McKinsey survey said that the remote learning experienced over the past year is a poor substitute for being back in the classroom.

Teachers have a deep firsthand knowledge of what their students are absorbing in class—real or virtual—in a way that parents and policy makers can’t always measure. From missed assignments to falling test scores, teachers see the disengagement and learning loss, the effects of which could hurt the economic wellbeing of some students for life. Many also know from experience what factors can help children catch up in academic performance.

*McKinsey & company, 2021

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The secret of getting ahead is getting started. Entrepreneurship should not be a game that we play for a few years, it is a lifelong journey. Join us to learn the game!

Events | Dr.Sumedha W The secret of getting ahead is getting started. Entrepreneurship should not be a game that we play for a few years, it is a lifelong journey. Join with to learn the game!