Profiling “Future Learners” to Design and Develop Teaching and Learning Based on Anticipated Future Needs

Abstract

Who are future learners in higher education? In the simplest sense, these are the individuals who will experience a particular learning program, course, experiential learning sequence, or learning object at a later point in time, whether in the near-term, mid-term, or far-future. While learners are not thought to fundamentally change in terms of basic biology (at least not in the near- and mid-terms), future learners (in higher education) may be conceptualized as somewhat different from present-day learners based on various changing contextual factors: macro-level socio-cultural developments, subject domains, educational methodologies and practices, technological advances, workforce requirements, and other factors. This work explores some ways to operationalize the exploration of “future learners” in order to enhance the design of teaching and learning.