09 January 2009

Future proofing productivity

A news story today says that Ontario colleges have seen a sharp increase in applicants, likely due to the recent economic downturn. Two other stories relate to earlier posts about infrastructure and the call to increase funding in public service infrastructure (including education) and retraining. Polytechnics Canada has recently issued a release to the Federal Finance minister advocating for additional funds to support, among other things, retraining to address the looming skills shortage in Canada (I'll link to this when it is posted). Investing in the infrastructure of the mind fosters innovation literacy: creative problem solving skills that are relevant to industry. Our students graduate with expertise in their areas of choice, ready to work as full participants in the Canadian economy. These students will also be future innovators, experienced in solving practical problems using innovative thinking that will be readily applicable to industrial contexts.

College and Polytechnic applied research, as integrated tightly within our academic programs, create an avenue for future productivity gains by creating a workforce of highly qualified and skilled personnel adept at working in today's - and tomorrow's social and economic needs.

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