‘Next Gen’ was a virtual event organized by Chokolaate Magazine targeting the youth making this yet another pioneering venture by Chokolaate as this is Sri Lanka's first ever virtual educational exhibition.
The exhibition was held on the March 27 and 28 on an online platform. The online experience provided all the benefits and opportunities for a school leaver were it a physical exhibition, allowing students to visit multiple virtual stalls managed by a select group of universities.
The pandemic has had a considerable impact on education causing it to have been through a great many changes in the recent past. With physical classes replaced by classes online and the postponement of exams, the focus at present is to make progress in covering the syllabus and helping students navigate this new normal. Therefore attention isn't being paid to school leavers who are currently in the process of making important decisions regarding their higher studies and careers.
As a voice for the youth, Chokolaate understands the crucial role education plays in shaping the lives and future of the next generation. Presently there are many students who are awaiting results and need guidance and advice on what path they are to take. Taking this into consideration and the fact that no initiative has been taken as of yet to organize an educational exhibition Chokolaate decided to organize and host Next Gen, a platform on which students, parents and educationists could meet to discuss, plan and discover opportunities.
The event featured UCL - UCLAN (University of Central Lancashire), CIMA Sri Lanka, Eduko Pathways, IIHS (International Institute of Health Sciences), Deakin University, SLIIT Global (Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology), Bristol University and MSI-MSU, Malaysia. Interested parties were able to visit the virtual stalls of the respective universities and interact one-on-one with university representatives, share their concerns and questions, view university prospects and discover scholarship opportunities. This was possible through the online site created with the aim of being convenient and providing the best online experience possible to participants from the comfort of their own home.
"In terms of education, new ways of reaching target markets are fast evolving, hence Chokolaate was up to the challenge to embark on a journey in uncharted waters together with a group of very special institutions and Chokolaate Next Gen was born. Online platforms are still fairly new to Sri Lanka, and only unwavering and consistent efforts will enable us to build this platform, which would be useful, efficient and effective for institutions in the years ahead. We believe we have taken a step in the right direction for the education industry, and we also look forward to future exhibitions, where we will be able to operate a hybrid model in which the physical exhibition will run parallel to the virtual exhibition, thus creating a dual channel for institutions to reach prospects. We do believe that Chokolaate Next GEN was a new and enlightening experience and we look forward to improving it as time goes by.” said Managing Director of Chokolaate Magazine, Michelle Gunesekera.
The exhibition was well received with positive feedback from the participants and universities. Chokolaate is pleased to have provided this opportunity for the youth and to have provided this opportunity for the youth and to positively impact education in response to the needs arising out of Covid ‘19.
