The dilemma for journalism schools dealing with rapid technological change is to decide whether what they are teaching today will be relevant a few years from now. Many of the social media tools that are transforming journalism and society did not even exist just five years ago, said Mark Briggs, author of “Entrepreneurial Journalism.” “What should journalism schools be teaching five years from now?” he asked during a lecture to students and faculty at Tsinghua University Dec. 14. It is hard to predict, he admitted. His last three jobs — managing websites for newspapers and a TV station — did not exist when he was in journalism school. How can we prepare students today for jobs that do not yet exist?

In an environment of rapid technological change, he says, journalism educators need to do at least four things:

* embrace the new technology

* use the new communication tools and methods for better journalism

* help students explore, experiment and test their ideas with actual readers

* challenge students to help create the future.