Today’s teenagers and children are different from those of previous generations. They were born and raised amid the rapid technological progress that changed the way people communicate, work, and do things. Thus, it’s often said that modern youth have a different outlook on education and play a much less significant role in their digital lives.
Indeed, many things have changed within only a decade or two, and the skills that were considered critical for the adult person’s survival have become outdated and irrelevant today. Modern youngsters place much more importance on getting digitally savvy and flexible than getting a profession and a lifelong job at one company. Young people are much more mobile and open-minded, facing new challenges and traveling without fears and hesitations.
So, is this a sign that education also becomes irrelevant and obsolete? Is Google the only teacher the next generations will need? Here is an expert opinion on the changing educational trends that nevertheless do not reduce the overall educational value and significance.
Communication with Peers
Even in basic terms, education is vital for the next generations as young people need to acquire the fundamental communicative competence to pass their message across and get what they need. By analogy with toddlers who learn to speak and understand the instrumental value of language, young people should also gain competency in the primary spheres like math, physics, literature, sociology, and politics to understand how everything functions in the world.
Business Ventures
Launching a startup has never been as easy as it is now, with a realm of free web design and commercial promotion tools that young people can use to start their business venture today. Indeed, some grassroots efforts like these succeed, making people without education and in-depth professional knowledge-rich. Yet, these cases are an exception rather than a rule, as most students fail their business ventures and lose money because of a lack of competence in accounting, taxation, business strategizing, etc.
Application to College
Writing is essential for the next generations, though many people consider it an obsolete skill in the period of digital education, with typing substituting handwriting. Let’s consider an example of SOP writing – a young person needs to know how to express themselves, talk about their interests and academic achievements, etc., to get the college spot.
Innovation
Many modern children rise with the feeling that they can change the world. It’s real, as much innovation and breakthrough technology are emerging every day, expanding people’s opportunities and giving them more tools to simplify other people’s lives and solve pressing problems of the global community.
Still, how can a young person passionate about space become an astronaut without special education? How can a youngster willing to save lives become a doctor without medical education? The answer is “no way,” so professional education remains universally relevant as it prepares specialists and gives them vital knowledge for career advancement and professional growth.
Practical Learning
The most significant gap in modern education is the lack of focus on practical learning. The problem is especially pressing in third-world countries or states with a conservative approach to studies. Students have to go through years of dull theoretical learning at first, receiving access to practical knowledge only by graduation.
As a result, such states lack a capable workforce able to perform their duties upon graduation, with students needing to spend several more years gaining the essential practice as interns, starting to work only later.
A proper solution to this problem is the incorporation of practical learning at all levels of education. If students learn and practice simultaneously, they will better grasp their industry and develop expert knowledge earlier, not wasting the vital study time on old books and theories.
Underdeveloped Countries
Setting aside the debate about educational reform in the developed world, one should always keep the dramatic lack of educational opportunities in mind. There is still a serious educational gap globally, with many third-world countries unable to give even elementary and secondary education possibilities to their young generations. Thus, a vital component of the social change and investment in positive social development is to finance and encourage education in third-world countries. Once children get the vital educational tools, they will be better positioned to create business ventures, provide for their living, and eradicate poverty in their locations. In this way, education can serve as a self-help tool, assisting developing states in the economic transition much better than financial or food aid does.
