21st century education needs to prepare young people for jobs that don’t exist yet, for the application of technologies that haven’t even been invented and for which the competition is global. If we are to create students who are capable of holding their own on a global stage, we must simply get better at equipping them with the skills to handle this uncertain future.
“Most educators accept the theory of getting students ready for the future but fail to create a plan for supporting readiness.”
As the Nigerian economy continues to stagnate following a nose dive of our oil and gas sector, the loss of jobs, and a financially-strapped government, the future for our children can often appear bleak. The good news is that there is clearly a huge area of growth and opportunity in technology jobs across all sectors. The question is, are we doing enough as parents to re-orient our children to this new reality? Here are some astounding facts about the current tech industry:
Technology jobs are growing at twice the rate of all other professions.
Computer science graduates earn 40 percent more on average than other post-secondary graduates.
Only six percent of post-secondary students are currently enrolled in technology based programmes.
The rapid growth of technology-based careers makes sense when you think of how every single industry is evolving. All across, from banking to sports and farming, all sectors are deploying more hardware, software, and internet connected tools than ever before. Who is going to create and make use of all of these tools if we don’t educate our students on mastering them?
There is a lot of talk about increasing technology training in our schools by the Ministry of Education, and the private sector. However, this will take a lot of efforts and take several years to implement on a large scale. The lack of funding, resources, and teacher training are all massive roadblocks in the current environment.
All the while, other countries around the world are edging further and further ahead. It is time to take the bull by the horns. Parents can take action to close these gaps in our own households.
The good news is there is an ever-expanding toolkit of wonderful resources available these days. The key is to expose our children to technology-based skills early enough and try to ignite the passion in them to continue building these skills throughout their learning years.
21st century education needs to prepare young people for jobs that don’t exist yet, for the application of technologies that haven’t even been invented and for which the competition is global. If we are to create students who are capable of holding their own on a global stage, we must simply get better at equipping them with the skills to handle this uncertain future.
Today’s students are natural investigators, researchers and synthesisers of information. These skills can be harnessed carefully in learning. The days of Information Technology as a stand alone subject, taught at designated times in computer labs, are winding down.
Next week, we will discuss igniting their interest through solving real world problems.
Adetola Salau, Carismalife4U@gmail.com, an advocate of STEM education, public speaker, author, and social entrepreneur, is passionate about education reform.
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