How do we prepare students for the world they’re going into? It’s suggested that in three years from now, over one-third of skills (35%) that are considered important in today’s workforce will have changed.
In 2018, over 300 global companies were surveyed, across 12 industries. Survey responses collectively represented more than 15 million employees, and 20 developed and emerging economies which in total amounted to about 70% of global GDP . You might find the outcomes of the recent report surprising.
Traditionally schools have prepared pupils for a life beyond the examination hall, in line with the needs of the society they’ll enter. What happens when there’s a shift? Might schools need to react and change their pedagogy to ensure that they are educating students appropriately, preparing them to be a success in their chosen profession?
According to the World Economic Forum the top 10 skills required in the workplace in 2022 will be:
1) Analytical thinking and innovation
2) Active learning and learning strategies
3) Creativity, originality and initiative
4) Technology design and programming
5) Critical thinking and analysis
6) Complex problem-solving
7) Leadership and social influence
8) Emotional intelligence
9) Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation
10) Systems analysis and evaluation
The recent WEF published report is thought provoking as its implications for schools highlights the need to educate pupils in a way that will encourage them to exhibit these 21st Century digital skills as they enter the so-called ‘4th industrial revolution’.
These technological developments are set to transform the way we live, and the way we work. Some jobs will disappear, others will grow and jobs will arise that don’t even exist today. You can search for your profession on Will Robots Take My Job to examine how susceptible certain roles are to computerisation or review page 9 in the Future of Jobs Report for examples of stable, new and redundant roles across all industries.
What is certain is that the future workforce will need to align its skillset to keep pace.