The word ‘uncertain’ lingers when experts envision the future of our students. However, schools today aim to build skill-equipped ship to help children sail through
The world around us is rapidly changing. Every industry has seen a 360 degrees change. Today technology has taken over a lot of technical jobs. In the past decade, education has also seen a change. Years back, parents sent their children to convent schools and education was all about rote learning.
Today, parents have understood the importance of education and changing times, they now send their children to schools that provide all-round education. However, parents are still apprehensive about technology taking over education, also with the limited resources available the change is taking time, but it is inevitable.
We need to equip children with the Habits of the Mind; we need to train them on how to handle their Emotional Quotient
1. Developing and shifting focus to Student-centric methodologies:
Parents, teachers, and schools are having a hard time changing from being a rote learning system to students now requiring a system where their needs are met and their learning pace into consideration. We need to understand that the World Wide Web has all the information available. So we have to focus on how children analyze and apply this widely available information.
2. Empowering school leaders with the latest teaching-learning methods:
The straight jacketed method of teaching does not work anymore. All our teachers now need to equip themselves with new teaching techniques and classroom management skills. They have to be updated at all times. So, continuous teacher training is the need of the hour for our teachers & school staff.
3. Making education technology-friendly:
Technology will eventually take over and we need to move ahead with times. Currently, technology in India is used for researching and passing on information etc. However, technology can be used to do many more things. It can be used to educate children; to develop products; schools are now developing apps where parents can use videos, play games with their children even at home as an extension to what is taught in the classroom.
4. Instilling life-learning in technologically equipped students:
I have known for a very long time that the future ahead is unknown. We do not know what awaits us; hence it is difficult to prepare children for the future with our current education system. We need to equip children with the Habits of the Mind; we need to train them on how to handle their Emotional Quotient. Hence we need to re-look at activating the right side of the brain too. Schools need to add small activities as part of the curriculum thereby slowly instilling these habits from a young age.
5. Innovation in schools:
Schools must be agents of change. All change is initially resisted, however, change is inevitable and only the organizations that move ahead with time survive. The rest are left behind in the race. Hence this is the right time to sit back and invest in innovative school infrastructure, innovative teaching techniques and more.
6. Student leadership:
I can see that millennials are a different species. They have a mind of their own and enjoy collaborating with people rather than working for them. The future will see lot many entrepreneurs than there are currently. Keeping that in mind we need to concentrate on building leadership qualities in children. Giving children an opportunity right from the start helps in instilling the required qualities a good leader should have.
7. How to cope up with the increased demands of parents:
Parents these days are expecting more and more from the school. Years back when children didn’t do well in school the child was questioned and asked to work harder. Today the parent questions the teacher and school for a bad performance. They expect the school to make sure the child is taught in a manner that they understand. Meeting these expectations means a school has to always be on top of their game. They need to be updated on the trends in education. Teachers need to be well trained and retained.
In these uncertain times when a school survives and manages to touch and improve each child’s life, it makes a huge amount of impact and only this will help in overcoming the challenges we face in education today!
