In my perspective, today’s world demands a radically different educational approach. In our ‘Global Village’ (McLuhan, 1964), we are interconnected like never before!; The technological revolution and the covid-19 pandemic have transformed all aspects of our lives, including how we work, how we communicate and how we learn.
The Knowledge Society, as Peter Drucker suggests, requires critical, innovative thinkers capable of continuous learning. Education should focus on problem solving, creativity and the ability to learn to learn. I consider and it is evident that, today, wanting to imprint on the student the essence of a uniformed and alienated entity, who settles in a company in which he could work until he retires, is out of context.
In the avant-garde conception of education, it is a mistake to equate a graduation profile with the expectation of a product; the education of people is NOT mass production, it is not appropriate to apply the same recipe to all institutions, groups and people; the center must be the apprentice, not the one who teaches.
My suggestion is to avoid (eradicate) the pretense of teaching the bird to swim and the fish to fly, since it will determine failure or school dropout; The individual interests and talents of the student must be considered, as well as their context, individual needs and environment. Perpetuating archaic educational schemes causes a school gap, and consequently, work.
And, beyond the methodology on which any educational institution is based, I believe that today it is much more important to focus on the student, to offer them comprehensive and humanistic training that guarantees behavioral and metacognitive successes. Promoting security and trust will result in better interpersonal relationships.
It is necessary to recognize that educational institutions (in general) have not adapted to these changes. Often, students are still learning in standard classrooms, where memorizing concepts is still the primary learning strategy.
We must understand that preparing students for the Knowledge Society is not simply equipping classrooms with the latest technologies. In my opinion, it is about transforming the way of teaching and learning, and designing models that encourage collaboration; The pace at which social needs and labor demand have changed presents a huge gap that does not allow for the renewal of education. The users of educational services and the objectives are not the same as 50 or 100 years ago.
Our task as mentors is formidable and always perfectible. The dimension of the challenges is as great as the benefits that a more adequate educational commitment will bring. For this reason, I suggest that modern education with a vision of the future include fundamental values and pillars that will prepare the new generations to face the challenges of the world; these are: