9 out of 10 parents in cities across Romania are currently sharing the
\nbelief that school isn’t actually providing the right training for students to
\nbenefit in their future careers. A poll carried out among 1,000 Internet users
\nshows that parents aren’t satisfied with the way in which school is presently
\ntraining their children for their future jobs, adding that if they were in
\ncharge they would completely eliminate the subjects they consider unnecessary
\nintroducing others that may complete the training of the future adults.
\nPersonal development and creative thinking are subjects over 70% of the
\ninterviewed parents are considering necessary for the future jobs of the new
\nadults. Among the other subjects parents described as necessary in their
\nchildren’s education are good manners, public speaking, leadership, exotic
\nlanguages, classroom debates or creative writing. Half of the respondents
\nbelieve that robots and technologies are going to replace humans in the
\nproduction process and see their children’s future careers as tethered to the
\nIT sector. Over one quarter of the respondents believe in the future of the
\nartificial intelligence as strongly related to their children’s future, whereas
\nless than 25% see their children embracing medicine, constructions or the
\nentertainment industry. The latest global report on competitiveness, made
\npublic by the World Economic Forum shows that the shortage of qualified work
\nforce and critical thinking proved to be some of Romania’s biggest drawbacks in
\n2019. Here is now Professor Andreea Paul with more on how we should ready
\nourselves for the challenges of the future.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Andreea Paul: For the time being, we can do that whenever we speak about such
\nrealities, under an assumed, objective and pragmatic form. We should not just
\ncomplain, but we should also do something about it. We fare neither good, nor
\nbad. We’re placed somewhere in the middle part of the world rankings. But there
\nare 50 countries doing this job somehow better than us. The smallest number of
\npoints in all competitive disadvantages is included in this indicator labeled
\ncritical thinking in school, meaning how do we teach our children to ask the
\nquestion why? How do we talk our children into challenging the system around
\nthem, the life around them, the subject matters, people’s mindset, how they
\nperceive the different realities around them and, furthermore, what is their
\nown answer to the question which is the added value they can bring to this
\nworld as compared to previous generations or as compared to other colleagues of
\nthe same age?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
In the age of digital technology, the education of tomorrow needs new
\nskills and abilities to answer the challenges of a world facing more and more
\nthreats. To be able to keep up with all these changes, Romania needs to switch
\nfrom traditional to modern teaching methods, which should promote skills,
\nknow-how and a flexible mindset. For some time now several schools have set up
\nthe so-called Smart Labs. They contain interactive whiteboards, 3D printers and
\nscanners and educational robots. The functioning of these labs however means
\nteachers need to have the proper training too, Andreea Paul, one of the
\ndevelopers of the project, told us. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Andreea
\nPaul: Children are fast learners, they immediately pick up the gist of these
\nsmart devises. Drawing on a 3D software is as easy as drawing on a sheet of
\npaper, pencil in hand. But the same is not true of the teaching staff. Half of
\nteachers are reluctant towards these labs. The others however understand the
\nneed for digital literacy and technology, which look into the future. Being
\ndigitally literate is as important as being able to read, write and do simple
\nmath, being functionally literate overall.
\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Romanian students got the poorest
\nresults in the last nine years in the latest PISA tests, an international
\nstudent assessment mechanism that places emphasis on the skills needed in
\npersonal and social life and on the labour market. The tests didn’t necessarily
\nshow what the students know but how they can apply what they know in concrete
\nsituations. The report also shows that the educational needs of 15-year-olds
\nhave changed and that teachers must face this challenge. Intelligent digital
\neducation is required, says professor Andreea Paul:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Andreea Paul:
\nThis means understanding the interaction between intelligent devices. I’m
\nreferring to computers, interactive whiteboards, 3D printing, VR headsets and
\n3D scanners and how these can be put to use in the subjects taught in school.
\nEvery subject must be visualised. Then comes virtual reality. A pair of VR
\nglasses helps you visualise the red globule in the veins, turns you into a
\nvirtual tourist in space, travelling to the Saharan desert, the Great Wall of
\nChina, the Amazon, it helps you travel anywhere in this world. It can help a
\nchild learn geography, physics, chemistry, visualising the atom, which is a
\ndifficult concept to grasp.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Let’s bring theory and practice
\ntogether, says professor Andreea Paul, so that children can touch, create, ask
\nand feel confident to say to their teachers that they don’t agree with them. <\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An outlook of the changing educational needs of children<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":108,"featured_media":83945,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43939],"tags":[44622,44621,44623,37322],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-156222","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-future-starts-today","tag-challenges-of-digital-literacy","tag-education-methods","tag-global-report","tag-world-economic-forum"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n