WORK OF THE FUTURE: Equipping children with the right knowledge, skills


As children are being placed in formal setting to acquire knowledge, parents and guardians should note that the world is changing every day. Acquiring knowledge without adequate skills cannot suffice to play critical roles along with the digitalized ones brought by the emergence of various machines and technologies in the last three decades. 
The critical roles played by human in the execution of varied tasks and duties at workplace are being challenged; machines are forcefully competing with people in manufacturing, banking, services and other industries.
Children need practical life skills. They need to be taught how to be digitally compliant. They need to know how to use the hard and soft Information and Communication Technologies skills from the early stage of their life. These skills are essential to their survival after primary and secondary education. The future of work and interpersonal engagement would be driven by technologies. It is, therefore, imperative that we train our children fundamentals of emerging technologies using formal and informal learning approaches.
Beyond the practical skills, we should not forget that technological skills without social skills cannot survive them for long. They need to be taught how to be creative in thinking, critical in solving problems and making decisions. They need to understand basic financial creation and management principles.  
Above all, we need to make sure they are acquiring knowledge and skills in environment that will instill God’s fear in their hearts and make them useful to us as parents and guardians in particular and to the society in general.

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