Schools must adapt to firms’ tech-driven needs, report says

Compiled in association with Gems Education and the Dubai Museum of the Future Foundation, the School of the Future report underlines the need for greater emphasis on financial and entrepreneurial education to help develop the economy.

DUBAI // Education must adapt to serve the needs of technology-driven workplaces, says a new report.

Compiled in association with Gems Education and the Dubai Museum of the Future Foundation, the School of the Future report underlined the need for greater emphasis on financial and entrepreneurial education to help develop the economy.

More personalised learning should be encouraged to tap the interests and passions of students. To meet the changing needs of pupils and encourage more collaboration and innovation, the infrastructure of schools should become more flexible, said the report.

Its details were announced on Saturday at the Global Education and Skills Forum at The Atlantis Hotel on The Palm, Dubai.

“The world is witnessing rapid changes driven by fast-paced developments in technology and innovation,” said Mohammed Al Gergawi, vice chairman and managing director of Dubai

Museum of the Future Foundation.

“The report offers an elaborate framework for the education system of the future and will act as a catalyst to prepare the right expertise and capabilities for the knowledge economy of the 21st century.”

The report is based on three areas – practice, partnership and environment – which are viewed as integral to the functioning of schools in the UAE.

“This report must be seen as more than just a research paper. The elements of change identified are important and necessary if we are to improve our world through education,” said Sunny Varkey, founder and chairman of Gems Education.

Further discussions highlighted the media’s role in creating a more positive outlook for the profession and encouraged teachers to blog about their classroom experiences.

Panelists at the forum – including Sarah Sands, editor of the London Evening Standard and Bobby Ghosh, editor-at-large at Quartz, an online news outlet – discussed changing media and learning.

By using social media, teachers are able to draw attention to their profession and offer parents a more accurate reflection of classroom life and the pressures of teaching, according to the panelists.