A Harvard Business Review article says the U.S. is experiencing an unprecedented labor shortage, with 8.1 million jobs open and unfilled. At the same time, approximately 10 million are unemployed.
This is not an isolated phenomenon. According to the International Labour Organization, 935 million people worldwide have jobs that don’t match their education.
There’s a lesson to be learned here. When deciding among the many British-curriculum schools in Dubai, choose one that prioritizes skills development.
The Skills Mismatch
You’ve heard about The Great Resignation. Tens of millions of people quit the workforce in 2021 and 2022. By all indications, it is not over and is expected to continue driving the current labor shortage.
That said, today’s labor shortage and skills gaps are not a simple outcome of The Big Quit. There’s an apparent mismatch between the needs of the job marketplace and the skills of job seekers. Many in the workforce are over- or under-qualified, studied a different field from their current industry, or have skills that are wasted in their jobs.
The Shifting Landscape of Employment
Gone are the days when academic qualifications alone were sufficient to secure a promising career. You’ve probably heard people say you need a bachelor’s degree to find employment. When everybody had a bachelor’s degree, the same people said you needed a master’s or a doctorate degree.
Educational attainment still matters, of course. Given a choice between two similarly skilled and experienced individuals, an employer is likely to choose the academically accomplished candidate. That said, it no longer holds as much sway as it used to in the job market.
The dynamics of the job market have shifted.
Employers now prioritize a candidate’s skill set and practical abilities, giving them equal weight as (if not more weight than) academic achievements. As employers have begun recognizing the importance of adaptable, critical-thinking, and problem-solving skills in today’s fast-paced and competitive world, the skills-first hiring trend continues to rise in prominence.
In skills-first hiring, academic degree requirements become nice-to-haves rather than absolute must-haves. Candidates are now assessed for their skills first before employers (or staffing consultants) even look at their educational credentials.
Preparing Your Children for the Skills-First Hiring Trend
As things stand, students go through the formal educational system hoping they’ll learn the skills they need in their future careers. But reality says there’s a mismatch between the skills taught in school and employment demands.
From a young age, students are taught they just need to graduate from university to have a successful career. But the skills-first hiring trend belies that as well.
It’s time to adjust age-old thinking to account for what’s really happening. Instead of unthinkingly letting your children go through their education as you (or your parents before you) have done, give them a fighting chance by ensuring they will leave school with the skills their future careers will require.
Choosing a School That Prioritises Skills Training
How do you tell if a school prioritizes skill-building and development? The following are a few indicators you can use to assess your options.
Curriculum Design
For your children to thrive in an increasingly integrated world, consider enrolling your child in a school with an internationally accepted and recognized curriculum. The British curriculum should serve this purpose.
The British curriculum’s wide acceptance is one of its best features. There are scores of British-curriculum schools worldwide, so you and your family can move anytime and likely find another British school that will accept your children.
However, do not settle for just any British school. Look for one that expands on the curriculum so it’s modern, educationally advanced, and international in scope and flavor.
Approach to Learning
You want a school that subscribes to the high-performance learning (HPL) framework.
HPL operationalizes the belief that children can learn, succeed and achieve regardless of their starting point. This frees children from the barriers that early assessment has placed on their potential.
HPL equips students with advanced cognitive performance characteristics. Specifically, HPL learners are taught how to think in the following ways, among others:
- Big-picture focused
- Critical
- Precise
- Imaginative
- Self-regulating
- Original
- Automatic
- Fluent
- Flexible
The above, among others, enables HPL students to overcome whatever the situation, problem or circumstances.
HPL also balances cognitive skills with the correct values, attitudes and attributes. Not only are HPL learners capable and accomplished thinkers and problem solvers, but they also have the following traits, among others:
- Collaborative
- Concerned for society
- Confident
- Curious
- Creative
- Enterprising
- Open-minded
- Willing to take risks
- Persevering
- Resilient
Approach to Teaching
What are the principles guiding the school’s approach to teaching? A school’s approach to instruction influences how its teachers approach the curriculum, subjects, and students.
You should probably look for a school that practices Rosenshine’s Principles—a teaching framework that outlines seventeen effective methods of instruction. They are useful guides teachers can use when handling classes.
You also want a school that implements action research and values cognitive science.
Through action research, educators can frequently assess their methods and practice, continually refining them based on feedback and real-world results. Meanwhile, a school that values cognitive science research prioritizes scientific evidence over conventions. It’s open to changing its ways according to the dictates of science.
By implementing action research and putting stock in cognitive science research, a school is assured it will evolve with the times instead of being stuck in educational dogma.
Skill-Building Activities
Schools that offer experiential learning programs provide students with real-world exposure and the chance to apply their skills in authentic settings.
A school that gives year-12 students the opportunity to spend one day of every week in an internship post acknowledges the importance of real-world skills to their student’s future success.
Prepare Your Children for a Skills-Centred Future
In an era where skills hold significant value in the job market, it’s essential for your children to study in an establishment that’s focused on honing what they learn.
So, when deciding on a school for your children, don’t base your decision on price alone. In any case, the school fees in Dubai are so highly variable to be a good indicator of quality.
Instead, focus on a school’s curriculum design, approach to learning and instruction, and specific skill-building activities.
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