(Sound off till 0:39, actual session starts at 2:04)
(Sound off until 0:56)
(Indistinct conversations)
(Moderator) So we've got one hour and a quarter.
(confused voices)
How do we know when these things are going to be turned on?
(confused voices)
What? OK? Right.
(Moderator) Ladies and Genltemen, can I ask everyone
to take their seats, please?
We're about to begin, so if you're visiting the bar,
can you charge your glasses and return to your seats, and then we'll begin.
We've got an hour and a quarter for this debate.
OK, can I -- Welcome everybody to the Online Educa OEB debate.
I'm not sure what number this is in the series of debates that we've had,
I think it may be getting up to our 10th.
What I can tell you is that in the time that we've been having these debates
and that I've been chairing them, my eyesight has now gone so bad
that I can't possibly read any notes that I have without using glasses, so
I think we must be on at least our 10th.
What I can also tell you is that Online Educa itself, OEB,
this year is celebrating its 21st anniversary.
So I think that perhaps deserves a round of applause.
So happy birthday to Online Educa -- (Applause) -- this fantastic conference.
And 21 years ago was a very difficult -- very different world indeed,
when one thinks about the scale and scope of change that there --
that has taken place in the last 21 years.
One statistic I was reading recently was that in the UK, in 1994, 21 years ago,
there were only 67 mobile phones per 1000 people.
But only ten years later, in 2004,
there were more mobiles in the UK than people.
And that pattern of spread of mobile communications alone
has spread across the world and in Africa, for instance,
those of you who have been to Elearning Africa will have heard about
the spread of mobile communications across the African continent.
So in terms of the scale of technological change,
and the spread of that change across the world,
the change in that short period of time, in these past 21 years alone,
has been enormous, and we heard about
the scale of it in the opening plenary session this morning.
We live in a world that is globalized, interconnected, hyperlinked
and that scale of change that we're experiencing and have experienced
in the last 21 years, is going to gather pace and continue.
And all that is going to create a huge challenge for education and training,
which is going to be at the heart
of dealing with both the positive and negative aspects of that change.
And that's why the motion that we're dealing with today, in this debate,
is so important, and why the whole subject of giving young people the skills
that they need to cope with the challenges of this new world
that we all are going to -- that we are creating, is so important.
We've got four speakers, four panel speakers
to open the debate this evening
and I'm going to ask each of them to speak for 10 minutes,
and then I'm going to --
-- two of them will speak for the motion, obviously,and two against --
then I will throw open the debate to all of you,
but if you want to intervene whilst they are speaking,
because we're having a parliamentary-style debate,
then you can try to intervene on them
and if they want to take your intervention,
then they can do so, but it will be entirely up to you.
And if they don't, then you can draw whatever conclusions you want from that.
But I want to ensure that we keep the flow going,
so I'm not going to let you bully them but I'm going to allow you,
if you want to make a particular point,
or if you want to make a short intervention, to do so.
Then after they've spoken, we'll throw open the debate to the floor
and you can make your contribution,
but do please realize that time is of the essence,
so please try to keep it short and to the point, succinct.
This is the kind of debate equivalent of texting.
So, no long rambling contributions,
because I will cut you off if you try to do that.
So, very short contributions, please.
And then I'll ask each of our -- I'll ask one speaker from each side
to sum up, and then we will take a vote, and we'll do that by a show of hands.
And I've also made it clear to all the speakers that they may
say things that they don't necessarily want to be held to in the future,
so I hope that you will understand that,
that this is an opportunity for us to explore some of the issues,
but don't take it all too seriously,
and don't come and accuse people of saying things that you would --
that they might not necessarily always want to be held to.
With that in mind, I'm going to ask our first speaker, who is Jo Swinson.
Jo Swinson, who is the former Minister for business, innovation and skills
in the UK's coalition government of 2010 to 2015,
to speak first for the motion.
And Jo, since leaving Parliament, has begun a new career
and is involved in an award within a data intelligence company
called Clear Returns
and she is an expert on the challenges and opportunities of the digital age.
So, over to you, Jo.
(Jo Swinson) Thank you very much indeed, Harold.
And I'm absolutely delighted to be here in Berlin at OEB.
A bit of a first, actually, the first technology-related conference
that I've been to where there is a queue in the ladies' loos!
I have to say I was particularly pleased by that, not only as a feminist,
but also as a Brit who appreciates the art of queuing.
So it was good on two fronts.
So, "This house believes that 21st century skills aren't being taught,
"and they should be." is the motion that I want to convince you
to support this evening.
We absolutely need to be equipping our young people,
and indeed, people at every stage of their lives,
with the skills that they need for the 21st century.
And our education systems, and our wider society,
have an important role to play in this.
But I will put it to you, this evening, that when it comes to technical skills,
when it comes to social skills, and vitally,
when it comes to capacity to embrace change,
we are not yet rising to that challenge sufficiently.
There are very specific skills, there are gaps in science and technology
that are not being properly filled. 9:32
These shortages are causing significant problems
for businesses, for employers.
Half of engineering companies say that they have delayed taking forward
new products or services, because they have vacancies
that are so hard to fill, because the skills are not there to recruit.
Digital start-ups are often in real need of software developers
that they cannot find sufficiently.
And companies of all sizes, grappling with cybersecurity challenges
struggle to have the skills that they need to take on those important issues.
As Harold mentioned, I'm now a director of a company called Clear Returns.
It's been going for about three years, based in Glasgow, and uses data analytics
to help retailers understand the problems they have with product returns
and therefore successfully cutting the costs for retailers,
and resulting in better customer satisfaction.
But in our technology team of 17 people, there are 12 different nationalities
and not one of those people went through the school education system in the UK,
because the skills are not taught up to scratch.
Now, there have been some improvements and as to 2014,
computer science has been introduced into the curriculum in the UK,
but that is not the end of the matter,
because 11% of computer science graduates are unemployed.
In fact, that's one of the highest unemployment rates
for any subject discipline,
at a time when we have a huge shortage of these very skills.
Something is going very wrong when that is the case.
And this is not just about teaching people to code.
Fashionable ....... (check) undoubtedly is at the moment (check)
and it is necessary that we do have people who can code.
But it's not some kind of silver bullet on its own.
Actually, it's the building blocks that we need to be putting in place,
the things that lie before you get to the point of coding,
the logic, the basic maths, enhancing those skills,
so that people can put those building blocks together
and create an argument or a train of thought or a mathematical proof,
or indeed, a piece of code that will instruct a machine to do something.
Yet our maths skills are also going backwards.
A King's College, London, study found that compared to the 1970's
young people today are significantly less well equipped in the field of mathematics.
And it's also worth pointing out that we are missing out,
when it comes to teaching these skills on almost half of the population.
Only one in five A-level physics students is a girl.
When it comes to computer science, that figure drops to 1 in 10.
Now, it's wonderful to be at a technology conference
where there is a queue in the ladies' loos,
but even at this conference, if you have a look at the speakers' brochure,
only 8 of the 35 main speakers are women, so where are the women?
We are missing out on that important talent
who will not then get in the fields that we need for the 21st century
to enable all of our economies to flourish.
We're also not doing well enough at the social skills
which have always been imported -- important,
and I would argue, are even more so in the context of the 21st century.
Employers have long complained that they get coming into the work place
are not yet ready for work.
I have to say there is that thing I've observed,
when new graduates starting out in the work place
seem to be allergic to using the telephone
for the purpose it was originally designed for.
I've lost count of the number of times when, speaking to a member of staff
about the particular project that they are trying to make happen,
and it seems so stuck, and I say:
"What happened when you asked that person about it?"
"Oh, I sent them an email and they didn't get back to me."
You know, for all the wonders that technology can undoubtedly do
in helping us in our working life, when you want to get people to do something,
an email is very easy to ignore, and it is much harder to just put to one side
a face-to-face person or contact, or on the telephone.
And relationships are absolutely critical to 21st century work places and skills:
getting things done, collaborating in teams, motivating others.
Yet when we assess children and young people in the education system,
it is genuinely done on a pure individual basis,
not looking at how they are actually operating within a drip setting (check).
And when it comes to skills in terms of relationships,
something like personal, social and health education, which I would argue,
is absolutely essential to help young people learn to navigate relationships,
and important issues like consent when it comes to sex,
it's not even compulsory in the UK curriculum.
In a world where ultimation is increasing,
where jobs that we've already seen through the Industrial Revolution,
that manual jobs have been replaced by machines,
that with the next stage of technological advancement, many, many more,
in things like accountancy and professional services,
are also going to be replaced by algorithms,
the human social relationship skills are going to be in even more demand
and therefore deserve much more attention.
And my final point is that we have not done enough to prepare people
for the world of change.
A little while ago, I spoke at a School Award ceremony to 12-year olds
And I was to explain to them how the world had changed
since I was there age.
And one of the examples I used was the process of taking a photograph.
And I described how, when I was 12, you would have a thing called a camera
that was all that it did, it was just for taking photographs,
you would have to get a piece of film, physically,
to load it into the camera machine, you'd had to do that pretty carefully,
because you didn't want to expose the film and it was quite a fiddly process.
You wouldn't know whether the photos you were taking were any good.
You would have to take at least 24, or sometimes 36,
depending on which particular piece of film you put into your camera,
before you would then take it along to a pharmacist's or a chemist's shop,
pay some money and then go and do something else for a few days,
at which point you could come back
and be presented with your little envelope of photographs,
and see if any of them had turned out OK.
And I was counting on these 12-year olds looked at me
like I might well be lying to them: this is how it worked,
because of course these days, you know, within a matter of seconds,
you can take dozens of selfies in your phone,
apply however many Instagram filters you like,
and share it with the entire world, just without leaving the school.
The pace of change is accelerating hugely.
Here in 2015, for us to consider what even are 21st century skills,
is like going back to 1915 and trying to imagine the space race, nuclear power,
the internet, or the kind of social change going from a situation
where women didn't even have the vote,
to electing a woman as Prime Minister in the UK,
or the change with gay rights,
or the ending of racial segregation in the United States.
We can't even conceive of all that the 21st century is going to bring.
And so, more than anything, with this huge pace of increasing knowledge,
more than anything, what we need to do is equip people
to cope with and thrive on change and uncertainty.
Instead, we have bunches of kids being processed through the education system
that doesn't look that different to several decades ago.
So we really do have a problem here, in terms of the skills
that we are teaching and more importantly, not teaching well enough.
Whether it's technical skills, whether it's those social skills
or whether it's the vitally important ability to be resilient,
to recover from change and setbacks,
and to apply yourself in a new way to a new set of challenges and horizons.
These are the things we must be focusing on,
and we aren't yet rising to that challenge.
I support the motion. 18:06
(Applause)
(Moderator) OK, thank you very much for that, Jo.
Our next speaker, who is going to speak against the motion, is Allan Päll,
who is the Secretary General of the European Youth Forum,
which is the representative body for youth organisations in Europe
and he is an advocate for youth's rights.
He lead student unions in Estonia and at the European level, and has advocated
for students' voices to be included in educational policy. Allan:
(Allan Päll) All right, thank you very much, chair.
I would like to very much support many of the claims made by our opposition.
However, when it comes to the question and when it comes to this specific motion,
this house does not believe that 21st century skills aren't being taught,
because, well, let me put it very bluntly and very simply:
the whole notion of what are 21st century skills is often just a bunch of nonsense,
if I would sum it up very briefly.
But let me go into it a bit more.
There are many definitions of what these skills could be
and I fully agree that they do include everything mentioned by the opposition.
However, there are many other ways of looking at it.
So if we are to say whether these are being taught or not,
even if we have a problem of the very definition of what these skills are,
how can we say that they are not being taught so determinedly?
Some of the elements that can be mentioned as 21st century skills
are simple things, as critical thinking, problem-solving, reasoning, analysis,
research skills, creativity, curiosity, perseverance, self-direction
oral and written communication, leadership,
information and communication technology, social justice, literacy,
civic, ethical behavior, global awareness: the list goes on and on and on.
So, indeed, many of those things, perhaps, are not being taught enough,
or specifically enough, in our educational systems.
But that doesn't mean that this is not happening.
Let me ask you one simple question:
If you believe that we don't acquire many of these skills
in our educational environment, be it in a formal setting
or a socializing moment in your school or at university,
would we actually witness the pace of change in society that we are seeing.
Almost all of us have gone through the educational system.
So, we must get a lot of those skills also through that.
I do agree, though, that there is something to be said about
the question of how specific are we when we look at those skills.
Because that is true that most curricula --
education is very much compartmentalized into very specific subject areas
and we're seeing an increasing trend of those subject areas becoming
more and more specific.
And thus indeed, there is perhaps not enough emphasis on looking at,
or thinking really about are we acquiring all those sets of skills
that are important for our socialization, etc., our technical skills as well,
as mentioned by the opposition.
One of the things that I would like to highlight is that
the schools and universities, and vocational education and training
is not only about the formal learning outcomes
that we are beginning to measure more and more.
It is also about the social environment at that very school or university
that determines a lot of what education gives us.
In terms of specific skills that were mentioned by opposition
and the lack of those skills, there are many variables perhaps to look at.
Yes indeed, we are missing out on engineers,
we are missing out on also staff in medical sciences, in care.
We would need indeed many more people
to have those qualifications, perhaps, indeed.
But there is also a question of what is education for
and what are the requirements on the labor market.
And those two things, although they interact,
they move at different paces.
So sometimes, we start to put blame very easily on the education system for
not delivering specific skills when, for example, the structure of our education
-- sorry, the structure of our economy has changed.
And I think here, it's an important remark that we need to look at
different experiences of different countries.
And you see countries where unemployment levels,
even throughout the financial economic crises,
were record low, such as in Germany and Austria.
But if you look at youth unemployment figures,
youth unemployment also among highly educated young people,
in different areas, like Spain or Greece, all around the Mediterranean,
they've been staggeringly high.
And it's not because the education systems failed,
it's because the macro-economic systems failed them there,
in terms of not having enough job creation for all those skills.
And of course, there is something to be said that when we train people
and when we train minds to think critically,
to come up with new and innovative ideas, we also change the world through that.
So, we need to understand that interaction.
but certainly, when we look at 21st century skills, well,
if we are to define them with this broad set of lists that I noted,
we certainly are gaining those skills, but perhaps, not specifically
and not enough: that, we could agree.
When it comes to preparedness for change,
when are we ever prepared for the change to come, one might wonder.
Indeed, things, technologically, are changing very fast.
And maybe our educational systems are not embracing that technology
at the same pace.
But that doesn't mean that if we would embrace
the use of that technology very quickly, that it would enhance immediately
the skills that we can describe as 21st century skills,
such as, for example, critical thinking.
There are many advocates that say that
we need to replace subject matter teaching completely
with horizontal level approaches.
That doesn't work.
If we don't know the facts, how do we know that we are on the right path
with our decisions, how can we know what really happened in the past,
and not, how can we verify what is true?
So when we look at the skills, we need to look at the evidences
in terms of teaching preparedness and pedagogy.
And yes, we agree: there is a lot to be done there
in terms of measuring those essential skills of socialization and communication,
building relationships, and it is true that around, it's estimated,
around 50% of jobs in the service sector
are about to disappear in the next 20 years and transform, hopefully,
into something completely new.
Finally, indeed, those skills, we can all agree,
we'll need those skills.
But there is an important element of young people,
and this is a study that we have done in the European Youth Forum,
that they gain a lot of those skills also outside, in non formal education settings.
And the key here is to see if we can bring those experiences
that young people gain from youth organizations, activism,
into the formal education setting, and thus make it much more open
to recognizing those prior experiences as well, to overcome this shortage.
Thank you very much.
(Applause)
(Moderator) Thank you very much, Allan.
Our next speaker who is going to speak for the motion is Pedro De Bruyckere
who is an educational scientist and he has worked in Ghent in Belgium
since 2001.
He co-wrote two books which debunk popular myths on generation Y
and generation Z,
and the latest one was entitled "I was 10 in 2015". Pedro:
(Pedro De Bruyckere) OK. Good evening.
I'm a teacher, I'm a teacher trainer, so I'm not used to standing still.
So if you don't mind, I will move.
Allan, thank you very much for making my point.
I have to explain: I have to agree, I've written a book about it.
There's no such thing as 21st century skills.
And that's why they need to be taught.
I have to explain this.
You know, if we go back in time, to see the origins of the 21st century skills,
you'll end up with the liberal arts, the Septem Artes Liberales.
Rhetoric, what we are doing right here, that's for me ancient history,
but still needed today.
But the question is, is this still being taught in school?
Because, like ....... Alberts (check) says, moreover we get a focus on the Three R's
-- Reading, 'Riting, 'Rithmetics --
while most of the young people are looking to Snapchats.
But because of the focus, because we want to test stuff,
the more important things are being forgotten!
Rhetoric, philosophy, for me, crucial.
To be honest, then, you don't have to look at Ancient Times,
than you have to look at Medieval Times,
because then philosophy was added to the Liberal Arts.
So we need to train our children because it's great to say:
"Look at us: we've done it."
Yes, but we are not talking about us, because in 20 years' time, they will --
we will be old, boring and other people need to sit there
and beyond stage, using rhetoric.
So we need to prepare them.
I'm not sure if we're doing a great job.
For instance, if we talk about technology,
technology is often like a sex ad in education.
You know, you talk about all the dangerous stuff
and you never talk about the fun stuff.
You know, it's very simple:
"Don't do this, don't do that, certainly don't try that! Go ahead!"
And another -- for instance, McKinsey, the McKinsey report, 2014 McKinsey report,
said just (check) -- and I agree again with you both --
there is a mismatch.
There is a mismatch between what children study in school
and which topics they choose, and what we need in the economy.
But at the same time, the employers said:
"You know, don't train them to a specific job
"but train them in strategic and communication skills."
OK, they have been around for ages but they are still important.
But what do we do, for instance, in many schools?
I've been in schools in Holland, in Germany, in --
you know, we teach them how to write a job application.
We teach them how to perform a talk for a job.
Do we teach them to write a LinkedIn profile?
No, what we say is "Never post a drunk photo on Facebook,
"because people will search you."
What we don't say is:
"You know what? Post something good about yourself on Facebook,
"that isn't a selfie."
But we think well, they will do this.
Actually, for instance research by Jan van Dek (check):
that's one of the stuff that our kids don't know.
And if we don't teach them, who will?
So that's my point: we need to teach them basic skills like Jo said:
communication skills, strategic skills.
And if you want to call them 21st century skills because, by accident,
we're living in the 21st century, so be it.
(Applause) Thank you.
(Applause)
(Moderator) OK, thank you very much, Pedro.
Our final speaker who is going to speak against the motion is Miles Berry,
who is the principal lecturer in computing education
at the University of Roehampton in the UK: Miles.
(Miles Berry) Pleasure to be here, really is.
Philip and Gudrun, where are you guys?
OK, on the Twitter thing you say:
"We need to talk about what the purpose of education is, what is education for?"
And that's where I want to start.
I want to move back from the motion, to think about what education is for.
And to do that, we need some understanding of what education is.
I've been in education for over 40 years now.
But even so, I checked.
It's the culture or development of personal knowledge, or understanding,
growth or character, moral and social qualities, etc.,
as contrasting with the imparting of a skill.
(blurred: check)
OK, there's definitely a place for imparting skills,
but that's training, not education, and there is a difference.
My Roehampton students study education, but they are trained to teach.
England's new computing curriculum educates people about the principles,
the principles of computer science: (inaudible: check), I tell you.
(laughter) ... technology, I think the technology ran on me tonight,
it's all right I'll give it...
(off) (unintelligible)
(Berry) 21st century skill -- on knowledge -- (laughter)
Knowledge that these things are the wrong shape for my head: never mind.
OK, so: England's new computing curriculum that Jo has alluded to
educates people about the principles of computer science,
whereas we used to train them to use Office software.
Or think about sex.
Look, not like that: we rightly include sex education on the curriculum in schools
but we typically don't include training. (Laughter) Important skills.
Do without microphones. (Laughter) ... very well.
In England, our Education Act says what education is for.
Firstly, it's to promote the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical
development of pupils and of society.
And it's to prepare pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities
and experiences of later life.
What else could education possibly be for?
In that, you just got to love laws that require you to do
what you'd want to do anyhow.
There does remain a question about how best to prepare people
for these opportunities, responsibilities and experiences.
I think the nob of the motion this evening is about whether this should be done
through some sort of training in 21st century skills
or by passing on the knowledge, understanding and wisdom
of our generation to the next and I'd say, the latter.
I've no problem with skills per se in teaching.
Behavioral management is a skill, coding is a skill,
so is searching for things on Google, or even Bing.
OK. I've some problem, though, with the notion that there are 21st century skills
and I'd agree with you on that.
But both of you have done a fine job of demolishing that notion already.
I've also some problem with the skills -- with the notion that skills can transfer.
Skills are about accomplishing something.
There's a context to the skills,
and I think we diminish specific skills by attempting to generalize them.
It isn't critical thinking, it's thinking critically about something.
It's not creativity, it's creating something.
And it's not communication,
it's communicating something through some media.
The 'something' here matters.
It's really not possible to teach skills in the abstract fashion, without context.
And the context is king.
Whatever the specific domain,
knowledge of that domain is necessary for expert skills.
My main problem, though, is that we've only a little time in school.
We've other things to teach and our students have other things to learn:
things like knowledge
and understanding
and wisdom.
Without these, skills are unlikely to be of much practical benefit.
Stephen Downes is here.
Well, nodding in his direction, I'd say, learning is about connecting things:
neurons, ideas, people.
The computer scientists get this,
Google's page rank algorithm relies not so much on the content of the page,
as the links between the pages.
The thing is then, the new stuff has to be connected to something.
Otherwise, it's just isolated factoids.
We can't make sense of it, we can't use new knowledge
unless it's integrated into our existing mental maps, our schema.
Put simply: it takes knowledge to gain knowledge.
This apples to each of us as individuals, but it's also how civilization grows.
Human achievement is a cumulative thing.
New knowledge doesn't normally contradict what's gone before.
It builds on it.
If Newton saw further than others had,
it was because he stood on the shoulders of giants.
What hope would there be for the next generations
if they had to discover everything afresh for themselves?
The consequence of our building on what's gone before
is that the pace of cultural, scientific and technological change
accelerates exponentially.
But even allowing for this acceleration is knowledge, understanding and wisdom
which have done the test of time.
Less so, skills.
Expect new inventions and discoveries over the next 85 years
and new practical skills to go with them.
But don't expect the foundational shared knowledge of our civilization
to become irrelevant.
Indeed, it's on this very foundation that the new knowledge will be built.
It's not 21st century skills that young people need.
It's 21st century knowledge, understanding and wisdom.
Time, I think, for a quick case study.
The most successful education systems and the top universities
seem to organize their curriculum around well knowledge-based subjects.
England's new National Curriculum is quite explicitly a knowledge-based one.
It sets out to provide pupils with an introduction to the essential knowledge
they need to be educated as citizens,
and to introduce them to the best which has been thought and said.
One of the most radical things we've done in that curriculum,
which many see as rather reactionary,
is to have replaced the old ICT with a new subject: computing.
This includes an introduction to the principles of computer science
for all, from age 5 up.
It has been my privilege to be part of the team
designing and implementing the new subject.
Under the old curriculum we offered a good grounding in tech skills,
finding this online, making a presentation,
typing up stories, articles and reports.
Sometimes, even making a spreadsheet, often about having a party.
Do people really use spreadsheets to plan parties?
Are these fun parties? Are these -- OK (laughs)
It was fine: pupils moved on to work or the next phase of education
with some competence and confidence
and broadly speaking, were digitally literate.
Our ...... (check) students at Roehampton's
suggested that broad portfolio skills,
two thirds regarded them as .... as competent, proficient or experts.
That said, it was all too often a bit -- well, dull.
There's a limit, or at least there should be a limit
to the number of times you can find something out on the internet
and make a presentation about it.
Generally, it did precious little to provide any real knowledge
or understanding of computation, information theory or digital technology.
In the same audit, less than 15% of my new students
rated their understanding of digital technology
as competent, proficient or expert.
So we started again.
We built on the idea of computing as having three elements:
computer science, information technology and digital literacy,
the foundations, applications and implications of the discipline.
We took a leaf out of William Morris's book:
"Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful
"or believe to be beautiful."
And built a curriculum of things that would be useful,
but also things that were interesting.
We took a view that the best way to prepare pupils for a future
in which digital technology looks quite likely to remain important
was through providing a firm computer science foundation,
things like logic, algorithms, abstraction, networks, programming.
Yes, coding would be important, but not as a vocational skill for the IT industry,
but as the lab work for computing, the medium through which
the ideas of computer science are created and expressed.
Computer became part of our curriculum 15 months ago.
It's early days, but early indications are very positive.
Teachers' professional development has been a challenge.
But this hasn't been a challenge about pedagogical or technical skills.
Teachers know how to teach and know how to use technology.
It's just that they didn't know much computer science.
They are, by and large, willing to learn,
and many are quite enjoying the fast challenge.
I don't want to leave you with the idea that I think
knowledge is the only thing that matters in education.
Of course it isn't: character matters.
I'm talking here about traits and attitudes,
things such as curiosity and creativity and courage of our 4-year old daughter.
She's a curious character.
She still has this sense of wandering the world about her,
that sense of Wow when she sees or hears something new,
and still a willingness to explore, experiment and play.
She's at a great little primary school and I shouldn't worry.
But I do worry that her schooling might get in the way of her curiosity
when it ought to be nurturing this.
As Plowden had it back in '67,
one of the main educational tasks of the primary school
is to build on and strengthen children's intrinsic interest in learning
and lead them to learn for themselves.
(Moderator, off) 21st century skill?
(Berry) But knowledge matters here.
It's as Sophie learns more that I hope she'll want to learn even more.
With literacy motivation, and good WiFi, she can teach herself almost anything,
and does.
Creativity matters.
We learn not just though listening, reading and exploring,
but also through making.
I don't think there's some generic creativity skill, here.
But I'd like my daughter to be creative in her music and her computing
and her maths, and so on.
She's been making things for a while now, but as her knowledge grows,
I'm looking forward to her exploring and drawing on that in her creative work.
Finally, courage.
She's a fearless explorer, with tons of self-confidence.
(Off whisper, inaudible) (Berry) OK.
I want her school to encourage that.
More importantly, I want her to have the courage to tell the truth,
to stand up for those who can't stand up for themselves
and to do the right thing, even if it's not the popular thing.
So, what should we be doing to best prepare young people
for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life?
Passing on knowledge.
Nurturing character.
Sounds a bit old-fashioned, but honestly,
what better preparation for the rest of the 21st century?
Thank you. (Applause).
(Moderator) Thank you very much, Miles.
Right, it's now over to you and I think we've got about 25 minutes
for questions and contributions.
If you ask a question, I'm going to ask our panel speakers
not to answer it directly but to deal with it in their summing up,
just so that we can ensure that we have a decent flow.
And if you make a contribution, please, try to keep it fairly brief, well, brief,
so that other people have a chance as well.
And you've been very well-behaved so far.
Please don't feel that you need to be quite so well-behaved now,
but now is your opportunity.
If you want to speak, please just raise your hand.
Bear in mind that if you're at the back, it is slightly difficult to see you.
And can you, if I call you,
please can you just wait till the microphone turns up.
Who'd like to go first?
Would anybody like to ask a question or comment?
Yes, at the back on the left, there.
(Participant 1) My question is short, particularly for Allan, I think.
Why are critical thinking skills important in the 21st century?
(Moderator, off) OK. So that's one for Allan to deal with in his summing up.
Anybody else, any-- Yes, over on the right there, Yannis (check)
(Participant 2) Thank you very much.
I think both sides of the motion are saying it's not working.
So who's to blame, who or what is to blame or who or what must we change?
(Moderator, off) Thank you for that.
Right, I'm looking for some contributions now, somebody who's --
Yes, lady there, on the, just by the aisle, there.
(Participant 3) Whoops! OK.
Hi, I just have a comment to all of you.
I don't see a huge difference between your positions,
because you always seem to say, it's important to have these,
whatever you call them.
Skills is a kind of a talent that you have when you are born, or whatever.
You mentioned those things are important, so what is actually the difference?
We just need to promote an environment
to let people develop those types of skills or talents.
(Moderator) Yes, also on the aisle there.
(Participant 4) Thank you. I want to --
(Moderator) Would you mind just introduce yourself briefly;
actually, if people would just say who they are and where they're from,
that would be helpful as well. (Participant 4) OK.
I'm Denise Gaspard- Richard, I'm from the University
of the West Indies and Caribbean-- (Moderator) Thank you.
(Participant 4) ..... Campus.
The board said to me, seemed to be saying somewhat of the same thing.
As you were speaking, I kept thinking about some employers' surveys
that we have done over a period of time in the Caribbean,
where the ..... (check),
soft skills are not really being taught at the University.
So when a student comes out in today work environment,
they can't carry out a decent conversation and therefore they can't call up
someone who is not getting the kind of service that they need,
they don't know how to communicate in .............. (check) OK?
So when I listened to Jo, I heard some of that coming out
and I'm wondering if, probably, we have simply substituted
social skills, or soft skills to call it 21st century skills.
So we have more or less seen the same things
as we were seeing before we came up with this terminology. Thank you.
(Moderator) Thank you for that. Anybody else?
Yes, in the front row, there. Just down here, please.
Is there a mike here in the front row on my right? That's it.
(Participant 5) Thank you. My name is Anne DeLorean (check)
from the European Schoolnet in Brussels.
A comment: I think maybe we are missing the adaptive nature of human beings,
because society has progressed through the ages because --
just because we are adaptive.
We have not always had to be taught everything we do,
but we have to discover it a little bit.
I think, as educators, what we need to do is provide the -- at the area or the ethos
where this discovery can happen,
not necessarily that we have to provide the lessons to do it
but provide the means of discovery.
(Moderator) Thank you. Let's have another one on the front, here.
Lady on the front row on the left hand side here.
(Participant 6) My name is Nikki Spalding, from Higher Education Academy in the UK.
I was wondering what do you think is driving the rhetoric
behind 21st century skills the most?
Is it happy individuals and learners? Happy employers? Happy society?
Or happy Government Treasury?
(Moderator) Thank you for that.
Yes, towards the back there, on the right hand side.
(Participant 7) Lydia .... (check)
You have concentrated on education of young people.
And what about education of people at your age?
Who and how (laugher) should you educate these 21st century skills or knowledge?
(Moderator) Very good question indeed. So, we'll come back to that one.
Yes, we have a number on this side, in the -- where has the microphone gone?
Yes, just at the front of this little block there, thank you.
(Participant 8) My name is Mike Rauser (check), from McKinsey and Company in Germany.
And my question is directed to Mr Barry.
Where you've stressed teaching specific skills,
please correct me if I'm wrong, about teaching specific skills in schools.
How do you account for situations where
a skill that may not even have been invented yet
-- I'm thinking about say, from an 1980 view point,
15 years in the future, that nobody knew what the internet was.
Nobody knew it was to be in there 15 years later.
OK, very limited.
(Off) I think the internet was invented in 1969.
(P8) (overlap with moderator) OK, I understand that in general--
(Moderator) Can we -- If you could just try to make it a contribution
and then they can respond in their final remarks.
(P8) Sure enough (Moderator) OK (overlap)
(P8) -- that we don't know about 15 years into the future,
or skills that are here now, that may no longer be there 15 years into the future.
Let's hope that's a little clearer.
(Moderator) OK, thank you.
Can I have some more contributions, rather than questions?
Anybody like to give their opinion? Yes, on the --
I think about the third row here.
(Participant 9) So actually it's phrased as a question,
but think of it as a contribution. (Moderator) Yes (laughter).
A rhetorical contribution.
(P9) So all of you have been arguing for or against 21st century skills
very convincingly.
But you were always talking about what they are,
and not about what they aren't.
So maybe, if the question is phrased a bit differently,
you would need to make a more difficult point, so:
what do you think are skills that are no longer relevant,
or knowledge that is no longer relevant now in the 21st century,
and that was indeed very important 200 years ago?
(Moderator) What would your answer to your own question be?
(P9) I would have to think about it. (Moderator) Right. (Laughter)
Right, at the -- right at the back, we've got two hands up there.
At the back, somebody with a dark-colored jacket on -- that's it.
(Participant 10) Mike Brown,
from the National Institute of Digital Learning in Ireland,
A question, but equally a contribution.
What do you think, what does the panel think,
22nd century skills will be?
Particularly, particularly if we fail to achieve
the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals?
(Moderator) Right. Next to -- at the back, there.
(Participant 11) I think we've lost the plot.
30 years ago, many students started overtaking the teachers in knowledge.
Our school server was looked after by students, pupils, rather than teachers,
because they couldn't do it.
And that happens all the while.
Medical patients are getting more knowledge than the doctors,
because they search the internet before they go to the doctor's
about their own disease.
So I think we have got no chance, we can't teach anymore.
(Moderator) OK, thank you for that. Somebody standing up there --
Yes. (inaudible) on to them. Hello, Clark (check)?
(Participant 12) Yes. Hi, my name is ...... (check) from Sweden
and I work with a software company developing ideation software.
My contribution is that I wonder if we should not dig even deeper
and see if this is a structural problem, because I'd like to say that these skills
are being taught.
We see today that people are in two different types of networks:
they are in centralized or distributed networks at work or at school,
but distributed in their spare time.
And we see also that these different types of networks
cultivate different types of values.
So it could be an organizational problem,
but also a value problem, if we dig even deeper.
For example, from advertising to conversation
from ownership to sharing, from profit to growth --
sorry, from profit to sustainability, and so on.
So my contribution is basically, maybe the problem is even deeper,
maybe it has to do about how we are organized,
and the values that those organizations cultivate.
(Moderator) Thank you for that (Applause)
Yes, down in the front block here, in the middle.
(Participant 13) I'm Cory Doctorow, from the morning plenary.
It seems to me that education has been refactored over the last several decades
as a kind of factory, whose product is educated children,
with teachers as employees,
and the board of directors as the Ministry of Education, God help us, Michael Gove,
as the CEO. (laughter)
And it seems like, when you organize something around the idea
that the public are shareholders and that we're doing something that's a business,
you have to have a ...... (check) report where some numbers go up
to show that the business is thriving.
And as a result, we are rear-fighting (check)
things that are not pedagogically supported,
like attendance and standardized test scores,
rather than things that are pedagogically supported as real learning,
which are often not quantifiable and are difficult to recognize,
except as a kind of creative fog that you see your students in,
where they are excited and are really chasing knowledge.
And so now we're -- can be obsessed with turning children into
second-rate spreadsheets or third-rate spellcheckers,
instead of teaching them arithmetic and language.
It seems like a focus on skills,
without reference to the way that we frame education,
gets us nowhere.
Adding standardized tests' outcomes where we look at
whether or not you've acquired 21st century skills,
ignores the fact that anything that you try to teach,
where the only way you're evaluated is with high-stake testing,
gives you nothing,
except for someone who has been crammed full of a bunch of facts
that they'll promptly forget when they leave school,
and no synthetic capability.
(Moderator) Thank you for that.
Yes, on the side of this block here, on the left.
(Participant 14) Thank you. I am ..... (check) from the Investor Malawi.
My question is, I don't know if we know what we're talking about.
(Laughter)
In Africa, we believe that if you don't know where you're going,
then the Lord can take you there. (check)
Are we changing education, although we are using,
we attempt to coexist two educations, or we are neglecting education. Thank you.
(Moderator) Thank you. Yes, in the middle of the front block again, and then
I'll come over to this one.
(Participant 15) Hi, ........ from .... University of Applied Science.
As a university of applied science, we're teaching skills like hell:
social skills, soft skills, technical skills, all this stuff.
But maybe we are missing out the values behind these skills,
because they aren't the things in the future. (check)
(Moderator) Thank you. Let's go into this block in the front here,
on the right hand side, the -- the lady there, I think, just in front of the camera.
(Participant 16) My name is Lisa .......... (check)
I work at ...... in the United States.
I think my comment really builds on some of the things that Cory Doctorow said.
You could argue that the premise that we are arguing
is actually the wrong question.
It's not important, we -- just teaching the 21st century skills isn't enough.
Those skills have to be honed, practiced and applied,
for them to do anything.
So it's not about the teaching, it's about
what should the students do with the teaching after that.
(Moderator) Thank you for that. Let's have another one on this side.
One here on the front -- front row.
(Participant 17) Good evening, I'm .......... (check) of the European Schoolnet,
I want to be also provocative and I'm thinking about the role you mentioned.
What's the role of education?
Are we pushed by industry to deliver certain things or not?
And I'm thinking, what's the role of the parents in all that?
Is it maybe the role of the parents to teach these kinds of things?
You talked, Miles, about character building
and I think there are certain things school can do,
but I have, at least for my generation, a little bit of feeling that parents
share a little bit, sometimes, the responsibility to school,
to technology, and maybe it's time to be a good parent again.
(Moderator) Thank you for that. (Applause)
Right at the back, there, on the right hand side,
right at the back in the middle.
(Participant 18) Hi: Bernard Sander from New York University.
I grew up developing my own films.
Though I'm a pretty adequate digital photographer, I did research
using card catalogs and paper indexes and microfiche,
but I am a more than adequate digital researcher.
And I think the story is the same for most of the people in the room.
So the question really is, what was inadequate about my education?
Nothing I did in the 20th century hasn't prepared me
for what 21st century has begun.
And as long as I'm competent
in my capacity to search for new information
and in being willing to put any effort to acquire new skills,
I don't feel that I'm unprepared,
and I don't frankly think that any student is really unprepared,
as long as they have that.
So what is it that the 21st century brings that is so unique,
other than the fact that they can make a mistake
and be seen by everybody all at once in three seconds,
right? so you know, that's fun.
But other than that little piece, what's new?
(Moderator) Thank you for that.
Right at the back, against the wall, with a red tie. That's it.
(Participant 19) I'm Eric Balance (check)
and I'm from the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency.
We're talking about skills,
because our employers tell us that our kids don't have them.
Why are we not asking about the skills, not the employers,
but society is asking for?
(Moderator) Yes, next door to the last speaker.
(Participant 20) .......... (check) from the UK.
I've changed jobs now, but in a previous life
I've worked with many, many teachers, primary and secondary,
and they will tell you that all of the skills you're talking about,
with creativity, adaptation, rhetoric,
all of them are what they are trying to teach,
when they are not delivering standardized tests.
So the question is,
do we want the education system to be told to do a certain thing
or are we trying to encourage it from the inside?
Because I think they are two different things.
(Moderator) Yes (Applause). Thank you for that.
In the front row here, on the left hand side. 1:02:30
(Participant 21) Hello, this is Philip from IBA
and I wonder if we're not discussing on a completely too advanced level.
I just got an email from the school of my son, today,
where the school counselor had decided that -- and that was the name --
that game boys should be left home.
Which makes me think if what we're discussing here is not way away
from what the reality looks like,
because we're here sitting and discussing really interesting topics,
and in our ideal state of mind, it's something like that.
And then I go out and see people like Donald Trump who are ......... check
about our education system,
which is a reason for shutting the whole thing down, I think.
(Laughter, applause)
(Moderator) Thank you for that. Yes, another one here, in the front block.
(Participant 22) Hello, I come from the University of Oslo, Norway,
...... (check name).
There was quite a lot of investigation in Norway, a few years back.
They asked employers, I would like to go to employers:
"What kinds of skills are you looking for
"in a candidate that you consider employing?"
And the first one was: ability to cooperate.
Then we asked to ourselves, are we doing that?
And then the next one on the list was ability to attain new knowledge;
next, ability to think independently and critically;
communication skills; ability to use knowledge in new fields;
ability to establish contact ........... (check) relations.
And again, we're not doing these things, we're not -- kind of.
Point 7 on the list was good theoretical knowledge in your field of science.
That's what we're doing all the time.
I mean it's great to see so many people here
but let's face it, most people are not here. (Laughter)
That means that lectures -- I mean it's great to see many people at this meeting,
concerned with teaching in general, but the fact is that most lectures,
say basic course in first year mathematic, whatever, at my university,
are being taught today in exactly the same way as when I was a student,
thirty years ago.
So that's why this conference is important,
that's why we need to provide students -- some people have to take responsibility
to provide students with the skills that employers need.
(Applause) (Moderator) Thank you.
There was another question just near to the last speaker, in the same block,
the lady there, just the row in front, I think.
(Participant 23) Hi, Lisa, with the Global School Network.
And ........ (check)
perhaps it's not just what skills we're teaching, but more so
what 21st century pedagogical skills that we're using, in that
sometimes it's just as important how it's being taught
than what is being taught.
And I think back to my college and in some of the courses,
sometimes when I was going through the course catalog,
it wasn't how exciting the title was, but who was teaching it.
And I think that goes back to some of the test scores
that teachers are very focused on as well.
And when I look at my daughter who has started school
and what when I started school 30 years ago,
and looking at how she is being taught
-- taking away from ...... (check) what should be included --
but a lot of that rote learning and a lot of new skills they're using as well, so.
(Moderator) OK, thank you, another one in the ..... (check) over there
(Participant 24) Hi, my name is ...... (check)
I work for UNESCO.
I just want to ask, not just for the panelists,
but I think for everyone.
Maybe after 20, 30 years or so, are we still going to talk about the same thing?
Or are we going to -- what the idea would be the next topic
that we're going to talk about?
And I just wanted to also reiterate what our head of office is actually saying,
I mean -- ..... (check name) --
he always say that the world is not hungry for more words, more resolutions,
more talks and more panel discussions.
The world is actually hungry for more actions.
Thank you very much.
(Moderator) Thank you. We've got about 5 minutes left for questions.
Please, so if you want to ask a question, just stick your hand up
and then we can get an idea: I think there is about three more.
So, the man right at the back on the back of the aisle here,
on the right hand side, please, first.
(Participant 25) Hi, ............. (check name) from London.
Miles mentioned knowledge and character,
I think one thing left out here is values.
So you know, we need knowledge to do things,
we need skills to do things,
but we first have to agree at what's worthy of doing.
(Moderator) OK, thank you, and there was a question, again on the aisle, here,
on the left hand side -- lady just down here: that's it.
(Participant 26) It's not really a question, but a challenge, maybe
for the panelists.
I miss a little bit of diversity, so maybe more ethnical background,
different ethnical backgrounds looking at the same question,
and how is it that we are addressing this in different contexts.
So maybe for the next plenary, we can have a bit more diversity.
(Moderator) OK, and then there's -- there are two, right at the back,
on the right hand side.
(Participant 27) .................... (check name) Belgrade, Serbia.
Part of the title of this panel is that soft skills, 21st century skills,
should be taught.
My question is, is there any published evidence as to what extent
teaching them really changes the mastery of these skills?
(Moderator) And I think, a final question, again at the right of the back --
-- or a contribution -- right at the back on the -- here we are, that's it.
(Participant 27) Thank you. My name is Heike Dratch (check name.
I'm working for ........ (check) an international cooperation organization.
And my -- what I'm lacking a bit here is, in looking at 21st century skills,
then looking at Paris, the climate change conference,
so what kind of skills do we need, to look into the future
and really see what we're doing now is a future-oriented, sustainable activity.
So what kind of skills are not taught, in the sense of having
a future orientation of our behavior now and how we can change our behaviors
So this is a -- probably in the next 10, 20 years,
we need answers for that, how we change our behavior
and seeing all effects of what we're doing.
(Moderator) OK, thank you very much for that,
and thank you everyone for your questions and contributions
(Applause)
I'm now going to ask one speaker from each side to sum up,
and to deal with the points that you've made
and to make their final pitch for your votes.
So, first of all, I will ask our speakers against the motion to sum up.
You've got 5 minutes. (Allan Päll) Alright, thank you very much,
thank you very much.
I'm also very happy to hear the different nuances
and different arguments raised, and I think that the question --
questioning the very question itself is a good one,
because it is difficult to pin down.
I would perhaps like to start with the broadest question, in terms of
what would the 22nd century skills be?
And unless the world will change completely
or we will run out of resources on the planet,
or we will have a nuclear war,
potentially, it will look similar,
but it could also be that we are just ......able (check)
into a metric slide singularity that some are predicting.
And then, of course, it would be completely different, because
there would be no physical interaction.
So our mind needs to be open for even fundamental, more fundamental changes
than we can even imagine.
However, I think there was a -- one important reflection indeed,
about how do we teach and what is the pedagogy
used in hour educational system.
I think our main problem, if we are to look anyone who is to be blamed,
is that -- is not education itself, is not the educators or the teachers,
but it may be indeed in this obsession with standards, standardized testing
and also indeed, I would even go to argue, with qualifications.
Yes, you might say, we want to be sure that you, as an engineer,
are properly qualified, or as a doctor.
Yes, we need to be sure that you have made -- have a certain set of skills
to be able to perform that job.
But then again, perhaps, the way that we conduct learning
is not recognizing the fact that learning is not something
that an educational institution can have a monopoly over.
And thus, maybe, we need to open that up much more and say that
we need to recognize any kind of competences, skills, values
that you gain anywhere.
So I think -- I think in terms of building that critical thinking,
which I do think is important, and which has existed throughout centuries
and is needed for the future as well,
that if we want to make sure that it is better done.
We really need to look at, OK, let's recognize that this happens everywhere
and let's also see that we don't need to ignore the subject matter
but use participative methods of teaching and learning in our environment.
And that's where the difference comes from.
But however, I do believe that the very standard academic methods
are still giving us the basic abilities for things like critical thinking.
(Applause) (Moderator) Thank you. OK?
If you want to you got a couple of minutes to ......
(Berry) Very briefly, a couple of other things worth saying, I think,
in addition to what Allan said.
Trust schools! Actually, so much of what we heard about here
happens in the day to day life of the classroom.
What does school do, yes, it is about education,
this passing on of knowledge to the next generation.
But it's also about building character,
it's also about young people having that experience
of getting on with one another and working collaboratively,
of working creatively.
Much of what we are labeling perhaps as 21st century skills is happening.
Teachers are committed to this sort of thing,
this happens in most of the classrooms, length and breadth of most countries,
apart from when the testing gets in the way,
as Allan has already made clear that.
What are the reasons why this has happened?
Well, in part, it is this sort of preparation for the future.
If you look back at the start of the 20th century,
there were newspaper articles, there were magazine articles
about what should be 20th century skills.
How many of those are still relevant today?
I'd say most of those are still relevant today.
You know, the photography thing:
yes, we are working with different cameras now
but the knowledge of what makes a good photograph,
and the wisdom to discern a good photograph
from a less good photograph is still just,
I think is just as important now as it was then.
So in summary, 21st century skills are being taught in schools.
We are addressing this.
But actually, there are much more important things
that we should be focusing on: knowledge, passing that on to the next generation,
and character, and yes, values, absolutely right.
You know, the question about
what should we be doing in terms of 22nd century skills.
I suspect the values of respect for one another, of integrity,
of willingness to be courageous, as I was talking about,
that's going to be just as important then as it is now. Thank you very much.
(Applause) (Moderator) Thank you.
OK, I'll now ask our speakers for the motion
to sum up and you've got 5 minutes.
(Pedro De Bruyckere) I'll say one minute, one answer to one question,
and then, Jo will conclude.
But there was a question, "Who is to blame."
That's easy: we are.
We are all, because we've fogotten what school is about.
If you look back what school really means, it means free time.
If I say this to my son, he will start throwing things,
but it means free of economic value.
Because if you go to a hair salon in a school,
you know it will take much longer time than in a real hair salon,
because the emphasis is not on earning money, but on learning.
And today, because of the testings, because of the focus,
teachers need to to focus on very specific elements
and we've forgotten what schooling is about, what school is about.
So if we bring back school, then maybe
these 21st century skills will be taught again.
(Moderator) Thank you. Jo. (Applause)
(Jo Swinson) So, I firstly want to answer a question that Miles asked, which was
"Who uses a spreadsheet to plan a party?"
I would just say that anyone that asks that question has never planned a wedding.
(Laughter)
I think it was -- a guy at the back said: "Most people are not in this room."
And that is actually part of the problem.
Because if the world was like the people in this room,
i don't think there'd be such concern, I think that we would be able
to stand here and say that 21st century skills are being taught.
You know, going round the exhibitions, seeing the innovation, the creativity,
it's really inspiring.
But I think we all know from our own experience
that the world out there isn't quite as enlightened.
And the measurement is a stifling problem.
What gets measured gets done.
So of course, if you have endless testing, then teachers will teach to the test.
And I noted the reference to Michael Gove:
I'd just like to just say for the record:
I was a part of the coalition trying to rein him in at that point.
And I think Elijah talked about the values in organizations,
and how the values even of our societies is changing.
I think that's right and it's important -- I think it's exciting.
We are moving to an age where there is far less deference
that has its challenges in ll sorts of walks of life, from anchors
to medicine, to politics, to the media.
But I also think it's a positive development
that people can make their critical analysis
of the institutions around us, rather than assuming that
if somebody is in authority, then they must be right.
Even in the business world, there is a move towards more collaboration
rather than just pure competition.
The pursuit of profit is still important, but conversations ..... (check) purpose
are also increasingly heard.
And I think that the leadership models
that are now experienced and valued the most
are not the ones about just in a military style,
telling people what to do,
but actually about working with individuals,
to lead them and motivate them, and get the best out of a team.
And this has an impact for all of our careers paths.
You don't just go into one job and stay there for 40 years.
And therefore we need to change the way we are preparing people for this world.
A lady in the audience mentioned that we are, as human beings, naturally adaptive,
and I would agree we are, but we need to be helped to do that even more,
because we do need to adapt more than we did
when we stayed in one job for 40 years in our career.
So that lifelong learning is actually so important.
By all means, we should talk about what happens in the education system
but it's just as important for, when we're all here in 20 years time
and we are, you know, trying to keep track of the world that has suddenly developed.
We need to find a way of staying up to date.
So, can these skills be taught? How can these skills be taught?
Well, they absolutely have to be taught
so we need to figure out the answers to that.
People need to acquire these skills and they will need help to do it.
But that teaching can come from a range of sources.
Of course, the formal education system but also parents and our peers
and indeed I would argue, particularly to the point, in some dimension,
about all the people in the audience,
I think, ultimately, one of the ways 21st century skills will be taught
will be from our children and grandchildren.
Thank you. (Applause)
(Moderator) Thank you for that, Jo and Pedro,
and thank you to all our speakers and thank you to your contributions.
We'll now take a vote on this, so would all those in favor of the motion:
"This house believes 21st century skills aren't being taught and they should be."
please raise their hand, in the singular: one hand each.
Right.That's all those in favor.
And all those against.
(Inaudible off voice - laughter)
(Moderator) That's not -- that is very close but I would say that --
that the motion is lost on that. (Boos and clapping)
I would say I would be happy to -- but only just.
That's very, very narrow vote.
So thank you very much indeed for all your contributions
and your attention, and I have a number of announcements just to make, actually.
Just to remind you that the Online Educa OEB party, Weihnachts Fest
will take place and the tickets are on sale at the reception.
It will take place tonight, there'll be food, drink
and 25 liters of fake snow. (Laughter)
So that's something to look forward to.
The other thing is that many of you will remember
our dear friend and colleague Jay Cross, who died recently.
And Jay was one of the real stars of OEB in the past.
And I know that he was a great friend to many people who attend this conference
and there is going to be a special session which will take place now
in room Potsdam 1, which will look at Jay Cross's legacy in person and in print
and this session will feature Jay's colleagues
from the Internet Time Alliance, who will remember his influence
and present his legacy.
So I do hope you'll take the opportunity to go along and take part in that session.
Thank you all very much indeed, Ladies and Gentlemen.
(Applause)
[Recordings of this session will be uploaded to www.online-educa.com]
[Recording is provided by Presentations 200 Making Video Reality]