We Can’t Do School Like We Used To

When were you born? I was born when all relevant general knowledge could fit on a bookshelf. It was called the Encyclopædia Britannica. Throw in a Bible, some philosophy texts, a Shakespeare anthology, and some great novels, and this was the pretty complete home library my parents established in our home – seemingly equivalent to much of what an undergrad at a liberal arts college would learn for their degree.  

Many of us were told that if we worked hard, did well in school, and earned a college degree, we would be guaranteed a job and a lifestyle better than our parents - what we used to call the American dream. The relatively predictable economic conditions that supported that narrative no longer exist. For example, we used to rely on profitable companies to avoid layoffs. Now, some of the wealthiest companies lay off employees just when growth slows.  

Social media and the smart phone changed everything. In 2006, Facebook (founded in 2003) opened to everyone 13 years or older with a valid email address (you could be much younger and join, of course). Less than a year later in June 2007, Apple introduced the iPhone. Suddenly, we had all the encyclopedias, all the novels, all the research papers, as well as all the opinions, rants, pseudo-science, and half-baked ideas that could be published on the internet in our pockets and at our fingertips. And these devices are not designed primarily for productivity, but for engagement and media consumption. This information “flux and glut” was already an issue in 1997 and is a major reason why teachers feel that their jobs have changed so radically in the last few decades.  

The Providence Class of 2036 is being born this year. Humans are notoriously bad at predicting the future, but it seems safe to assume that a whole lot will change by the time they enroll at Providence. Our current students were born between 2006 and 2010. This year Gen Z will overtake Baby Boomers in the workforce and are expected to have dozens of jobs and at least 3 different careers before retirement.  

Our current students, and their generation at large, will have an influence over what the world looks like, and we need to start thinking now about how Providence can ever more effectively prepare our students for their future not our past.  

When we were kids, the teacher was the living Encyclopedia at the front of the classroom. Now massive amounts of content are accessible in an instant via the devices in our pockets. Teachers are competing for your kid’s attention with devices designed to hack their brain.

Many argue that the rise of smart phones means skills have surpassed content in educational importance, not because content isn’t important – it is critical. But skills are developed in small groups, through trial and error, and content is readily available at any moment of the day through our devices. Hence a teacher is now thought of as a “guide on the side, rather than a sage on the stage.” According to the World Economic Forum’s, The Future of Jobs Report 2023 (and many other similar lists from Forbes, Indeed, McKinsey & Company, and Future Design School) these are the Top 10 most important skills of this new age:

1. Analytical thinking 

2. Creative thinking 

3. Resilience, flexibility, and agility 

4. Motivation and self-awareness 

5. Curiosity and lifelong learning 

6. Dependability and attention to detail 

7. Technological literacy 

8. Empathy and active listening 

9. Leadership and social influence 

10. Quality control 

Schools need to consider how to teach these skills explicitly and measure student growth in these areas. Eight of the top 10 skills are non-technical (a mix of cognitive, self-efficacy, and social skills) and most are what we used to call “soft” skills. They are far from soft; they are necessary skills for the future. Note that technological literacy is seventh and isn’t about specific skills (those now change too quickly) but rather about a broad range of competencies related to working with (and alongside) various forms of technology.  

So, what should schools be thinking about when it comes to preparing students for their future? The list is very long, but here are three ideas to consider: 

• Students need to face Ill-formed questions: School is designed to give students well-formed questions where the student knows the question, has the various resources needed to answer the question arrayed around them, and are judged based on their ability to get the right answer. In the real world, we work in groups to solve problems that are ill-formed. We aren’t even sure what the right question is (or if there’s more than one), we don’t know what resources are needed, and there are often multiple possible ways forward. Our work is judged on our ability to work together to get practical solutions that achieve progress toward larger goals.  

• We need to talk about ethics, culture, philosophy, and religion: Weren’t we taught to avoid these topics? That’s advice for the past. Given the simple realities of Gen Z (the most diverse generation in history), the clear ethical and moral demands of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and synthetic biology, we all need to (re)learn to talk productively across our differences and values. Schools must take the lead.  

• The truly human will grow in value: As we increasingly offload certain routine tasks to AI and machine learning in the workplace, the value of the truly human will grow. Colleges and Universities will want to admit students who have formed their genuine human intelligence (think of the skills listed above). Employers will want to know how their applicants are using generative AI to make them more productive and creative as humans working with other humans in the workplace. Read Ethan Mollick’s new Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI for an excellent, accessible, and quick lesson in this emerging reality. 

Our responsibility as parents and educators is to partner in the process of supporting the holistic growth and development of young people. This means we must do some things differently and respond to the signs of the times. As we embark on our strategic planning process next year, let’s figure this out together. 

See you next Saturday,

Scott McLarty Head of School