Skills are more important than knowledge
Skills are more important than knowledge. That’s a pretty bold statement.
In recent years, developments have been rapid in the field of ICT and knowledge has quickly become obsolete. Knowledge has also never been so massively and easily available. For example, the understanding to make sense of information on the Internet is a skill that needs to be developed.
Many employers have been telling schools for years “if you teach them to listen now we will teach them the trade.”
Many organizations are raising awareness of the importance of skills. For example, skills are an important part of Education 2032. The VO Council also released a report in which they even propose to include developed (21st century) skills on an appendix of the diploma. And even the World Economic Forum is releasing a report for the second time this year calling for skills development to be included in the curriculum.
But what does this mean in the context of education? Skill development has always been part of the educational process in addition to transferring knowledge, hasn’t it? So what should the school do differently?
The World Economic Forum explains. They argue that there are still very few educational systems that provide insight into skills. And even fewer systems that give pupils and students insight into those skills that can be further developed. The Forum advocates for educational platforms that measure skills and especially those that help develop skills.
So, in short, skills themselves are not the new aspect. Capturing skill development is, however, new. And thus demonstrating skills. So that a school can indeed provide an appendix to the diploma listing the skills developed.
We think a portfolio for developing and demonstrating skills is the way to go. The portfolio in which assignments are completed, reflection is facilitated and skills are recorded. So that it is clear within which context skills are developed and how they have been assessed by the student himself, as well as by other students, parents or internship supervisors.
At Simulise, we go one step further and want to make this possible for a lifetime, not only for school students but also for working people. Because we still hear companies asking about applicants’ (21st century) skills. Understanding what you can do, how you have developed that skill, and how it is judged by others is what Simulise offers.
