The needs of students: the competencies of the future

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This is exactly what pupils and their parents need to know. A decade ago a typical pupil would have said that he wants to be a doctor, a teacher, a baker. But the world has changed, and today the situation is somewhat different.

"What competencies do I need to master a particular profession," the student asks. – "How should competencies be developed?" the teacher echoes him. Meanwhile, new professions that require new skills and abilities appear every day. And you need to keep up with the changes to confidently enter adulthood. At school, I didn’t have all the competencies needed for being successful at College, so I had to pay someone to write my research paper for me.



What do current schoolchildren want and expect, how do they see their future?

Once prestigious industries and professions no longer arouse the interest of young people. Fewer and fewer schoolchildren want to devote themselves to the law(2%), politics and public administration (2%), and international relations have lost their attractiveness (2%). The percentage of those who dream of becoming economists (1%) or tourism managers (1%) is even lower. From 3% to 9% were distributed among those who want to devote themselves to science, education, and ensuring the safety of society. And businessis no longer so desirable (6%).


These professions are still in demand on the market. However, there is high competition in these areas, so it is difficult to find a job in the industry. And the modern schoolboy is focused on the real application of his knowledge and skills.

What are they - the professions of the future?
Many kids (13%) want their career to be related to arts. A little less of the surveyed children chose the noble and honorable profession of a doctor (11%).
And, of course, the digitalization of society, the introduction of new IT technologies, and the unexpected, urgent, but quite a successful transition of many spheres of life into the virtual space played a huge role in choosing a profession – the majority of students (21% of respondents) want to become IT specialists. Yes! The demand for new skills gives rise to a desire to get them.



Is it possible to achieve goals without developing competencies, and which of them will allow you to succeed in your future profession?
The success of any business depends not only on knowledge but also on the ability to apply them in practice. Even the primary choice of profession is related to the skills possessed by the student. And first of all, basic skills, qualities, inclinations, character traits –soft skills are important here. Yes, they do not depend on the specifics of a particular activity, but they are necessary for everyday life, contribute to proper career guidance, and build a successful career in the future.
Everyone needs soft skills - adult and child, boss and subordinate, businessman and freelancer. Not to get lost in an unfamiliar environment, not to be afraid in an emergency, not to be ashamed to ask for directions - all this is thanks to soft skills.
And, of course, in today's dynamic conditions of life, study and work, it will be difficult without them.
That is why students named such skills as the most important ones: working with people (55%), prioritizing, selecting a team (50%) and working effectively in it (48%), as well as recognizing emotions, empathizing with another person, establishing connections with people (46%).
New technologies are developing more and more rapidly, a rapid flow of information is falling on us faster and faster, and life is putting more and more tasks in front of us! Over 48% of the surveyed students noted that critical thinking is needed not to get lost in the maelstrom of data, to evaluate them correctly, to confirm or refute the facts, to defend your point of view. The ability to work in the mode of high uncertainty and rapid change of tasks, according to schoolchildren, is the first condition for victory in the life and professional race of the XXI century (51% of respondents).
Time management is such a new, almost unknown, but extremely necessary competence. And 39% of respondents confirmed the importance of the ability to effectively plan and manage their time.
Soft skills alone are not enough for professional activity and career building. We need hard skills, - professional competencies, hard skills.
What competencies of the future did the survey reveal? The ability to work with data, their analysis, processing, and digitization (64%), the creation of computer software (55%), and the ability to work with artificial intelligence are the main professional activities of the XXI century.
Knowledge may become obsolete, but skills will never. That is why it is important to identify the necessary ones and develop them.
And how? – you ask. Do the listed competencies form in a comprehensive school? Let's turn to the survey again.

Skills that are taught in school
The majority of students believe that they will not learn to work with artificial intelligence at school (67%), nor the management of complex engineering complexes (59%), nor programming (33%), nor time management (41%) - and none of the above–mentioned skills and abilities.
And do we have many teachers who, for example, know time management technologies, programming, communication with artificial intelligence? Even if there are one or two specialists for the whole school– they will not fully form the necessary skills. Yes, but often there are simply no professionals.
What should be done? How to reduce the gap between the expectation of schoolchildren and reality?

Everything is going according to a plan

According to the curriculum, in which most disciplines are theoretical, lecture format. With a minimum or absence of practical, interactive classes, teamwork, and live communication with professionals, as well as the necessary modern disciplines - digital literacy, programming. It is no coincidence that the absolute majority of the surveyed schoolchildren pointed to these problems as obstacles in mastering the competencies of the future.
How to help students get the necessary skills? Conduct additional classes and clubs, inviting appropriate specialists if necessary. They are exactly what 36% of the guys who passed the survey lack.
Another option is self–development. Of course, independent studies, studying books, best practices - will never be superfluous. However, it is crucial to practice in real conditions.
It turns out that today the only opportunity to get skills and abilities from specialists, mentors are institutions of additional education, training camps, courses, webinars where you can communicate, study, practice, create teams, and solve tasks.
However, the survey clearly shows that there is a request for the formation of competencies of the future. And this is a challenge that schools will have to accept very soon by responding to it with a high-quality education.