How to make education relevant again? Six areas that need to be revolutionized

Co-founder and CEO of ReShuffle Yael Shafrir Photo: Ori Taub, Ronit Cohen.

What content must one consume to be successful in the future world of work? Or life in the 21st century in general? It does not seem to me that anyone can answer this question. There is a lot of talk about "learning how to learn" as the key to create the most value for the next generation, but "learning how to learn" is not necessarily appealing, nor exciting.

The definition of success differs from person to person, as does the way reaching it. Gen Z, a generation that is pragmatic, self-aware, and skeptical regarding the paradigms of previous generations, understands the need to be connected to themselves. This is clearly seen in the worlds of gender - where we have already understood and accepted (for the most part) the freedom of choice and sexual fluidity. Although we are only at the beginning of the process - the change that has been made is dramatic. Self-centeredness can potentially lead to more precise choices than previous generations, however, to enable this, we need to expose our youth at a young age to relevant content that will evoke interest, generate engagement and build ownership of self-development.

When dealing with what is true for this generation, one should take into account that one of Gen Z’s most significant characteristics is their psychology. Data on levels of depression and anxiety vary from study to study but seems to point to the 50%(!) area. Gen Zs’ emotional and social challenges are enormous as the economic instability, the employment pressure, and the intense race of life into which they grew have put a hefty burden on the Z generation.

What has not been said yet about this generation of digital natives? Their inability to read, their poor language skills, their endless creativity, their entrepreneurial spirit, their disengagement, and avoidance. How many studies and conversations must we have with today’s teenagers to understand and accept their lack of interest in old formats - from memorizing facts and reading long-form documents, to putting dishes in the dishwasher? There is no chance that the formats of previous generations can still work today. To a group of Fortnite and Snapchat graduates, sitting passively in a classroom while a teacher drones on is the equivalent of paintings on a cave wall.

What is the most relevant place in which to study? Billions of students have experienced firsthand the results of social isolation during the pandemic and, as a result, we understand now more than ever the importance of schools as a place of social interaction. With a new post-Covid reality ahead of us - it is vital to adopt a hybrid approach to the future world of learning. We need to create a framework to enable Gen Z to maintain stability, even if it is a hybrid one, especially at a young age. This new framework must be built on flexible foundations, respond fast to external situations and be highly aware of internal implications.

Various studies following the pandemic emphasize the importance of the community in building personal and social resilience. To support the complex maturation process of Generation Z, a generation with challenging predispositions, we need to produce a strong, accurate, and long-term support system. We need to form an engaged community and mentoring processes that aim to connect adolescents to a safety net, to support, and to a source of inspiration.