“Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is most important.” – Bill Gates

It is harder than ever to get our students future-ready; teaching is tough. In the past, educators got children prepared for careers that lasted their whole lives, and it didn’t matter if they decided to become plumbers or doctors

It isn’t a stretch to say that with the pervasiveness of technology in our lives, there are no guidelines for what jobs of the future will be in 10 to 20 years from now.A lot of people think that teaching is a calling, but I know that with the right training and support, almost everyone can become a great teacher. This must be bound with the belief in the potential of all of our students to learn. It’s urgent and vital work because regardless of what the future of work looks like, one thing is inevitable: Children require assistance and encouragement to acquire the academic and character skills they need to survive and lead prosperous lives.

I love interacting with our children to question them about their ideas on the future of work and their teachers. I also love to talk to educators because they are a common denominator all over the world. Everyone has been taught by a teacher; whether it was informal or formal is another matter altogether.

We will always need human interactions to guide all our children to grow to their full potential.

This brings us to the crux of the matter: Teaching must evolve to keep pace with the rapid changes in the global economy. This is critical because teachers are the bedrock of the quality of all schools.

Hopefully we will advance to where we could use Star Trek tech and send the hologram of great teachers to where they are desperately needed. Right now we need to make it essential that all schools have top-notch teachers in every classroom, who enable the future-readiness of today’s learners.

It is time to ditch the all familiar rote learning for tests and examinations, assimilating facts and information, which are readily accessed from the Internet. Let’s build up the skills of our students in problem-solving, collaboration, and creativity, so they are more than able to take on the challenges of the future, work well with teams, and be flexible and adaptable to the dynamics of the global economy.It means we have to pay more attention to the kinds of teachers our children have; they should be ones who work relentlessly to improve their teaching skills. Unfortunately we don’t have a lot of teachers like these in our schools but we can equip our teachers to be this way.

Adetola Salau; Educator / Speaker / Author/ Social Entrepreneur / Innovator

She is an Advocate of STEM Education and is Passionate about Education reform. She is an innovative thinker and strives for our society & continent as a whole to reclaim it’s greatness. She runs an educational foundation with the mission to transform education.

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