Innovative Education for Future Careers

The Innovative Education for Future Careers project aims to provide students with the necessary tools and skills for future jobs and careers through innovative and interdisciplinary policies.

This project focuses on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 - Quality Education - proposed by the United Nations (UN). It aims to equip young and adult people with the skills and technical abilities needed to access employment, decent work, and entrepreneurship. Additionally, it considers the jobs that will be increasingly in demand in the future, as indicated by scientific studies.

The main factor contributing to the problem is the lack of alignment between the current secondary education system and the jobs and professions that are currently in demand and will be increasingly in demand in the future. Estimates such as the one made by the World Economic Forum in its report "The Future of Jobs" suggest that by 2030, 85 million workers could be displaced worldwide. In this context, it is a challenge to predict which jobs and skills will have the most demand in the future, while the risk of falling into the so-called "hollowing" of the middle class becomes increasingly latent.

The scale of this problem in the community is significant, as the debate on the impact of technology and automation of work has affected all generations. Algorithms of machine learning are now, in many cases, better at basic knowledge work than human workers, and we still need to learn the impact on labor markets of these developments. Disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, data mining, computational statistics, mobile robotics, automated vehicles, 3D printing, and nanotechnology, among others, are already generating large-scale inequality and unemployment problems that put the modern economic model we know at risk.

However, decades of research have shown that the most valuable asset of any economy or company is its human capital. That is why it is of vital importance that public policymakers take into account the changes taking place in the labor market and what trends will mark the near future. Even more important, it is essential to be aware that it is the low and middle-income countries - those that are most susceptible to automation compared to high-income countries - that must be a priority not only for national states but also for provincial and local governments and companies, to plan in advance for such an event.

The proposed solution is a law called the "Law of Education, Technology and Future Employment" that will be implemented in secondary education institutions in the Province of Mendoza. The aim of this law is to create educational policies that will provide current and future generations with the necessary tools and skills for future jobs and professions.

To reach this goal, the law will implement several strategies, such as:

• Establishing evaluation mechanisms to assess the level of technological knowledge of students and monitoring their progress through annual evaluations.
• Partnering with the private sector, particularly in the industrial-technological and goods and services areas, to actively involve them in the development and implementation of training workshops.
• Building alliances with non-state actors to promote the teaching of new technologies.
• Setting clear, measurable, and comparable priorities and gathering reliable performance data to monitor the system and students' progress.
• Promoting the publication of data obtained through intermediaries that allow citizens to be informed and empowered in accordance with transparency and open government policies.
• Directing investment towards specific practices that have been proven to improve the learning process.
• Providing workshops based on learning through project development, aimed at:
  • Soft skills: Problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and design thinking, including those that will be required in the future.
  • Hard skills: Data analysis, research skills, quantitative analysis, computational logic, and all those that future jobs will demand.
• Implementing the combination of practical skills focused on work with theoretical knowledge and the development of interpersonal skills.
• Determining incentive mechanisms that allow for greater private sector investment in the development of skills and abilities of young people.
• Developing and promoting an annual accreditation system that indicates the skills and abilities acquired by students in order to facilitate their employability.

This solution serves students of secondary education in the Province of Mendoza. The solution aims to provide students with the necessary tools and skills for future jobs and careers through innovative and interdisciplinary policies. This includes establishing educational policies that guarantee access to training that allows students to have the tools and skills needed for the jobs and professions that the future will demand, implementing these policies by adapting them to the different local contexts, incorporating training workshops that provide the minimum tools for labor insertion, guaranteeing the transversality of the teaching-learning process through disciplines that are considered essential for the integral development of individuals, and promoting and establishing educational parameters that foster an innovative, integrating and interdisciplinary education to rethink the educational curricula. The impact on the students' lives is to have the opportunity to acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to adapt to the changing job market and to be more employable, which will allow them to access better employment opportunities, which will have a positive impact on their economic stability and overall development.

To address this issue appropriately, I had the support of a diverse group of professionals, each with relevant experience in their respective fields. Our multidisciplinary team is composed of educators, policy makers, and representatives from the private sector. This diverse experience ensures that the project is implemented effectively and efficiently. Additionally, the team is committed to creating an inclusive design and implementation process, taking into account the different perspectives and needs of all stakeholders. Together, we believe our team is well positioned to deliver this solution.

In order to understand the needs of the population we want to serve, we have taken several steps to gather information and feedback from different stakeholders. Firstly, we have met with student representatives from secondary schools across the province to gather insights on the current state of education and the challenges students face in terms of accessing the necessary tools and skills for future jobs and careers. Additionally, we have also met with teachers, professors and educational experts to understand their perspectives on the issue and gather their input on potential solutions.

Furthermore, we have also engaged with elected officials such as senators and representatives to gather information on the current policies and initiatives related to education and workforce development. We have also met with representatives from the private sector to understand the current challenges they face in terms of finding qualified and skilled workers, and how we can address these challenges through our solution. Finally, we have also met with local mayors and other community leaders to gather their input and engage with their perspectives on the issue.

All these steps have help us to have a broad and deep understanding of the problem and the needs of the population we want to serve, and also have allowed us to have a more inclusive design and development process, taking into account the different perspectives and needs of all the stakeholders.

The solution is innovative because it proposes a new approach to addressing the problem of providing students with the necessary skills and knowledge to succeed in future jobs. Specifically, it establishes a relationship between education and the private sector through the implementation of a new law. This law aims to align education policies with the demands of the future job market and to incorporate training workshops that provide students with the tools and skills needed for successful employment. Additionally, the law promotes active participation of the private sector in the development and implementation of these workshops and establishes partnerships with non-state actors to enhance the teaching of new technologies.

This innovative approach has the potential to be catalytic because it could change the way education is delivered and perceived in the Province of Mendoza. By aligning education with the demands of the future job market, this solution aims to increase the employability of students and help them succeed in a rapidly changing job market. Additionally, by involving the private sector in the development and implementation of these workshops, the solution aims to create a more effective and responsive education system that can better adapt to the needs of the economy. Furthermore, this law also aims to bridge the gap between education and the private sector, and it will enable broader positive impacts from others in this space by creating a more collaborative and productive relationship between the two.

What are your impact goals for the next year, and how will you achieve them?

The core technology that powers my solution is the integration of new and emerging technologies into the curriculum of secondary education institutions. The main objective of the law is to modify the curriculum to include subjects related to the jobs of the future, such as data analysis, big data, robotics, programming, artificial intelligence, and more. The implementation of these subjects will be done in coordination with the private sector, which will have a direct participation in the design and implementation of workshops, providing students with the necessary tools to enter the labor market with the skills that the future demands. Additionally, the law aims to incentivize the private sector to invest in the development of skills and abilities of young people, by linking the education system with the industry, and establish a system of accreditation for each academic year, indicating the skills and abilities acquired by the students, making them more employable. This integration of technology in education is the key component that makes my solution innovative, as it provides a new and significantly improved approach to the problem of preparing students for the jobs of the future, and it could be catalytic, as it aims to change the market by providing students with the necessary skills and abilities to enter the labor market, and enabling broader positive impacts from others in this space.

Currently, this solution does not serve any people as it is still in the process of being proposed and implemented. However, in the next year, plan to serve all secondary schools in the Province of Mendoza, which includes an estimated number of around 500,000 students and thousands of teachers and other staff members. The goal is to provide them with the necessary tools and skills for the jobs and professions that the future demands, through a comprehensive and innovative education system that is adapted to local contexts and which is based on the integration of technology, industry and education.
Furthermore, I see this project as a catalyst for change and hope that it serves as an inspiration for other provinces to implement similar laws and policies to prepare their students for the jobs of the future. I believe that by working together, we can create a more educated and skilled workforce that will drive economic growth and development in the region.

Some of the major barriers that currently exist for me to accomplish my goals in the next year include financial constraints, resistance from certain groups who view technology as a threat rather than an opportunity, and the lack of support from some key stakeholders. Financially, implementing this program requires significant resources, including funding for teacher training, curriculum development, and technology infrastructure. Additionally, there may be resistance from certain groups who view technology as a threat to traditional ways of life, and who may be unwilling to embrace these changes. Furthermore, there may be lack of support from some key stakeholders such as school boards and government officials who may not fully understand the potential benefits of this program. Additionally, there could be a barrier of trust between the private sector and the education sector, which could hinder the collaboration and articulation of the two sectors. Lastly, there could be a lack of funds to implement the program in the short term, making it difficult to implement all the aspects of the law.

I ame working collaboratively and in close partnership with influential politicians from the province to ensure that we are able to effectively address the challenges and opportunities present in the educational sector. I am also engaging in meaningful conversations with innovative and forward-thinking private companies which have a vested interest in the advancement of education. By leveraging our collective resources and expertise, we are striving to create a brighter future for the next generation.