EdTech, Skills & The Future of Work Series: Analytical Thinking & Innovation
The world as we knew it, has changed or rather is in the process of changing. With every tick on the clock, a new technology takes birth and sweeps you off your feet. Education, healthcare, airline, every sector is getting twisted into new ways of making human life easier. This is why it has become incredibly important to embrace these changes with open arms and mind and pave our way through digital disruption.
For the longest time, our children have had to follow the traditional pen and book method when it comes to education. Thankfully for us, the African education scene is taking a new turn with the initiation of technology in the way our kids learn. It is all the more important now to teach our kids new tricks of the trade and take their attention away from only bookish learning. The World Economic Forum has, in this reference, spelled out a list of 10 skills that anyone who is looking to get employed, will need in the near future. The skill that tops the list is ‘Analytical Thinking and Innovation’, and rightly so. To put things in perspective, let’s understand what exactly this skill entails.
‘Analytical Thinking and Innovation’ is a critical skill that aids in gathering information, articulating, visualizing, and solving complex problems for taking effective decisions. Right from the onset of elementary education, children should be taught this skill to help them connect the dots and understand the basics of each problem to craft creative solutions.
It is a myth that critical skills can only be applied to objective studies like Maths and Science. Rather, it is a skill that can be applied across every subject and is based on application and knowledge.
So how exactly can we inculcate the same in regular classroom teaching techniques?
The answer is simple, blend it with the right technology. Kids these days are very receptive to technology, are eager to learn, and can easily adapt to newer models.
Interactive learning experience
Inculcate reading and listening skills through storytelling format. Storybird is the right tool for this. It comes with a very simple and seamless user interface where the faculty can create interactive storyboards which can be shared in the form of blogs, over e-mail, and even printed. It also comes with a feature where you can get constant feedback from the students so it reduces unnecessary pressure and encourages them to work better.
Collaborative projects
You can always use the good old Google Slides to create interactive presentations on a topic relevant to the student curriculum. The aim is to help them understand the concept in an interactive and engaging way.
Breaking down information
The best part about using Slides is that it is very easy to collaborate on. Miro is the latest kid on the block. It comes with a mind-blowing feature called Mind Map. The feature helps you create exceptionally interactive flowcharts which makes the teaching process unbelievably seamless. You can break down information into smaller sections and make the concept easily understandable.
Incentivize learning
It is always a good idea to follow up learning with a certain incentive that encourages students to perform well. They think better, analyze better, and innovate better, which is the whole point of analytical thinking. ClassDojo is a platform you can explore which is based on the idea of creating a community of teachers and students. The platform helps you share feedback in a better way, engaging with not only the student but parents as well and the best part about ClassDojo is that it allows students to share their learning using photos and videos which is a great experience for both the child and the teacher.
Analytical Thinking is the need of the hour if we want our kids to land good jobs and make great careers. The information and the education that reaches their ears should be broken down into a simpler and easily understandable format. It needs to become more engaging so that students are able to grasp the concept better and come up with innovative and workable solutions. Technology is the future and we need to get in sync with it, better sooner than later.