Need for upskilling for betterment of youth

The lack of skills or the gap between schooling and the needs of a teacher's job profile remains a significant barrier to a teacher's career. Teacher upskilling is still a hot topic among academics and curriculum specialists, ranging from inaccessible to inadequate and out-of-date. 21st-century schools expect teachers to be more than resources who deliver lessons.

Teaching is no more about delivering information. There is Google for that. There is a heap of information available on the internet that you can just go and collect. Teaching is much more than that, it's about understanding a child's psychology, it's about understanding what really ignites somebody's need of learning, it's about giving them the right content in the right way.

What today's schools want are teachers with skills—skills to teach 21st century students. We have already started seeing the world giving more importance to skills over degree and grades. In the coming years, good grades need to be byproducts of effective learning, not the end goal. Teachers need to be ready to support this change.

Schools today need modern teachers with requisite skills—teachers who can stream educational videos, access digital textbooks, employ Edtech tools, and support personalised learning. If teachers want to stay in the education market and make an impact– upgrading their skills is the key.

Pedagogy can address the needs of 21st century students

How children learn has transformed greatly over the past years. In contrast to the curriculum-centred approach of the past, the emphasis today is on the student. Teachers should upgrade themselves to switch from the transmission model of teaching to modern teaching practices and take on the role of a facilitator. When teachers are equipped with critical thinking skills, they can help students figure stuff out for themselves when they don't have a teacher at their disposal.

By emphasising how the new knowledge resolves an issue or adds value would enable students to take control of their learning. Hence, it would enable students to internalise and apply their knowledge at a broader scale in real life. This would make them job ready & professional lives that lie ahead of them outside the school corridors.

Ensure effective & collaborative learning environment

The idea of a teacher addressing a classroom full of students who pay attention and follow instructions has become a thing of the past. Teachers need to upskill themselves to understand & implement new teaching strategies to engage student interest to ensure an effective learning environment.

With more & more inclusive & hybrid learning coming in, the present learning model will be turned upside down. Classrooms will coexist as both physical venues and online environments. Students will learn at home and spend class time interacting and applying their knowledge to real-life problems. Hence, it becomes crucial for teachers to have facilitative skills, reflective skills, communication skills, social and emotional intelligence to have a collaborative & supportive student learning.

Prepare for the future of teaching and learning

Moving forward, probably a couple of years down the line, gamified learning would enter the education market. Teachers would need to teach students how to learn while playing games. They would need to teach them how to behave in a competitive environment. Teachers would need to analyse student behavioural patterns in a competitive gaming environment. Hence, teachers need to continuously upgrade their skills in order to prepare for the future of teaching & learning. The better prepared they are for the future, the better they can educate their students & create an impact.

Teachers must stay current on improvements in different sectors, skills in demand, the future of employment, and potential jobs for students. This would also allow the youth to stay ahead of the trend with the support of skilled and informed teachers by their side.

Make teaching an aspirational career for students

Despite exponential demand for skilled teachers, youngsters are not taking up the teaching profession. In order to attract younger generations towards teaching; teachers need to upgrade themselves & build skills to show their competencies. This would help teachers land lucrative jobs and more respect in the society. In this manner, they can become role models & can place teaching alongside technology oriented & corporate professions.

Upskilling can add growth to the teaching profession & provide teachers the respect that has faded over the time. This will also allow the new generations to enter the teaching profession & get the experience of doing something meaningful for the future generations.

(The author is CEO & Co-Founder of Suraasa)