Reimagining Education: Beyond the Rhetoric (The Blue Dot; No.13, 2021)

The events of the year 2020, driven predominantly by the COVID-19 pandemic, have forced governments, policymakers, educators and organisations to rethink the purpose, structure and modality of existing education systems.

Even while the world is struggling with climate change, decreased empathy, violent extremism, xenophobia and an increase in mental health issues in children, with a recent report by WHO highlighting that 800,000 people between the ages of 15-29 are dying by suicide ever year, globally1 , the COVID-19 virus singlehandedly shut down access to face-to-face school education for roughly half of the world’s student population.

These ongoing and unexpected challenges bring to light the urgent need for education systems to be more adaptable, responsive, and resilient to future shocks and disasters. We can work to transform education in many ways, such as by translating our understanding of how the brain learns from the research laboratory to the classroom and leveraging the power of technology to ensure that learning can reach every child who hungers to learn. It is time we reimagine education to ensure learning continues with minimal disruption but also empowers students as compassionate human beings, prepared for an unpredictable future, but also as global citizens seeking a peaceful and kinder world.

The purpose of education needs to change from being instrumental (based on human capital) to one that is constitutive (human-flourishing), accessible to all and structured such that learning can happen anytime and anywhere and always.