The success of an individual, an idea or a company is often hard to predict. But if there is a factor that increases exponentially the probability for future success, this is the good education of all involved in the initiative.
What does good education look like in 2020?
When education is discussed, sometimes one can hear the opinion that this part of human development is overrated. The cases of university dropout Steve Jobs and of Steven Spielberg, who has no diploma in directing, are cited as affirmative examples. The examples appear convincing, but a tiny detail should be considered. Both cases concern people with above the average capabilities and are about university education (the shared first names are a coincidence).
Education and the skill to learn and to transfer this knowledge to next generations are in the basis of human civilisation. Thanks to them every generation steps on what was already achieved and for its part adds to this construction, developing culture, economy and industry, creating goods and services. However, these are also a way for development of the individual. Good education allows them to unleash their potential and talents, to find their vocation, to realise their dreams, to be of benefit for the complex and important organism that we call society.
One of the most edifying anecdotes that has reached us from Antiquity concerns a tragic event: the death of Socrates. A day before the philosopher was going to drink the infamous hemlock cup, his students found him sitting in his cell, carefully learning to play the lyre. "I have always wanted to learn how to play the lyre," said Socrates, beaming with joy. "But why now? Tomorrow...," his students began, but the man who we now venerate as the founder of Western philosophy interrupted them: "So when would I learn playing the lyre if not now?".
He who studies will succeed: the old Bulgarian saying remains relevant in the 21st century as well. It the conditions of dynamically changing labour market, of dying and emerging industries and professions, it is increasingly important to provide our children with proper education that will prepare them for life. We, adults, too, should constantly strive to maintain our level of knowledge – today the idea for continuous learning and constant improvement of qualification is not an empty slogan, but a necessity.
The school, the university, the specialised courses: when we look back in our own past, the choices and chances that we have had and have had not in our education have determined our later life. While we are unable to change our past, the future of our children, who are now going through the stages of the educational process, is uncertain. Sometimes it can even appear disquieting. Indeed, we are living in times of rapid change that makes redundant professions which until recently have been well established and respected.
"He who studies will succeed," is an old Bulgarian saying which today reflects not only the national, but also the global understanding of the importance of education. Without education nothing can be achieved, particularly now, when the world trends on the labour market change every few years, when the ability for innovative thinking is valued at least as much as the knowledge accumulated for years, and when the concept for lifelong learning is a reality for millions in the world.
In our dynamic world education is a wealth that no-one can steal from us and that we can bring with us no matter where in the vast world we decide to live. Studying foreign languages, the choice of a profession with a future, the ability to blend into a multicultural environment, to be a leader, to have innovative ideas: these are just some of the requirements modern children and youths should meet in order to be successful tomorrow.
Teaching children who are prepared for the tomorrow with all the ups and downs of labor market, changing technologies and professions: modern education, just like modern society, is going through a turbulent period, in which old principles often are hard to apply, and new ones are still in the process of establishment.