Dubai: As technology continues to rapidly change the world, students today face “an unknown future” regarding their future skillsets and careers. They need to be well prepared for constant change, Huda Ramadan, Schools Relation Manager, Expo 2020 Dubai said, during a presentation at the virtual ‘GESS Education Global Leadership Summit’ this week.
Ramadan said: “In 2021, we find ourselves preparing students for an unknown future and for a global education system that is ever-changing. We don’t even know what careers will exist for our new kindergarten students, or what post-secondary education will look like for those future careers.”
New opportunities
While technological advancement presents an uncertain future, it also offers many opportunities by catalysing innovation and supporting interdisciplinary collaboration. “During the last few years, technology has developed rapidly, changing the way students think about education; and opening up many new career opportunities for students,” Ramadan added.
World Expos have significantly contributed to our global history for more than 170 years, gathering nations dedicated to finding solutions to pressing challenges and offering platforms for all. Expo 2020 Dubai will continue to build on this legacy as a global destination where everyone can learn, innovate, create progress and have fun by sharing ideas and working together.
“This is the reason the Expo School Programme was developed – to empower students (and teachers) to maximise cutting-edge developments and inspire them to imagine the role they will play in the future world.”
Evolution of education
“It’s not simply the advances in technology that has changed the face of learning” Ramadan continued. “What has changed is our understanding of how students learn, and how our teaching methodologies have evolved over the years to reflect the modern-day students.”
“Over the past year, we also learned and appreciated that education is just as much about life experiences, as it is about academics,” she said, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s also about how we, as individuals, adapt and collaborate; and we must no longer confine education to the classroom, but make life experiences meaningful.”
Expo 2020’s student experience
To that end, the Expo School Programme extends beyond the classroom, bringing the educational experience of Expo 2020 to students through four unique journeys designed to inspire the UAE school community through fun and transformative learning experiences. The programme also celebrates Expo 2020’s core values of innovation, collaboration and thinking globally, acting locally.
From showcasing the X-ray machine to the television and even zippers, World Expos have a strong history of innovation and bringing people together in a spirit of collaboration for a better future, and the Expo School Programme demonstrates how Expo 2020 is preparing students for the future. “Over the last four years, our team of educators and specialists have been engaging with the school community to inspire and empower students and educators by turning the Expo 2020 site into an extension of the classroom – giving students an experience of a lifetime, while preparing them for tomorrow,” Ramadan enthused.
With more than 190 countries participating in Expo 2020, students across the world will embark on physical and virtual journeys to visit the different pavilions, all under the three subthemes of Opportunity, Sustainability and Mobility.
From meeting social innovators, to discovering the digital age of mobility, and understanding our interconnected natural world, the ultimate goal of the programme is to inspire and empower students to build a better future.
