The underlying principle of education is more than just academics. Space must be made to embrace the potential, skills and talents each student has, for them to become full and grounded individuals.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office with responsibility for Culture, Senator Dr. Shantal Munro-Knight, expressed this view, as she gave the feature address at the opening ceremony of a college expo recently hosted by the Barbados Community College (BCC), entitled: ‘Innovate, Elevate, Celebrate’.
“The ethos of educational transformation as much as it is grounded within the primary and the secondary institutional framework, the epoch is much larger. It is about the extent to which we can create an ecosystem that is creative and supportive of [their] ambition… to create students who can make their own space in the global society, who are going to be able to make sure that they can apply the skills and the knowledge that they have gained throughout their school experience,” she said.
Senator Munro-Knight briefly addressed climate change, as not just an environmental challenge but also an exponential one; something which is changing the trajectory of how we live.
She cited that globally, the green economy and green jobs currently make up 7.2 trillion of the world economy, but explained that in five years, five per cent of man-hours will be lost in droves because of the daily impact of climate change. However, she suggested that small island developing states can have an advantage.
“Smaller developing states will have a competitive advantage if we can leverage more of the skills, talents, and resources that we have to make our way in the current environment. But it also suggests as well, that there is unfair and unequal access to the technology that we will need to harness that competitive environment that exists.
“For us to be able to be competitive and to be able to make our way, we do not just need students who come out with certificates and students who will enjoy the experience of going through the educational framework, but we need students who are agile [and] students who think critically as well,” she advised.
Dr. Munro-Knight explained a concept within political science which speaks about a new economy, which is framed by technology and knowledge. According to her, this economy will depend on what is built through education and students’ ability to actively engage in learning.
“That knowledge economy means that we can be successful… We can compete through the generation of ideas and through innovation. It, therefore, opens up a space, again to Small Island Developing States that have not been traditionally competitive in the global economy, based on goods and services that we now have an opportunity to be able to innovate our way to success,” she underlined.
The Senator challenged the students to widen their frame of thinking about what is valuable, what jobs are the best and will make the most money, and what would allow them to make a footprint, as they make their way within the world and Barbados takes a place on the global stage. (PR/GIS)
