The document summarizes key findings from the OECD's 2022 Trends Shaping Education report. It identifies 5 trends that will disrupt education: 1) the need for lifelong learning and skills development to remain competitive in a changing job market, 2) rising freelance work enabling more flexible learning, 3) the importance of media literacy and critical thinking given the abundance of online information, 4) the role of education in fostering identity and belonging in increasingly diverse societies, and 5) balancing economic growth with environmental sustainability. The conclusion states that employers will value credentials less and freelancing more, so schools need hybrid learning tools helping students develop portfolios to compete globally.
2. Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD)
Trends Shaping Education report in January 2022
What emerging global trends
are poised to disrupt
education in the future?
3. 1. Economic growth and social mobility
The OECD says that education has an important role
in “upskilling and reskilling” our workforce. Workers
will need to be lifelong learners if they wish to
remain competitive in the workplace of the future.
This means that schools increasingly need to think
about education outside of the walls of the school.
4. Example of Education outside the
walls
1. Guided Field Research
Is a combination of
Field Teaching and Field Research.
5. 2. Field Teaching
It involves taking students to a field
location and delivering a mini-
lecture.
6. Learning activities not only need to be
aligned to curriculum standards to save
teachers time. They also need to work in
various settings such as classrooms, small
groups, or as homework assignments.
7. 2. Growth in Freelancing
The OECD estimates that the number of
freelance workers has grown 11% every
year between 2016 and 2021. They estimate
that there are currently 185 million
freelance workers globally.
8. The OECD suggests that growth in freelancing
might lead to de-urbanization as more workers
choose to live in places that are affordable and
fit their lifestyle rather than near the office that
they work.
9. Growth in freelance work could result in more families
choosing remote or hybrid learning. Highlighting the need
to build upon the interests of the learner where their
confidence is strongest. This confidence can build the self-
efficacy and resilience needed to learn independently.
Creative work can also be turned into a portfolio that can
be shown to family and friends and ultimately to potential
employers in the future.
10. 3. Knowledge and power
The exponential growth in information has
resulted in an abundance of misinformation.
Greater uncertainty about the future can lead to
greater anxiety, frustration, and anger that can
be amplified by social media.
11. Our increasing reliance on algorithms
and artificial intelligence are raising
issues of ethics, transparency, and
accountability.
12. Increased access to information has
resulted in more responsibility for
consumers to think critically about what
we see online. More schools are being
asked to help learners quickly evaluate if
statements are facts or opinions and to
seek factual sources such as Snopes.com.
13. 4. Identity and Belonging
A rise in personalization and learning
choices available gives learners a greater
voice in the learning process. Learners can
find like-minded friends online that help
them develop a sense of belonging
14. As countries become more multicultural,
they start to appreciate the unique
contributions that each person can bring to
a community. Education can help promote
a positive sense of self-identity in a
multicultural community.
15. The OECD recommends making education
accessible, adaptable, and affordable for all
learners. We believe that education should
meet the level of the learner. A student who is
struggling with a particular concept can simply
try a lower grade to help identify any
foundational concepts that they are not yet
proficient in. Cohort-based learning can help to
fill the gaps in a misunderstanding by looking
at the responses of classmates.
16. 5. Balancing Society and the
Environment
As medical advances allow people to live
longer, our approach to the environment
and collective well-being will be more
important for our survival. Education can
bring awareness to how our eating habits
impact the sustainability of food
production.
17. We recognize that environmental
awareness is important for a
sustainable future. This is why we have
learning activities focused on the
environment and recycling practices
that protect our planet.
18. Conlusion:
While the future may be uncertain, the trends shaping
education are clear: employers are valuing credentials
such as University degrees less. More workers are
choosing the flexibility of careers in freelancing. Schools
and districts can invest in hybrid and personalized
learning tools that help students discover their creative
potential and make portfolios that enable them to
compete in a global workplace.