High school graduates have trouble finding good jobs. There’s a mismatch in our economy, and it is about to get dramatically worse. Business Forward is joined by Carmel Martin, Managing Director of XQ Institute, for a discussion on how to redesign our schools for the 21st century.

1. Preparing for the Future
of Work and Creating
Opportunity Now
DECEMBER, 2018

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XQ INSTITUTE
Our mission is to fuel America’s collective creativity to transform high
school so every student succeeds — no matter their race, gender or
zip code.
We want to see that change underway in every high school and in
every community — all 14,000+ school districts.
About UsOur commitment to
rethinking high schools

3. OVER $130M PLEDGED IN GRANTS TO
19 SUPER SCHOOLS & ORGANIZATIONS
Additional Awardees
District Partnerships
XQ Future Super Schools

4. Preparing Students
For the Workplaces
of the Future

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AMIDST THE FUTURE WORKPLACE UNCERTAINTY, WE CAN BE SURE OF A FEW THINGS.
The first thing we can be sure is that change will be pretty constant.
•Increasing numbers will be “contingent” workers, working part-time, on contract without benefits, and often remotely, with employers
scaling their teams up or down to adapt to ever-changing conditions
Another thing we can be sure of is that many of today’s young people will be working at jobs that don’t currently exist.
Many, too, won’t be working at traditional jobs — one employer, one location, with benefits — at all
•1/3 of new jobs created in the U.S. in the past 25 years were types that did not exist — or barely existed — before. And that rate seems
likely to increase.
•The average young American will have at least 11 different jobs between the ages of 18 and 44.
And the pace of change could get faster.
Note: Carl Frey and Michael Osborne, “The Future of Employment: How Susceptible are Jobs to Computerisation?” 2013
Note: Klaus Shwab, World Economic Forum. The Fourth Industrial Revolution: What it Means and How to Respond

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EDUCATION MATTERS — ESPECIALLY COLLEGE EDUCATION
4 out of the 5 fastest-growing occupations require higher levels of postsecondary education.
WORKERS WITH MORE EDUCATION
EARN MORE.
THE WAGES OF WORKERS WITH MORE
EDUCATION ALSO GROW FASTER.
WORKERS WITH MORE EDUCATION ARE
LESS LIKELY TO BE UNEMPLOYED.
Note: Farber, Henry. The Decline in Worker and Firm Attachment in the US. CEPS; Princeton

7. DEMAND FOR DIGITAL SKILLS ARE ALREADY GROWING IN THE MODERN WORKPLACE.
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45%
71%
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
2002 2016
The Share of U.S. Jobs Requiring Mid- or High-Level Digital Skills Jumped 16 Percentage
Points Between 2002 and 2016
Share of U.S. Jobs Requiring Mid- or High-Level Digital Skills Linear (Share of U.S. Jobs Requiring Mid- or High-Level Digital Skills)
Note: Mark Muro and others, “Digitalization and the American Workforce,” Brookings Institution, November 2017

8. DEMAND FOR SOCIAL AND ANALYTICAL SKILLS HAVE BEEN GROWING, TOO.
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50%
83%
77%
18%
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
All Occupations
Occupations that require
Social skills
Occupations that require
Analytical Skills
Occupations that require
Physical Skills
Employment in Jobs Requiring Analytical or Social Skills has been Increasing at 4X the Rate
of Employment in Jobs Requiring Physical Skills
% Change in Employment from 1980-2015
Note: Pew Research Center, “The State of American Jobs,” October 6, 2016

9. SKILLS NECESSARY FOR THE WORKPLACES OF THE FUTURE WILL CHANGE.
9
-11%
-14%
9%
26%
60%
-20%
-10%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Physical skills Basic thinking skills Higher-level thinking skills Social-emotional skills Technological skills
By 2030, Workplace Demand for Technological Skills and Social-Emotional Skills will Increase
by 60% and 26%, Respectively
Percent Change in Hours Worked
Note: Jacques Bughin and others, “Skill Shift: Automation and the Future of the Workforce,” McKinsey Global Institute, May 2018

10. XQ Institute
Why High Schools?

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Transformed high schools drive improvement in the
elementary and middle grades by setting high
expectations for learning while also creating a critical
connection to postsecondary options.
High schools are the one part of our education system that
has made the least progress.
New neuroscience research shows that teenage brains are
primed to learn.
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XQ INSTITUTE | WHY HIGH SCHOOLS?

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Instead of being challenged to
develop their minds, most high
school students say they are
bored, unchallenged, and
uninspired.
OUR SOCIETY HAS CHANGED. OUR HIGH SCHOOLS NEED TO CHANGE, TOO.
Less than half of our high school
students say their school has
helped them figure out which
careers match their skills and
interests.
Note 3: Ulrich Boser and Perpetual Baffour, Center for American Progress, “Revisited: Do Schools Challenge Our Students?” March 2017
Note 4 and 5: Gallup, “2016 Gallup® Student Poll: A Snapshot of Results and Findings,” 2017

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Closing the racial achievement gap
alone would boost American GDP
by more than half a trillion dollars
a year.
$ 551B
GDP BOOST
XQ INSTITUTE | WHY HIGH SCHOOLS?
Strong High Schools
= Economic Opportunity

14. SO, HOW SHOULD
SCHOOLS PREPARE
STUDENTS
FOR ALL OF THIS
CHANGE
A STRONG FOUNDATION OF
ACADEMIC KNOWLEDGE
THE SKILLS NECESSARY TO
APPLY THAT KNOWLEDGE TO
NON-ROUTINE PROBLEMS
1.
2.
A SET OF COMPETENCIES
THAT ALLOW THEM TO
WORK WELL AND ETHICALLY
WITH OTHERS
3.
A GREAT DEAL OF FLEXIBILITY
AND ADAPTABILITY
4.

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XQ PROFILE OF A GRADUATE

16. 1.Teaching for Deeper Learning
2.Youth empowerment, voice and choice
3.Community Partnerships
4.Rethinking Traditional Systems
5.Personalized learning powered by tech
6.And a much broader vision of student success
XQ DESIGN PRINCIPLES
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17. High School &
The Future of Work
Policymakers Guide

18. State policies can make a big
difference and deliver real results for
high school students.
But meeting this challenge isn’t
merely about passing laws or
launching new initiatives.
It’s also about galvanizing a statewide
movement to transform high schools.
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WHY GOVERNORS AND STATE POLICYMAKERS?

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HIGH SCHOOL & THE FUTURE OF WORK | A GUIDE FOR STATE POLICYMAKERS
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HIGH SCHOOL & THE FUTURE OF WORK | STATE DATA SHEET
All 50 states have an individual data sheet with eight indicators on High School and the Future of Work.

21. STATE LEADERS
POLICIES AND
INITIATIVES
EMPOWER LOCAL
COMMUNITIES TO DESIGN
HIGH SCHOOLS OF THE
FUTURE
MAKE DIPLOMAS
MEANINGFUL WITH COLLEGE
ADMISSION ALIGNMENT AND
MODERN CAREER
PREPARATION
1.
2.
GET TEACHERS THE TOOLS
THEY NEED
3.

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THE ROLE OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY

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PURDUE POLYTECHNIC
HIGH SCHOOL
In Indianapolis, students enroll at Purdue Polytechnic High School (PPHS)—one of the
city’s Innovation Network Schools—to prepare for the high-skill, high-wage STEM jobs of
the future. At PPHS, students learn by doing, including through industry-focused projects
and design challenges that combine rigorous academics and applied skills in real-world
settings. Personal learning coaches help students create a customized daily schedule
designed to advance each student’s personal goals and meet unique educational needs.
Eleventh graders choose a career pathway in a growing field such as advanced
manufacturing or supply chains and logistics. And every graduate has a pathway to
postsecondary education and training, including an option for direct admission to Purdue
Polytechnic Institute.
INDIANAPOLIS, IN

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WASHINGTON LEADERSHIP
ACADEMY
In Washington, DC, just 30 African-American students took AP Computer Science during
the 2015-16 academic year. This year, one school, the Washington Leadership
Academy, more than tripled that number. Washington Leadership Academy offers four
years of computer science along with opportunities to learn through virtual reality. And
it places a strong emphasis on leadership to prepare graduates to take an influential
role in digital-age civic life. Students have the opportunity to take electives from part-
time instructors with specific, hard-to-find skills in fields such as programming and
robotics. And teachers leverage digital tools to personalize learning, tailoring
instruction to each student’s interests and needs while tracking each student’s mastery
of rigorous standards.
WASHINGTON, D.C.

25. The Time is Now
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