In 2018, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published a document entitled ‘The Future of Education and Skills: Education 2030’.
Although this document is a few years old now, it’s still very much looking ahead at how education can help best prepare young people for an uncertain future. The world is facing unprecedented social, economic and environmental challenges – driven by accelerating globalisation and an ever faster rate of technological developments. At the same time, what can be perceived as threats also represent significant opportunities for human advancement and development.
The project had two main objectives:
- What knowledge, skills, attitudes and values will today's students need to thrive and shape their world?
- How can instructional systems develop these knowledge, skills, attitudes and values effectively?
Although Boundless Life and its forward-thinking education programme were conceived some time after this project occurred, it is very heartening to see so much alignment in approach. Let’s take a brief look at how Boundless Education is perfectly placed to maximise the opportunities and face down some of the challenges highlighted by the OECD.
Need for new solutions in a rapidly changing world
The OECD highlighted the significance of the pace and magnitude of change occurring at this time in our history: environmental, societal and economic.
“These global trends are already affecting individual lives, and may do so for decades to come. They have triggered a global debate that matters to every country, and call for global and local solutions. The OECD Education 2030 contributes to the UN 2030 Global Goals for Sustainable Development (SDGs), aiming to ensure the sustainability of people, profit, planet and peace, through partnership.”
Boundless Education has placed the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals front and centre in children’s educational journey because when young people realise that they can draw on their passions to have a positive impact on issues they care about, they discover the purpose in their learning.
This is primarily achieved through our ‘Quests’: an interdisciplinary unit of learning which links content from several subjects through the investigation of big ideas, concepts, current events, and societal issues - all drawn down from the UNSDGs.
Need for broader education goals: Individual and collective well-being
This section considered how to ensure the pace of scientific and technological change does not expedite issues of inequity in the world.
“Education needs to aim to do more than prepare young people for the world of work; it needs to equip students with the skills they need to become active, responsible and engaged citizens.”
Boundless Education promotes a culture based on the ideals of respect, open-mindedness, and sustainability. Respect for oneself, respect for other people and cultures, and respect for one’s surrounding environment guide interactions among all members of the Boundless Education community: educators, children and their families.
Boundless Education is also the first system to allow families to move around every 3 months with minimum impact on children. This is in effect through flexible calendars, easy transitioning and personalised learning.
Learner agency: Navigating through a complex and uncertain world
The OECD recommended that children need to be guided to develop a sense of responsibility - taking responsibility for and helping to influence people, events and circumstances.
"Two factors, in particular, help learners enable agency. The first is a personalised learning environment that supports and motivates each student to nurture his or her passions, make connections between different learning experiences and opportunities, and design their own learning projects and processes in collaboration with others. The second is building a solid foundation: literacy and numeracy remain crucial. In the era of digital transformation and with the advent of big data, digital literacy and data literacy are becoming increasingly essential, as are physical health and mental well-being"
This is an area where Boundless Education is perfectly aligned. Based on the Finnish system and Nordic Baccalaureate, the Boundless approach creates meaningful learning experiences that inspire our students to question, create and innovate according to their own personal interests while making learning purposeful and relevant.
This dovetails in seamlessly with the mastery of core competencies across Mathematics, English and Science.
Rekha Magon is one of the Co-Founders of Boundless Life and Head of Student Experience. She feels very confident that Boundless Education is fully aligned with the goals identified by the OECD.
“We welcome all families to Boundless Education, where we provide a safe and holistic environment that develops the whole child, cultivates a true love for learning and creates globally minded citizens that are prepared for an unknown future”.
.avif)
