MELBOURNE, MONDAY 14 MAY 2018 – Learners, teachers and industry leaders need not be afraid of the rapidly changing nature of work in Australia, Pearson Asia Pacific Managing Director David Barnett told a panel discussion on Friday, co-presented by Job Getter and Ernst & Young in Melbourne.
Speaking to a group of over 70 industry experts and education providers, the panel also involved Catherine Friday, EY’s Oceania Education leader, and JobGetter CEO, Fiona Anson.
The discussion focused on the future of the global workplace and the recent research commissioned by Pearson regarding trending changes in the education and employment sector.
"Using what we believe to be the most comprehensive and methodologically ambitious approach to investigating this issue, our analysis considered seven global mega-trends that will influence employment and skills in 2030," Mr Barnett said.
The research about the Future of Skills was conducted by the Oxford Martin School at Oxford University and global innovation think tank, Nesta. Using machine learning to trawl through massive US and UK jobs datasets, the research identified both the occupations and - critically – the predicted skills which will be in increased demand by 2030, including:
Globalisation;
Demographic change;
Environmental sustainability;
Urbanisation;
Increasing inequality;
Political uncertainty; and
Technological change
"The complexities and inter-relatedness of these global trends paint an extremely nuanced picture of what it will mean to be a worker in 2030," Mr Barnett said.
"As an education services provider, we are focused on supporting our education systems both in Australia and overseas, to adapt rapidly to account for these new emergent skills and knowledge needs."
JobGetter CEO Fiona Anson said it was up to community, industry and educators to work together to prepare today’s students, graduates and post-graduates to embrace these challenges and opportunities.
"This research gives us real insight into how the job-seekers of tomorrow will be affected," Ms Anson said.
Catherine Friday, EY’s Oceania Education leader, said education providers need to move rapidly to overhaul their business models and adapt course content and structure to meet the needs of a society and economy that is transforming.
"The nature of employment is changing rapidly. To remain relevant – and therefore sustainable – education providers need to stress a learner-focused, rather than faculty-focused, approach, collaborate closely with industry on innovation, and offer new formats such as unbundled degree programs."
The panel was hosted at EY’s office in Melbourne and Mr Barnett said the opportunities available in an evolving education and employment sector was a big focus for the company.
"From the classroom to the board room, the power of machine learning is allowing Australian graduates to take advantage of the opportunities that will only come if we clearly understand the trends," Mr Barnett said.
You can interrogate the data and drill down into which roles and occupations will grow or shrink. You can find it on http://www.pearson.com.au.
Pearson is the world’s learning company, with expertise in educational courseware and assessment, and a range of teaching and learning services powered by technology. Our mission is to help people make progress through access to better learning. We believe that learning opens up opportunities, creating fulfilling careers and better lives. For more, visit www.pearson.com. ---
