THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION
We need to embrace education as a top priority across the globe.
by John Gai Yoh and Paula Cristina Roque
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We need to embrace education as a top priority across the globe, changing outdated curricula, do away with inequality, and equipping the next generation with diverse tools that prepare them to collaborate not compete with each other. That teaches them values; Skills and concepts that will help them better face the challenges we are ill-equipped to face. We must espouse education that aspires to meet the priorities of the future of humanity. In education, we experienced the greatest divide of all. Today, in the COVID-19 era, in some parts of the world parents became frontline teachers using online tools. In other parts of the world children were sent home without any form of continuing education programs. Left behind by lack of resources, access to internet and support systems. This injustice must be addressed in the new normalcy.
Higher education should no longer be reserved for the privileged and wealthy. It must innovate, be futuristic in outlook, transcend geography and be accessible to all. Indeed, the time is now when we need higher education that is qualitative, relevant, recognizes diversity, develops critical thinking and concentrates on advancing a safer science and technology.
— John Gai Yoh
We owe it to our children to prepare them better for a complex and changing world - so that they can not only survive but adapt and become actors of change. Outdated curricula and teaching philosophies do more harm than good. Schools across the globe are starting to experiment with new ways of learning but we need to take that further still.
The next generations should not perpetuate the discriminations, paternalism, and historical injustices of the past. We need to teach our children about diversity, tolerance, pluralism, about taking the lead while but being collaborative, innovative, creative and empathetic. They need to do better for the world and their community than we did.
— Paula Cristina Roque
We owe it to our children to prepare them better, so they can not only survive, but to adapt and become actors of change
Dr John Gai Yoh, Founder and the Chairman of the Board of South Sudan Center for Strategic and Policy Studies.
Dr Paula Cristina Roque, Senior External Advisor, and co-founder of the South Sudan Centre for Strategic and Policy Studies.
OUR SPEAKERS
John Gai Yoh
Dr John Gai Yoh, Founder and the Chairman of the Board of South Sudan Center for Strategic and Policy Studies, is a South Sudanese national, born in 1964, obtained BA in Political Science and MA in history from the American University of Beirut (AUB) in Lebanon and PhD in International Politics from University of South Africa in Pretoria. He has served in various capacities within South Sudan and abroad. His assignments included Presidential Advisor on Education and Minister of Education, Science & Technology.
He also served as the first South Sudanese ambassador to the Republic of Turkey and head of government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) Southern African Liaison Office, Pretoria. The Mission was accredited to South Africa, Botswana, Angola, Namibia, Swaziland, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius and SADC Organization.
Dr Yoh has lectured in universities both in Middle East and South Africa. He was Resident Research Associate at the Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies, Amman, Jordan between 1996 and 2003 as well as lecturer at University of South Africa in Pretoria between 2003 and 2007.
He has authored several works on Africa, Sudanese politics, international politics, religion and politics in East Africa as well as articles in academic journals, magazines and in newspapers on diverse aspects of African politics, regional and international organizations, security, strategic studies, and political conflicts in Africa.
Paula Cristina Roque
Dr Paula Cristina Roque spent 18 years working on conflict analysis and human security in Africa. In 2019 she decided to change course and dedicate the next 20 years to helping change what children are taught in schools. She is in the embryonic stages of designing a programme that introduces key notions of diversity, tolerance, peace making and empathy to young children. From 2016-19 she was an Advisor for Sub-Saharan Africa with the Crisis Management Initiative, a peace-making organization of former President Martti Ahtisaari. She is a Senior External Advisor, and co-founder of the South Sudan Centre for Strategic and Policy Studies in Juba.
She was previously the senior analyst for Southern Africa (covering Angola and Mozambique) with the International Crisis Group. From 2008–2010 she was the Horn of Africa senior researcher for the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria. Prior to that she had worked as the China in Africa Research Coordinator for the South African Institute for International Affairs. She has a doctorate in Development Studies from the University of Oxford. She also holds an MSC in Human Rights from the London School of Economics and a BA in Social Anthropology from ISCTE in Lisbon. Her forthcoming book Governing in the Shadows: Angola’s Securitized State, published by Hurst/AIA, will be out in 2021.
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Individuals contributed with their image and content in a personal capacity, not as a part of their role in any institution or company listed on this website.
Resources and points of view
Why COVID19 is exacerbating educational inequalities in Kenya, article in Democracy in Africa
For Kenya’s already fragile education system, the coronavirus pandemic has generate unprecedented challenges for the government, students, and parents. These have already exposed some of the cracks in the system. As the nation begins to grapple with these challenges, a key question arises: How can Kenya’s education system best adapt to a changing world?
Educational technology is coming of age during the pandemic, article in The Economist
EDTECH HAS never quite fulfilled its promise to galvanise poorly performing school systems. Past investments in educational technology often failed because of badly specified hardware and clunky software, which put off potential users. But as with much else, the closures forced on the world by the covid-19 pandemic has put pressure on schools, parents and pupils to embrace innovation. Has its moment arrived?
When School Is Online, the Digital Divide Grows Greater, article in Wired
Most US schools are closed, with instruction shifting to the internet. That's a problem for millions of people without reliable broadband, including 20 percent of rural students.
Mandela's belief that education can change the world is still a dream, article in The Conversation
Universities can make a contribution in two ways: through the empowerment of individuals and through the generation of knowledge.
Education for refugees and IDPs in low- and middle-income countries: identifying challenges and opportunities, article in HEART
This topic guide is designed to support DFID advisors, education specialists, and other partners working on providing education for refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). It provides an overview of the key issues, and signposts relevant sources for further information and reading.
Bring on the learning revolution, TED talk by Sir Ken Robinson
In this poignant, funny follow-up to his fabled 2006 talk, Sir Ken Robinson makes the case for a radical shift from standardized schools to personalized learning -- creating conditions where kids' natural talents can flourish.
Moulding agents for change and reimagining the future.
In Denmark, Empathy Is Taught As A School Subject That Kids Must Learn From A Very Young Age, article in Thinking Minds
While math and science are important in life, Denmark knows that empathy is much more important a life lesson that will take people further than numbers and formulas ever will.
