Andrea and He Ying (4C)

1) The future of work is getting transparent because no one would take your word for it and tools are revolutionising productivity measurement, which means you can't lie about your productivity rate. The more productive you are, the more money you make. The future of work is getting flat, in a sense no one is going to complain about commute. There is a usage of amazing web tools to work together from anywhere in the world such as tools like Skype have made long distance calling virtually free. Thus location will not matter anymore, and earning be potentially based on merit not location. The future of work is getting competitive because no one will pay you for just having a degree since the percentage of ppl with college degree is increasing. Informal education has been made more accessible than ever since websites post educational material for free online. There is no longer excuse to not knowing 'how'. Competition is not comparing with other individuals, and you need to standout, which is by being innovative. The future of work is getting on demand as no one is going to guarantee a life long career. The word "career" is as outdated as the word "typewriter". Individuals will have more freedom and power than before and employer have access to larger and more skilled workforce. 

2) Without a doubt, the European education system beats the Asian equivalent in best preparing students for the work of the future as it encourages creativity and free expression in students alongside formal education. The knowledge economy puts great emphasis on an individual’s ideas and creative thinking. “The Future of Work” from the company oDesk stated that to ensure one stays employed in the workplace of the future, one must stand out in terms of creativity. In a society where students are all on par in terms of academic qualifications, the key defining factor would be their level of innovation and approaches to the resolution of different problems. Additionally, with reference to a recent IBM poll of 1500 CEOs identified creativity as the number one “leadership competency” for the future. Furthermore, in the Asian education system, standardized curriculum, rote memorization and nationalized testing, such as the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), form our system’s core focus. Such means of educating stifle creativity for students from as young as 7 years old are taught that answers to key subjects such as mathematics and science are fixed and any forms of variation from the standard answers are unaccepted. Through this process, it is instilled in a student that being different is not something one would be rewarded for and to please the cookie-cutter system, our Asian students obediently comply. In comparison, the European education system promotes learning through experiment and provides many platforms for their students to engage in activities that help them strengthen problem solving skills and give them a basis for free expression of ideas. A common practice in Finnish schools would be regular outdoor practical lessons where students are exposed to an unrestrained classroom environment. By contrasting both systems means of teaching their students, it is evident that the European system has recognized the importance of innovation and creativity so as to produce students that are ready to meet the demands of the knowledge economy and has implemented better methods of promoting these values as compared to the Asian system. Thus, we are able to conclude that the European education system is leading in terms being able to prepare students well to complement and excel in the future economy.