People could note how the students in the past are schooled in grass-thatched roofs and dirty-floor classrooms, managed to make it this far in their respective professions. Despite the handicaps, students can even mused that they might even be better students than the pupils today exposed to more information and modern educational paraphernalia. But...
Can the students of yesteryears, who were hone only in 3 R’s, namely: reading, writing, and arithmetic survive in the 21st century? May be not.
The 21st century, a distant milestone for science fiction writers and futurists, is here NOW. It is indeed a rare privilege for this generation to witness the passing of one millennium to the other. It is also a moment of challenge to this generation, the children of the future, to find their place in the brave new world.
What is this brave new world?
It is a world of Industrial Darwinism where only the fittest survives. Everyone is racing on the fast track with no one waiting for the others.
It is a world that is technology-driven. Science and Technology proceed in exponential rate that for example the products, manufacturing processes, materials, organizations, jobs, and the ways people live are changing rapidly. In fact, many products and jobs of the 21st century are not even yet defined.
It is a world that is information-driven. The progress in information technology enable the people to capture, retrieve and synthesize data instantly to help them understand, develop, and manage the world around them.
It is also a world that functions as a global village. In producing a product, the invention may come from the Japan; the design of the product using the invention may be done in the U.S.; organization of the production system may be from Germany; raw materials may come from Indonesia; the production plant may be set up in China; while the marketing headquarters may be in Singapore. Amidst intense competition, there will be dynamic networking and collaboration across boarders with players seeking strategic synergy and partnership to improve their product and market share.
This global village is wired together. Glimpses of different cultures and local & international happenings are brought instantly into living room by televisions being programmed beamed through the satellite. Contacting a friend some 10,000 miles away by phones, e-mails, or fax can just be as instant and clear as calling a friend two blocks away.
Tomorrow is today, and today is ticking fast from yesterday. The instant the people gain new knowledge or acquire new product or idea marks the beginning of the passage to obsolescence.
So, in this fast changing world, the unknown rather than the known becomes constant.
This is the brave new world where the young people, the children of the future will carve out their niche as citizens of the country and as a member of a global village.
To prepare everyone for a fast-changing world that is technology-driven, information-driven, and operates as a global village, people must be well equipped with what is referred here LANGUAGES OF SURVIVAL. And what are these languages?
The first is ENGLISH. This universal language is needed not only to converse with the rest of the world but also to understand many of the literatures of science and technology, which are usually in this language. Having mastered the English language, any additional language or dialect is a plus. It is easier to break barriers when other nationalities perceive that one can speak or at least are making effort to understand their own language.
The second is MATHEMATICS. This is the first step and building block to mastering science and technology. People are relating to a world that will be more and more discernible in qualifiedly terms. Distance will not be described as people do in rural areas as being this or that far but in terms of kilometer. Temperature is not described as hot but in terms of centigrade. Efficiency is not looked upon as good but in terms of X-work done in relation to X-money or X man-hours.
The third is SCIENCE. Advances in science are rapid thus enabling the people to understand themselves better, their surroundings, and how things work. The more they know, the more they realize how little they know of their world and how much work needs to be done.
The fourth, which is closely related to science, is TECHNOLOGY. There use to have a saying that science is a general knowledge while technology is applied knowledge. Another differentiation is to say that if knowledge does not make money, it is science while that which that makes money is TECHNOLOGY.
The fifth is COMPUTER. There is no escaping in this. People are just beginning to see the explosive permutations of what computers can do in all facets of their lives. Computers will always be with them not only for office automation but to do simulation in checking out quality of their products; fly airplanes; or aid designs; engineering and manufacturing, etc. So accepted in this notion is that developed countries expose their children as early as 3-4 years to formal lessons with hands-on in computers.
The sixth is FILIPINISM. Adhering to certain values will enable the people to be united, solve problems, complete, reach a higher level of excellence, and soar to greatness as a country, as one. GOD, country community and family must the center of existence. People must think in terms of system, that they are just one of the many parts of a bigger whole and must put in their share in order for a system to work. People must also have discipline, teamwork, sacrifices, spirit of competition, and the will to win.
As what the writer have read in an essay from an English orator and statesman Thomas B. Macaulay’s What Makes a Country Great is that according to him is it is not the country itself that would make the greatness but it is its people.
People must be quick to reward those who perform and work for the common good and neutralize those slacks, abusive, and self-centered.
The last, for me the most important is FAITH or RELIGION. Bright people from leading countries do not necessarily mean are having a better world. Anarchy, terrorism have been waged and countries have been bankrupted morally and economically while being led by bright people who may not have the heart and soul for the common good. A respect for the SUPREME BEING, nature and mankind is necessary to keep our 21st century in harmony and balance.
The first five languages are the languages people can improve fast. The languages of Filipinism and Faith/Religion are the ones need to work harder on and longer with calls for constant learning for the rest of the people’s lives with the will and conviction as these involve the transformation of the heart, soul, and spirit. Unless people have strong moral foundation, not even the most modern sciences and technologies can make a person competitive in the 21st century.
Mastering these languages calls for constant learning for the rest of the people’s lives. Failure to learn these languages will not only make a person obsolete and irrelevant in a rapidly changing world but will increase the gap between the ignorant and knowledgeable and between the rich and the poor.
Entering the 21st century is like entering a house. It is easier to enter a room wherein one is familiar with but he hesitates to enter a chamber that he knows little about. It is easier to live in the past than to confront the future unprepared.
Through all these people must be brave to face a New World. Everyone must dare to face the unknown.
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