What will education be like in 2050? Young people have their say

"One thing that leaves me uncertain is how to move towards a future of cooperation that everyone wants. I believe in mutual trust, but we must always take into account the real world we live in today: where competition is extreme, and I believe that the sooner a young person realises this, the better," says Mariana Sofia, a Portuguese student at the United World College (UWC) of the Adriatic. “I believe the future lies in cooperation, but today we live in a capitalist and ultra-competitive society. How can we reduce the gap between reality and desire?"

The visit by 15 students from the only UWC in Italy, during the ETF’s 30th anniversary events at the end of November, begins with piercing and topical questions: despite their young age, between 17 and 18, the students, accompanied by rector Khalid El-Metaal and coordinator Maria Chiara Billi, already have a clear vision, free of easy illusions.

The young people, together with a number of Young European Ambassadors and journalists from national newspapers in the European Neighbourhood countries, were welcomed to Villa Gualino by Hugues Moussy, Jan Peter De Otero and Cristiano Cagnin from the ETF, together with Riel Miller, one of the world's leading authorities on the theory and practice of future literacy. The session aimed to empower young people to make their voices truly heard on what education systems could—and should—look like  in 25 years time. This followed a busy morning of engaging with expert panel and EU representatives.

Even in the morning, the pupils were not passive spectators. “For me, it was impressive to be on an equal footing with international experts, without the pressure of my age," noted Ecaterina, a student from Moldova.

"It has been an enlightening experience - I feel like we are learning and having fun at the same time, experiencing new things here," said Irish student Luke. "One concept I'm going to look into more when I get back home is that of soft skills: I think it's important to understand what's behind them, to really grasp how crucial they are in shaping the future of education,” he said.

A pupil from Armenia, Sona, asked the presenters what the ETF was doing for young people in the EU's neighbouring countries. From Central Asia with DARYA, to the Western Balkans with Youth Guarantee, to fragile contexts such as Ukraine and Palestine, the ETF supports the EU's wider agenda where youth is at the heart of policy-making.

"But how do we make our voice fully heard? In these challenging times in the world, sometimes you lose confidence in your potential impact. We know the problems we face, but sometimes we feel we don't have the power to change them," said Bora from Kosovo.

“Don't let us adults tell you what you can and can't do. To be part of the change, act at whatever level you feel comfortable: from your neighbourhood to your region, find your community,” said De Otero. “Together, you can help improve the intergenerational discourse, which is one of the great limitations of our time: we need to get back to talking across generations, to understanding each other,” Cagnin reiterated.

The concept of youth itself is very relative and socially constructed. “We are convinced that inventions and what we know today are the work of old and wise men (and women, since their emancipation). It is an absolute stereotype. In reality, the greatest works of past geniuses came when they were in their 20s and 30s. In past societies, what we now consider adolescence was already considered adulthood," Moussy said.

“When I gave my first public lecture in 1971, I was also very suspicious of the adults of my time: I felt they were trying to fix something without even knowing what it was. I felt they were playing God,” says Miller. “But today I ask you: are you sure you can do better than we did?" he asked provocatively.

One constant in education is that it is in constant crisis: no matter how many improvements can be made to a system, there will always be a sense that the bulk of it needs to be improved. A perpetual crisis, because the perfect education system is a textbook illusion that is not reflected in reality.

“In fact, I don't see education as a fixed thing, but as a process that is constantly evolving in line with technological and social progress,” Mariana Sofia observes. “What I have learnt these days is that adaptability is a key word in education systems, because they have to be so as a consequence of the new ideas and people that enter them every day”.

Education itself, on the other hand, is a discourse, with mainstream views prevailing at any given time, but these can change faster than we think. What is relevant today may not be relevant tomorrow. “It is also important that the discourse is coherent: if we talk about lifelong learning and youth education, and we pride ourselves on listening to young people's voices, why do we wait for them to complete decades of study, often after their PhDs, before we take their views seriously?” wondered Rector El-Metaal.

“Organisations like the ETF give me the feeling that young people's voices can really be heard: especially because the focus is right. It is important that the ETF reaches out to young people outside the European Union first of all, because we will be the first to be affected by the changes we are talking about,” noted Serbian student Dejana. 

At the end of the session, the fifteen young people were asked how many of them foresaw a better world in 2050 than the one we live in today. Nearly half—seven participants—replied that they foresaw a better world, and therefore a better education system in 25 years' time. 

In response to Miller's provocative question, "Are young people capable of doing better than you adults?", everyone agreed on some basic points. Namely, that wisdom, the ability to make well-considered decisions, comes with time: but time is also relative, as Moussy noted earlier. The sooner you start to fail, the sooner you will reach the level that allows you to know yourself. 

The greatest minds of our time achieved greatness not just because they failed, but because they overcame their failures on the path to realising their goals. We are confident that among us today are those who will persevere through setbacks—both small disappointments and major challenges—and use the education of 2050 as a foundation for a better world.