A recent study conducted by Gallup titled, “Connecting Education to the Real World” with input from the members of the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) in Doha, Qatar finds that “Globally, education is failing to keep pace with rapidly changing economies, and is not preparing students for the workforce.”
Survey respondents were largely critical of the effectiveness of their education systems and called for focus on teacher quality and collaboration between educators and employers. Just 12 percent considered their education systems innovative. Only 1 percent thought their systems were “extremely innovative.”
WISE participants for this particular survey included over 49 countries across 1,550 members and included several different stakeholder groups: students, parents, teachers, administrators, private sector careers, and policy makers across the board. Results show that most are extremely dissatisfied and feel that education is failing to make students, even those who have completed university degrees, fit to enter the work force. In fact: Three-quarters of those surveyed expressed dissatisfaction with the education system in their countries. Just 34 percent said they saw improvement in their country’s education system in the last decade, while 29 percent said they saw worsened systems. Across WISE community members from the U.S., just 16 percent said the American education system has improved in the last 10 years, despite decades of reform efforts.
The major outcome of this study is the call for greater teacher quality and increased collaboration between teachers and employers.
To read a detailed analysis of this survey from Real Clear Education, see Education Failing to make Students Career Ready
