Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/803478
20 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 26 MARCH 2017 Opinion S killsfuture is a Singaporean national movement designed to provide its nationals with the opportunities to develop each and every person's fullest potential throughout life. It is designed for learners at all levels and promotes lifelong learning since we can all strive for a mastery of our respective skill through knowledge, application and experience. Skillsfuture Singapore has been a very successful initiative primarily because it relies on individuals, with the support of companies, stepping up to take responsibility for their own upgrading. Our own Education+, launched in 2015, aims to do just that. Education+ provides opportunities to transmit skills that are not always otherwise possible to transmit adequately in the classroom. It provides a better link between the classroom and what happens in the world outside, after we finish our school years; this includes work but not exclusively. We aim to provide a holistic approach to foster a culture that supports and celebrates lifelong learning. The importance lies in inspiring the lifelong learning mindset, because a change in attitude is more important than what type of courses are actually taken up. There are many challenges ahead and we need constant feedback from key players in Industry in Malta and Gozo. We have received enormous help from a substantial number of companies who have shared their corporate social responsibility initiatives with us. With an ever changing and developing world, we really do not know what jobs will be in the future. Possibly up to 60% of jobs in the next 10 to 15 years have not yet been created, let alone the skills necessary for employability. The fast-paced changes in work practices and social circumstances stress the importance of adaptability, entrepreneurial sense and critical thinking. Young Enterprise Malta has, over the last 18 years, managed to bring the public and private sectors together to provide young people in primary and secondary schools and early university with high-quality education programmes which teaches them about enterprise, entrepreneurship, business and economics in a practical way. We are finding support from various fields, including accounting, languages, science, Information Technology and economic literacy. Apart from the industry, we have also partnered with other sectors as well as with several NGOs. We have succeeded in forming an association through a formal agreement with several companies, such as Creolabs with innovation by way of creativity labs in various schools; Zghazagh Azzjoni Kattolika and the Malta Scout Group with specific programmes in conjunction with Agenzija Zghazagh; the International Spring Orchestra Festival in Arts projects with Ritmi-Ka and the Malta Stock Exchange with their Financial Literacy Project for students participating in the Alternative Learning Programme. We have also managed to obtain a number of job placements. Obviously, we cannot wait for things to happen – and we are not. We aim to assist teachers in creating opportunities for a community of learning, through networking, targeted projects and sharing of recourses. We need a variety of general and targeted learning strategies to foster social and economic skills. We will work on critical thinking and problem solving, creativity and collaboration. Character qualities including social and cultural awareness must be developed further. These cannot be learned in a classroom only. We need to expose our young people to reality so that they learn how to navigate today's complex and uncharted reality: technical competence is not enough, resilience and resourcefulness are also crucial. We need an education to develop skills, values and behaviour needed to solve problems and be effective in the real world in society and in employment. We cannot afford to narrow down education to simply develop technical skills, as we need to know how to live together and practice moral values of honesty and integrity to also do what is. right. While developing knowledge, competence and the ability to continue learning we also need to develop character. Evarist Bartolo is minister for education and employment Resilience to face the future The right to belong Evarist Bartolo M ariam Albatool School is a Maltese school in which students follow the National Curriculum Framework (NCF). The only difference between this school and other Maltese schools, is that religious education focuses on Islam instead of Catholicism. The secondary school will stop operating as from the next scholastic year and Muslim students will have to attend other schools. A number of them will surely enrol in state schools. The closure of the secondary school prompted the Imam to request again for the teaching of Islamic Studies in state schools. The first time I heard Mr Mohammed Elsadi speak of the teaching of Islamic Studies was during an information meeting about Ethics in Schools, way back in 2014. I find this request by the Muslim community justified for a number of reasons. 1. Entitlement to a quality, holistic education The first principle of the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) says, among other things, that every student is entitled to a quality education. It promotes the development of a holistic education. This means that every student is entitled to an education which focuses on the development of her or his physical, social, intellectual, emotional and spiritual wellbeing. As things presently stand, Muslim students in schools (except for those attending Mariam Albatool) are not receiving their just entitlement, as their spiritual wellbeing is not being considered. If equality in education is to be achieved, it is important to be aware and acknowledge the relationship between education and socio-cultural, political, economic and affective systems that exist in society. Teaching Islamic Studies in schools would mean equalizing access and participation, leading to a more holistic and integrated approach to achievement of equality in education. 2. We are living in a diverse society The NCF also acknowledges that Malta is no longer the perceived homogenous nation of the past, and so our education system must be prepared to address the ever growing diversity within its schools. In order to do this, the NCF proposes, among other things, that schools should be inclusive environments, where diversity is respected in all its forms. Consequently schools cannot be considered inclusive unless they address the existing diversity within them. Part of this diversity is faith, and in our educational context, where Religious Education is confessional, inclusive schools should be able to provide for diverse faiths. I consider the request for Islamic Studies as legitimate, not only because the students are Maltese citizens, and the State should not discriminate among its citizens on the basis of faith. In teaching Islamic Studies, schools would firstly be legitimising the presence of Muslims in schools; they would no longer be considered outsiders, due to their faith. By providing lessons in Islam, schools would be showing respect to the culture and religion of the largest minority in Malta. Social recognition is vital for the students to grow. 3. The right to belong Schools are sites in which much more than instruction takes place. Schools provide an educational experience when they foster in their students a sense of belonging, a sense of well-being and make school a place where they feel safe and secure. Schools, as sites of educational practices, should foster a climate of acceptance and respect for all students. Part of this acceptance is acknowledging the diversity of the students and engaging in practices that support the diverse needs that are manifest in our classes and schools. Muslim students too need to feel respected, accepted and that they belong within the educational institution they attend. I believe that feelings of belonging foster a positive attitude towards the society in which we live. Giving Muslim students the possibility to learn Islam would cultivate a socially just and democratic community. This is integral in the constructions of understandings of learning that are holistic, and that acknowledge the whole person. Individuals whose worth is acknowledged become empowered and are more inclined to become active participants in society. I consider the teaching of Islam in schools as a step forward, a step towards making our society more inclusive and accepting of who we, as Maltese, have become. Louise Chircop is an Ethics Support Teacher within the Directorate for Quality and Standards in Education. She is currently concluding her Ph.D. dissertation, a study of educators' constructions of social diversity Louise Chircop The request for Islamic Studies [is] legitimate, not only because the students are Maltese citizens, [but] the State should not discriminate among its citizens on the basis of faith