Opinion

The importance of inculcating entrepreneurial skills at a young age

The world today needs doers, innovators, thinkers, and makers, which is only possible when the foundation is laid at the school level itself. Admittedly, the education system at the school level is changing, but not at the required pace.

Published

on

The world today needs doers, innovators, thinkers, and makers, which is only possible when the foundation is laid at the school level itself. Admittedly, the education system at the school level is changing, but not at the required pace. Only a handful of public and private schools are modernizing, as they include group activities, role play, simulation, and online learning – all integrated with science and art. Yet, most of the institutions, including those which are modernised, do not teach the core of modern education: entrepreneurship, which explains how to begin a venture, and enables creative thinking and an ambitious nature amongst students.

Today a dilemma exists among students as well as people interested in the improvement of education. On the one hand, we want to inculcate creativity, decision-making skills, and the quality of independence among students but, on the other hand, we don’t do anything to include it in our product. The education system pedagogy needs to witness a sea change today, with a rise in interdisciplinary programs specially designed for students. It is becoming essential to inculcate business acumen in students at the school level, which will help in integrating experiential learning and gradually help build up entrepreneurial skills to tackle the challenges in this multi competent world.

“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, and catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, Dream, Discover.” – Mark Twain

Mark Twain, famous author and entrepreneur, advocated inspiring the younger generation to create enterprises that would evolve into solution providers, and employment generators for the nation. He believed that the jobs on which our generation relied, no longer remained relevant. If students, at a young age before graduating from school, are innovation-ready, they will invent their own careers.

Advertisement

Entrepreneurship education benefits all kinds of students from different socio economic backgrounds, since it fosters creative thinking and brings mind-set change. It also creates opportunities, instils confidence and responsibility and societal skills amongst the students. Schools should embed entrepreneurship education in their curriculum; however they can take external help from myriad organisations to teach and run these programs. Entrepreneurship education is essential today to build economy, and economic development. It also encourages students to take risks, and make mistakes and learn at an early age, and gather experience of the world.

Entrepreneurship education programs may not make students book-smart, but it will definitely hone their people-skills and risk-taking abilities. Founder, Virgin Group, Richard Branson, was a bad student while in school. He believes, had he gone through formal education in entrepreneurship, he could have been good at a variety of things. Creating entrepreneurial awareness will also promote social and emotional well-being of an individual as the kids do not see profit and purpose as mutually exclusive.

“If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got.” – Albert Einstein

Digital marketing too is becoming a promising platform for the education industry. Today younger kids, right from the age of 2 – 3 years, start playing with gadgets and devices. Teaching youngsters the right use of web and digital media will bring transformational thinking, which this generation will easily adapt to. The present generation lives in an era of boundary-less world and demands mobility. If they gain digital skills at the elementary level it would enhance their way of shaping their career. Young people's employability is threatened by labour market mismatches: inadequate skills, limited geographic mobility and inadequate wages. A changed education system embedded with these skills can definitely show good results because it will focus on key skills and make them aware of the same well in advance. It will not only enable students to inculcate entrepreneurial skills, but will also make them valuable contributors to India’s economy.

About the author:

Advertisement

Dr Sheenu Jain is Assistant Professor at Jaipuria Institute of Management, Jaipur and is the faculty in the area of Marketing & Entrepreneurship.

This article appeared in the September 2017 issue of ScooNews magazine.

Trending

Exit mobile version