Today's students will enter careers they haven't even imagined yet. Now that ai and automation are reshaping entire industries, the skills that employers once valued are being overtaken by the need for creativity, adaptability, and technological fluency. But how can schools equip students with these essential skills?
To explore this challenge, EdSurge sat down with Brian Johnsruddirector of education, learning and promotion Adobe. Share ideas on how schools can leverage creative tools to equip students with the skills they will need to thrive in a world where the only constant is change. Adobe, known for its cutting-edge digital literacy and creative tools, is paving the way for a new approach to education, one that combines technical expertise with the soft skills that will define the workforce of tomorrow.
EdSurge: How can educators prepare students for the workforce of the future and foster in-demand skills like creativity and adaptability?
Johnsrud: Educators can stay informed about future workforce trends, including emerging jobs and most sought-after skills. School leaders are increasingly turning to organizations like the World Economic Forum and analyzing data on the most in-demand skills over the next five years. This allows them to prepare students for future needs, even if the current curriculum does not yet require those skills.
The latest Employment Report from the World Economic Forum highlights the Top skills that will increase in importance by 2027. Creative thinking tops the list, followed by analytical or critical thinking. The third most important skill is technological literacy, which includes ai and other technologies. Interestingly, the fourth is curiosity and lifelong learning, and the fifth is resilience, flexibility and agility.
What does this shift in skills demand mean for employers and job seekers?
These skills really highlight the skills revolution we are facing. Employers increasingly recognize that while hiring someone with the exact skills needed for a job today is great, those needs will change in a couple of years. The real question is whether the person is a lifelong learner (someone who can self-learn and adapt as the landscape changes) and whether they have the resilience, flexibility and agility to thrive in a world and industry that is constantly evolving.
How can creative tools help students develop the technical and soft skills needed for future careers?
One approach is to train students on industry-standard tools to familiarize them with what they will use in the workplace. It's also important to equip them with professional-quality templates and resources so that the projects they are creating truly look like professional results. Pedagogically, this approach is authentic, project-based, real-world learning. Instead of creating something that only makes sense in the classroom, let's give them real, authentic projects to work on.
Collaboration is also the future of work, and any creative tool that has built-in collaboration features provides opportunities for students to not only create but co-create with others, share feedback, and exchange ideas.
How can educators choose the right tools to foster creativity in the classroom?
Choose tools that offer both a low floor and high ceiling, such as Adobe Express for education. This means providing entry points that allow anyone to start creating, regardless of their starting point. The high ceiling comes into play when moving from Adobe Express to Creative Cloud; You'll never outgrow our creative tools.
Additionally, addressing creative confidence is essential as it often represents a significant barrier for students. Many students think, “I'm not creative; “I don’t know if I can design something that looks cool.” The fear of blank canvas It's real and it can be discouraging. Teachers can help by providing professional-looking templates that allow students to focus on the content instead of starting from scratch.
What makes a tool truly valuable in education?
The real value of a tool in the classroom goes far beyond its features. It's about having the right content, support and resources to help everyone use it effectively. Carry Adobe Express for educationFor example. We've loaded it with free lesson plans and resources for teachers, plus a learning tab with videos and guided activities for students to practice on their own. And when it comes to demonstrating what they've learned, students can take Adobe Certified Professional Exams — we've been offering them for 17 years and have issued more than 1.8 million certifications.
It's about giving teachers the tools to teach effectively and students the means to showcase their skills to universities and employers. That's what makes a creative tool really valuable in education.
How does ai influence creative education?
ai plays an important role in enhancing this creativity. It can assist in brainstorming and rapid iteration, helping students quickly generate diverse ideas and alternatives. ai also helps students step away from routine tasks to see the bigger picture.
In this sense, traditional education has often taught students to swim in a controlled pool. With ai, we teach them to surf in an ever-changing ocean. It's not just about repetition and efficiency; it is about adapting to changing conditions and engaging in creative thinking. ai acts like a surfboard, allowing students to navigate changes and thrive in an unpredictable world.
How is ai changing teaching and learning strategies?
Traditionally, education has focused on teaching students to perform specific tasks. However, as ai increasingly automates many of these tasks, our educational approach must change. I think the next focus should be on understanding the context: knowing what tasks to do, when to do them, and why.
As task execution becomes easier, it will become increasingly valuable to understand the broader context of these tasks. Understanding context is a crucial human skill that is best taught through storytelling and real-world applications.
History and English language arts teachers have long excelled at teaching context by helping students understand the background and culture surrounding historical texts or events. This broader perspective, although not often emphasized outside of these topics, is becoming essential across disciplines.
By mastering storytelling and contextual understanding, students can see the bigger picture in complex situations, understand how individual tasks contribute to broader goals, develop creative solutions to multifaceted problems, and adapt more easily to changing circumstances in their future careers. .
