Dr. Philip J. Spottswood, Director

The price of food is skyrocketing! The price of oil continues to climb into the stratosphere! Global warming is changing the climate worldwide. The nature of work is changing as more and more robots take over more and more jobs that used to be done by you and me.

Even as we adjust to these changes, we must also be preparing our children to live and work in a world that is changing at an exponential rate. ⁱ The worker of the 21st century will be a knowledge worker, creatively working individually and in small teams to develop new ways to solve problems. In the hyper-competitive work world ⁱⁱ that our children will face, where you live and who you are will not be as important as what you have learned and how you can use what you have learned to create new value in a highly competitive, rapidly changing world.

As parents, we have to focus our concern on preparing our children to be competitive in this "new world" that our children will work in. So you work diligently to find the best school for your children. But let me encourage you to dig deeper than asking if the school is accredited by an international accrediting body. Let me encourage you to look not only at the curriculum the school uses, but also at how it integrates the curriculum with the rapidly changing knowledge base that is now accessible via the internet.

In a meeting that KIS administrators and teachers held this month with Senior Executives from Microsoft Corporation who work in the area of education ⁱⁱⁱ , the discussion centered around what Microsoft has learned from sponsoring 12 "schools of innovation" around the world. These schools were developed to answer the question, "What is the best way to prepare students to work in the new environment that makes information technology and its use one of the cornerstone skills needed by "knowledge" workers in the 21st century?" Having reviewed the IT equipment and training provided by KIS, the education experts from Microsoft said that the state of the art IT equipment and training we provide are only part of what students need to learn to be successful in the 21st century work world.

"What else do 21st century students need to learn?", we asked them. The Microsoft team said that industries are looking for workers who are creative, able to think "outside the box" to create new solutions to problems. Industry leaders are looking for persons who work effectively as individuals and in small teams to create new solutions that create value for the corporations that they work in.

Industries said they needed workers who can sell their ideas in their own companies as well as to customers. ^iv They need their employees to be fluent in English and in at least one or two other languages. They need workers who are multi-cultural and able to work with colleagues from any country and from every culture.

How do we translate what companies are seeking from employees in this new highly competitive knowledge work environment to which school we place our children in? Let me suggest a few keys. First, does the school have state of the art information technology equipment and training? Second, does the school focus on educating the whole child who is comfortable working independently but also in small groups. Does the school encourage creativity and still require that the basics (math, science, language(s), and history/social sciences, etc.) are taught with rigor? Does the school culture reflect a passion for learning and a willingness to do whatever is needed to inspire every student to maximize their gifts and interests?

You will also want to look very carefully at the pedagogical strategy of schools that use the International Baccalaureate curriculum. Considered by education experts world wide to be the premier pedagogical strategy to prepare students for university education, the IB curriculum, starting at age 3 and culminating with the coveted "IB Diploma" that opens the door to top flight universities in every the United States, Europe, and Asia, provides an educational environment that addresses the very skills that employers in industry are looking for today. Kazakhstan International School has implemented the Primary Years Program of the IB in 2007-2008 and will implement the Middle Years Program IB curriculum in 2008-2009. We will then add the Diploma Program of the IB in 2009-2010. You can be sure that your children will get the very best education to prepare them for university and for work post graduation.

Let me invite you to visit our school and "see" for yourselves how we are putting our concern for your child's education to be a successful knowledge worker in the 21st century into action. ^v Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share my concerns for your child's education and the education of all children with you. ^vi

1. Ray Kurzwel, "The Singularity is Near".
2. Tom Friedman, "The World is Flat"
3. The meeting between Microsoft executives, represented by Mr. Bradley Tipp, Soluions Architect, EMEA Education Solutions Group; Mr. Mike Lloyd, Marketing Manager, UK Education, Dr. Monika Kavanova, Education Sales and Marketing Lead, Central and Eastern Europe HQ, and Ms. Khalida Kyrykbayeva, Education Coordinator, Microsoft Kazakhstan and K.I.S. Administrators and teachers was held on April 24th, 2008 on the campus of K.I.S.
4. It is interesting that the skills industries are looking for in their workers are the very skills that are systematically taught as part of the International Baccalaureate Curriculum.
5. For additional information on the future of education and educating for the future, there are two papers written by Dr. Spottswood that are accessible on our web site.
6. Finally, we want to learn what you can teach us about how to best prepare students to meet the challenges of the 21st century. We want to learn from your experience, your perspective, and your concerns. Please e-mail them to pjspottswood@kisnet.org.