Lessons from Generation Z

Nieuws | de redactie
19 maart 2014 | “How could you start an awesome company when you’re making homework the whole night?” What can policy-makers and educators learn from the brightest teenage inventors? A lot it seems, education should be tailor-made, not only for pupils with difficulties.

“Hi, my name is Jordan Casey. I’m 14 years old and I’m from Ireland. Programming seemed like a fun hobby so recently I started a few companies as well.” Today’s inventors are no longer old beardy men tinkering in their shed, anyone can become a life-changing innovator, independent of one’s age and place of birth.

Jordan Casey is not only mobile game developer, he also founded TeachWare, an information management system for primary school teachers. Together with other teenage inventors like Jack Andraka, Casey was invited to speak on the European Commission´s Innovation Convention 2014 to stimulate policy that might pave the road for other teenage inventors and entrepreneurs.

Tailor-made education

However the group is varied, they agree on one thing in particular. “Computer programming needs a more central place in today’s education.” However, teachers and parents often have no idea what the brightest pupils are doing. “To solve this, high-end guest lecturers and special IT-teachers are needed,” Casey suggests.

“The only thing we learned on school was using Office and other basic software. Kids have far more knowledge than their teachers, teachers can find that very intimidating,” Casey explained to EU Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn who wanted to know how to improve Europe’s education in a way so it would spark off more great innovators.

Jack Andraka who invented a sensor test for various cancer-types has some recommendations for the Commissioner. “Every student is an individual, but there are hardly any individual teaching programs, only for pupils with learning difficulties.”

Elif Bilgin, winner of the Google Science Fair 2013 adds: “Some peoples should be able to specialize a lot sooner. I know a lot of talented people in for example arts or literature that also need to do high-level math and science. That really doesn’t work for them and completely demotivates them.”

Nerds and geeks rule the world

It’s one of Europe’s main goals to interest more students for STEM-related fields. Jack Andraka has some ideas how to make that happen: “Let students do independent research, you learn science best when you get your hands dirty. Instead we let students learn a lot of facts and let them puke them down on a test.”

Alberto Elias, e-entrepreneur and young advisor to EU Commissioner Neelie Kroes ventilates some other frustrations. “How could you start an awesome company when you’re making homework the whole night? I didn’t have much time when I wanted to combine my company and school, so I didn’t really sleep well. This didn’t improve my study results.”

The Generation-Z inventors can’t understand that the US lowered its R&D budget in a time when technology is more crucial than ever. “It is a gigantic drawback. Only 7 percent of all scientists that apply for a grant will get one. Look at all the great ideas that get destroyed that way, it’s unbelievable. We are a nation and a world build on science. Nerds and geeks are the ones that rule the world, not pop stars!” Jack Andraka concludes.


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