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The theory of left and right brain dominance is fast being discounted by growing evidence that creative and analytical thinking are not separate, as was once thought. Nicole Willis discusses why society still considers the Sciences and the Arts as opposing forces in education, and why this is short-sighted. In South Africa, mathematics and science have been subjects of great debate in the schooling system. The 2019 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study ranks South Africa as unable to reach the lowest benchmark in the report. Willis dissects the skill sets we will need moving into the future of a rapidly evolving world and whether one ‘side’ of the brain will ever outweigh the other. This article appeared on FirstRand Perspectives. – Melani Nathan.
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| Photo: BizNews |
For those of you into your second or third decades in the working world, think back to a point in time during high school when the conversation with parents, and sometimes teachers, was about future study choices and career ambitions.
The debate centred around which university degrees and fields of study had more credibility than others, and would therefore result in the assurance of future success and wealth. There seemed to be a foregone conclusion that a ‘real’ qualification would provide a ‘real’ job – and those would invariably be either doctor, lawyer, auditor, or accountant...
Jumping back a few centuries to the Classical Greek period, philosophy was seen as the mother of all sciences, as a subject covering the scientific and intellectual understanding of the world.
It seems that, as humans have evolved, it has become more important to favour one over the other, based mostly on their ego value and perceived societal stature. So, are we now seeing a return to placing equal value on left and right brain capabilities?...
Where do we place the value?...The ‘clever kids’ studied science, technology, engineering, and maths as a path to guarantee future success and today, we are living in a society that is more technically advanced than ever before.
But we
are also living in a society where humans have more of a face and a
voice and more power than ever before, and demand a human discourse
between business, governments, and the people...
While, in the past, there may have been a clear winner depending on the zeitgeist of the time, the winners today are those mastering flexibility, educational and professional resilience.
In 2015, the World Economic Forum released the most important skillsets for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
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Source: BizNews
